97 BC
Encyclopedia
Year 97 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar
. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Lentulus and Crassus (or, less frequently, year 657 Ab urbe condita
). The denomination 97 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
calendar era
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Roman calendar
The Roman calendar changed its form several times in the time between the founding of Rome and the fall of the Roman Empire. This article generally discusses the early Roman or pre-Julian calendars...
. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Lentulus and Crassus (or, less frequently, year 657 Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita is Latin for "from the founding of the City ", traditionally set in 753 BC. AUC is a year-numbering system used by some ancient Roman historians to identify particular Roman years...
). The denomination 97 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
Anno Domini
and Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....
calendar era
Calendar era
A calendar era is the year numbering system used by a calendar. For example, the Gregorian calendar numbers its years in the Western Christian era . The instant, date, or year from which time is marked is called the epoch of the era...
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Roman Republic
- ConsulConsulConsul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...
s: Gnaeus Cornelius LentulusGnaeus Cornelius LentulusGnaeus Cornelius Lentulus was a consul of the Roman Republic in 146 BC. His colleague was Lucius Mummius Achaicus, whose military achievements outshone him.He was from the Lentuli branch of the gens Cornelia...
and Publius Licinius Crassus Dives - C. Decianus, the prosecutorProsecutorThe prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
of Furius, is himself condemned for his remarks about the death of SaturninusLucius Appuleius SaturninusLucius Appuleius Saturninus was a Roman popularist and tribune; he was a political ally of Gaius Marius, and his downfall caused a great deal of political embarrassment for Marius, who absented himself from public life until he returned to take up a command in the Social War of 91 to 88...
. - The Romans subdue the MaediMaediThe Maedi , were a Thracian or Illyrian tribe, which in historic times, occupied the area between Paionia and Thrace, on the southwestern fringes of Thrace, along the middle course of the Strymon, between the Kresna Gorge and the Rupel Pass...
and DardaniDardaniDardania was the region of the Dardani .Located at the Thraco-Illyrian contact zone, their identification as either an Illyrian or Thracian tribe is uncertain. Their territory itself was not considered part of Illyria by Strabo. The term used for their territory was , while for other tribes had...
. - L. Domitius takes harsh measures to restore order in SicilySicilySicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
. - The censorCensor (ancient Rome)The censor was an officer in ancient Rome who was responsible for maintaining the census, supervising public morality, and overseeing certain aspects of the government's finances....
s, FlaccusFlaccusFlaccus was a cognomen of the ancient Roman plebeian family Fulvius, considered one of the most illustrious gentes of the city. Cicero and Pliny the Elder state that the family was originally from Tusculum, and that members still lived there in the 1st century.As usual for cognomina, "Flaccus" was...
and AntoniusAntoniusAntonius is the nomen of the gens Antonia, one of the most important plebeian families at Rome. It is also the source of the English personal name Anthony, as well as a number of similar names in various European languages....
, remove M. Duronius from the senate because of his opposition to sumptuary laws. - A decree of the Roman senateRoman SenateThe Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...
bans human sacrifices. - Sulla displays a lion hunt for the first time in games at Rome.
Asia Minor
- Ariarathes VIII is forced out of CappadociaCappadociaCappadocia is a historical region in Central Anatolia, largely in Nevşehir Province.In the time of Herodotus, the Cappadocians were reported as occupying the whole region from Mount Taurus to the vicinity of the Euxine...
by MithridatesMithridates VI of PontusMithridates VI or Mithradates VI Mithradates , from Old Persian Mithradatha, "gift of Mithra"; 134 BC – 63 BC, also known as Mithradates the Great and Eupator Dionysius, was king of Pontus and Armenia Minor in northern Anatolia from about 120 BC to 63 BC...
, and dies soon afterwards.
Middle East
- The birth of Saint JosephSaint JosephSaint Joseph is a figure in the Gospels, the husband of the Virgin Mary and the earthly father of Jesus Christ ....
, the father of JesusJesusJesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
. According to this account, Joseph was 92 years old when Jesus was born.
Japan
- SujinEmperor Sujin; also known as Mimakiiribikoinie no Sumeramikoto or Hatsukunishirasu Sumeramikoto; was the tenth emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession....
becomes emperor of JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
(probable date)