The most expensive slave in rome: quintus lutatius daphnis

This article offers a detailed reconstruction of the life and career of Quintus Lutatius Daphnis (ca. mid-130s–ca. 80s or later BCE), who was born into servitude in Italy and twice sold for the highest price recorded in a Roman source (HS 700,000) before being manumitted. Daphnis’ education, upward mobility, and literary pursuits are used to reflect both on the luxury market for the highly educated (who were specially trained from a young age) and on the many roles such intellectuals played in the households of Rome’s political and social elite.