person
Otho
also: Othonem, Othonis
Owner of a suburban property that Cicero hoped to acquire for Tullia's shrine in 45 BC; his coming onto the market briefly revived the negotiations. Probably a Roscius Otho.
Reading notes
- Ad Atticum 12.37 §2 I should very much like you to meet Otho, if he is in Rome
Otho was a part-owner or rival bidder in the Scapula gardens whose involvement Cicero hoped to turn to advantage. His name recurs through these letters as the hunt for the shrine-site stalls and revives.
- Ad Atticum 12.39 §2 had Otho not turned up
The reappearance of Otho, connected with the Scapula gardens, briefly revived the search for a site for Tullia's shrine. Cicero notes the matter has again been postponed, leaving him nothing fresh to report.
- Ad Atticum 13.29 §1 I want you to outbid Otho
L. Roscius Otho was a rival bidder for the gardens. Cicero, doubting Otho's solvency, urges Atticus to outbid him regardless of price.
- Ad Atticum 13.31 §4 I am ashamed of his father
A barbed aside about Otho, the rival bidder, whose "tasteless palate" (gula) Cicero mocks. The remark about his father implies the family fell short of its forebears.