The Apostolic Fathers · AD 70–130
Valerius Bito
fl. c. 96 (death unrecorded) · Envoy of the Roman church to Corinth · Rome → Corinth
The Apostolic Fathers
Who Valerius Bito was
Claudius Ephebus’s colleague in the Corinthian mediation, his gentile name marking the house of the Valerii Messallae — whose ranks, a generation later, would furnish Christian burials in the earliest catacombs. Lightfoot took the pair’s household names, ages, and unblemished record as a deliberate signal: Rome’s embassy was chosen for gravity. He is otherwise unrecorded; the letter he carried became, at Corinth, scripture-adjacent for a century (Dionysius of Corinth reports it still read in church, c. 170).
1 Clement 63–65 only.
Common questions
When was Valerius Bito active?
Valerius Bito is dated fl. c. 96 (death unrecorded) in the archive, which places Valerius Bito in the Apostolic Fathers (AD 70–130). The dating is traditional and approximate; the archive marks it as uncertain rather than fixing a year the sources do not give.
Which early sources mention Valerius Bito?
Valerius Bito is named in 1 primary-source passage catalogued here, drawn from Clement of Rome. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Valerius Bito from?
The archive associates Valerius Bito with Rome, Corinth. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Who were Valerius Bito’s contemporaries?
The archive links Valerius Bito to 3 other figures, including Claudius Ephebus, Fortunatus of Corinth and Clement of Rome. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (1)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
1 Clement 65
c. AD 96Now send ye back speedily unto us our messengers Claudius Ephebus and Valerius Bito, together with Fortunatus also, in peace and with joy.Clement of Rome · 65 · source text
Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 30 · Crucifixion, Resurrection and Pentecost, AD 30–33
- AD 44 · Persecution under Herod Agrippa I, AD 44
- AD 49 · The Council of Jerusalem, AD 49
- AD 57 · Paul writes Romans, AD 57
- AD 62 · James the Just stoned, AD 62
- AD 64 · The Great Fire and Nero’s persecution, AD 64
- AD 70 · The fall of Jerusalem, AD 70
- AD 95 · Domitian’s reprisals, AD 95
- AD 96 · Rome writes to Corinth: 1 Clement, AD 96
Place
Places served
The 2 places the sources put Valerius Bito, in the order the record moves through them. This is what the sources attest, not a reconstructed route.