Victor of Samsuricum

fl. AD 320 (death unrecorded) · Gravedigger and artifex of Cirta · Cirta (Constantina), Numidia

The Nicene Age

Who Victor of Samsuricum was

Sworn in as a fossor and describing himself as an artisan — artifex, a word that in this period covers the painter and the sculptor as much as the digger. His testimony is the clearest ancient evidence that the gravedigger corporation which cut the catacombs also decorated them. He had heard Silvanus admit the betrayal from his own mouth, in the basilica, in front of the people.

Verified single attestation

Named once, in the Gesta apud Zenophilum — the Cirta records of 19 May 303 and 13 December 320; no other ancient source names him.

Common questions

When was Victor active?

Victor of Samsuricum is dated fl. AD 320 (death unrecorded) in the archive, which places Victor in the Nicene Age (AD 313–400).

Which early sources mention Victor?

Victor of Samsuricum is named in 1 primary-source passage catalogued here, drawn from Gesta apud Zenophilum. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.

Where was Victor from?

The archive associates Victor of Samsuricum with Cirta (Constantina), Numidia. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.

Who were Victor’s contemporaries?

The archive links Victor of Samsuricum to 5 other figures, including Silvanus of Cirta, Saturninus, Meraclus and Diogenes the Gravedigger. 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.

The trial before Domitius Zenophilus, 13 December 320

c. AD 320

Victor said: ‘I am an artisan.’ … ‘He began there his address to the people with these words: “On what ground do they say that I am a Betrayer? Is it because of the lamp and the casket?”’

Gesta apud Zenophilum · Gesta apud Zenophilum, trial of 13 December 320 · source text