Petronius

Petronius, surnamed Aebitee, u Roman satirist concerning whose personality nothing is known. It is conjectured that he is identical with the Caius Petronius mentioned by Tacitus, a courtly and profligate favourite of Nero, who was banished through the intrigues of Tigellinus, and committed suicide by opening his veins. The fragments of his Satires which remain, give a vivid but repulsive picture of contemporary social life.