ABSTRACT
Although not as clearly defined as De iudiciis publicis, a genre devoted specifically to punishment did exist. But its nomenclature was not stable. The only straightforward title is the De poenis in four books of Ulpian’s pupil, Herennius Modestinus, who flourished over the first half of the third century.1 The Severan jurist, Iulius Paulus, also worked in the genre. He is credited with four monographs.2 Finally, the word poena appears in the title of Claudius Saturninus’ monograph on civilian penalties, De poenis paganorum. The Florentine Index to the Digest credits the work to Venuleius Saturninus. The accreditation is suspect, and perhaps with good reason; Venuleius may be too early an arrival on the criminal scene to have produced a specialized work.3 But the play’s the thing; the long fragment in the Digest (48.10.16) is a miniature essay on the categories of punishment.
