Lucius Mummius Achaicus

In the initial phases of his campaign he experienced several reverses, but he regrouped and at Ocile he led his army of 9,000 foot and 500 horse in a victorious battle against a numerically superior force of Lusitanians, killing about 15,000 rebels and lifting the siege; his successor, Marcus Atilius, went on to take Oxthracae, the largest city in Lusitania.

[3] The apparently needless cruelty of Mummius in Corinth is explained by Mommsen as due to the instructions of the senate, prompted by the mercantile party, which was eager to dispel a dangerous commercial rival.

[4][5] In the subsequent settlement of affairs, Mummius exhibited considerable administrative powers and a high degree of justice and integrity, which gained him the respect of the inhabitants.

[4] His indifference to works of art and ignorance of their value is shown by his well-known remark to those who were contracted for the shipment of the treasures of Corinth to Rome, that "if they lost or damaged them, they would have to replace them.

[1] For the theatrical pageants exhibited by him he erected a theatre with improved acoustical conditions and seats after the Greek model, thus marking a distinct advance in the construction of places of entertainment.