=41-44. COTTA ... MAXIME.= M. Aurelius Cotta Maximus Messalinus[31] (_Forschungen in Ephesos_ III 112 no. 22; cited by Syme _HO_ 117) was the younger son of Messalla, the patron of Tibullus; he was the recipient of six of the _Epistulae ex Ponto_ (I v, I ix, II iii, II viii, III ii & III v). He is undoubtedly the M. Aurelius or Aurelius Cotta recorded by Tacitus as consul for 20 (_Ann_ III 2 3 & 17 4). He was born much later than his brother Messalinus (the addressee of _EP_ I vii and II ii), who was consul in 3 BC; the chronology is confirmed by a mention of him as praetor in 17 (_Inscriptiones Italiae_ XIII i p. 298; see Syme _Ten Studies_ 52), and by Ovid's testimony that Cotta was born after Ovid had become acquainted with his family (_EP_ II iii 69-80). Cotta was clearly a very close friend of Ovid; this can be seen particularly from _EP_ II iii, in which Ovid recounts how Cotta sent the first letter of comfort after his catastrophe (67-68) and tells how he confessed his _error_ to Cotta. [Footnote 31: _PIR_1 A 1236; _PIR_2 A 1488; PW 11,2 2490 13]] Tacitus gives some information on Cotta's public career. In AD 16, in the aftermath of the discovery of Libo's plot against Tiberius, Cotta proposed that Libo's image not be in his descendants' funeral processions (_Ann_ II 32 1). In 20, as consul, he similarly proposed penalties against Piso's family (_Ann_ III 17), and in 27 he is mentioned as attacking Agrippina so as to please Tiberius (_Ann_ V 3). The most interesting mention of him is at _Ann_ VI 5 (AD 32), where Tacitus tells of how Tiberius himself intervened in favour of Cotta after he had been charged with _maiestas_; the eventual result was that charges were laid against Cotta's chief accuser. =42. PIERIDVM LVMEN.= At _EP_ III v 29-36 Ovid asked Cotta to send him some of his poetry. For the sense of _lumen_ here ('ornament'), _OLD lumen_ 11 cites among other passages Cic _Sul_ 5 'haec ornamenta ac _lumina_ rei publicae' and _Phil II_ 54 (of Pompey) 'imperi populi Romani decus ac _lumen_ fuit'. =42. PRAESIDIVMQVE FORI= = 'defender of the law'. Compare vi 33-34 'cum tibi suscepta est _legis uindicta seuerae_, / uerba uelut taetrum singula uirus habent'. =43. MATERNOS COTTAS.= This passage should be taken in conjunction with _EP_ III ii 103-8 (to Cotta) 'adde quod est animus semper tibi mitis, et altae / indicium mores nobilitatis habent, / quos Volesus patrii cognoscat nominis auctor, / quos Numa maternus non neget esse suos, / adiectique probent genetiua ad nomina Cottae, / si tu non esses, interitura domus'. The simplest explanation of these two passages is that Cotta had been adopted by a maternal uncle, the last surviving Aurelius Cotta. The question of Cotta's maternal ancestry is a vexed one; for a full discussion see Syme _HO_ 119-21. The present passage was written with Prop IV xi 31-32 in mind: 'altera _maternos_ exaequat turba _Libones_, / et domus est titulis utraque fulta suis'.