Esercizio spontaneo dei munera civitatis e obnoxietas curiale

This article examines the legal phenomenon, observable from the fourth century AD onwards, concerning individuals who rendered services to cities equivalent to munera or who voluntarily assumed honores, without legal compulsion and in a spirit of civic liberality. Municipal practice and imperial legislation initially treated such acts as onera curialia, imposing them as binding obligations. It was only under Theodosius II that a reversal of this tendency became apparent, driven by an awareness of the detrimental effects that such a policy had on potential benefactors, thus depriving cities of the at-tendant benefits. The emperor ruled that no legal prejudice should arise from such acts of liberality for those who, not being members of the decurionate by origo, had voluntarily undertaken a munus or held an honor. This development was reflected in subsequent legislation through to the Justinianic period.