Anicia Faltonia Proba

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Anicia Faltonia Proba (died in Africa, 432) was a Roman noblewoman from the gens Anicia. Her father was Quintus Clodius Hermogenianus Olybrius, consul in 379, and her grandmother was the poet Faltonia Betitia Proba.

She married Sextus Claudius Petronius Probus, consul in 371, and they had four children: three sons who became consuls — Anicius Hermogenianus Olybrius and Anicius Probinus (consuls in 395) and Anicius Petronius Probus (consul in 406) — and a daughter, Anicia Proba. Her son Olybrius married Anicia Juliana, and their daughter Demetrias was Proba's granddaughter.

She was connected to the noble families Petronii, Clodii Celsini, and Anicii; inscriptions dated 395 describe her as daughter, wife, and mother of consuls. By 395 she was a widow. She was a Christian and supported the cultural and religious life of her time, associating with Augustine of Hippo and John Chrysostom.

Proba was in Rome during the sack of the city in 410. Procopius claimed she opened the gates to relieve the suffering, but many historians think this may have been an invention by her enemies. She fled to Africa with her daughter-in-law Anicia Iuliana and her granddaughter Demetrias, where she was abused by the official Heraclianus and imprisoned, only released after paying a large ransom.

She inherited lands in Asia and used the money from selling them to help the Church and the poor. She died in Africa in 432. Her husband had been buried in Old St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, in a tomb where Proba was to be buried as well. Anicia was well educated; she probably wrote the epitaph for her husband, and her granddaughter Demetrias was a friend of Jerome and described as well educated.