Gaius Vibius Rufinus

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Gaius Vibius Rufinus was a Roman senator who flourished in the early first century AD. He served as suffect consul in August, filling a vacancy beside his colleague Marcus Cocceius Nerva; the exact year is debated. Some scholars place the consulship around 40–41 AD, others propose 21–22 AD, and still others suggest 39–42 AD based on different readings of his career. Rufinus was acquainted with the poet Ovid, who dedicated two poems to him from exile in Tomis.

Pliny the Elder mentions that Rufinus wrote a six‑book work on trees, herbs and flowers. Rufinus’ father, Gaius Vibius Rufus, had been consul a few years earlier, and his mother, Publilia M.f., had been Cicero’s young wife. Rufinus is thought to have taken part in the Batonian War (AD 6–9), though his exact role is unclear (perhaps a military tribune, quaestor, or legate). He is known to have governed Asia (a proconsular post); Syme argues that, following a ten‑year spacing pattern for such posts after a consulship, Rufinus’ Asia governorship would have been around 36/37 AD. Some scholars also assign him a later governorship of Germania Superior, with dates such as 43 and 45 AD.