Cappadocian slaves and freedmen in the early Roman Empire: between literary echoes and epigraphic documents.

Many Latin authors (Persius, Martial, Juvenal and above all Petronius) refer to the presence in Italic area of Cappadocian individuals of servile status or libertine condition. In fact, the Cappadocian origin is not a mere topos, but is confirmed by the epigraphic documents and other literary evidences concerning the incoming in the West both of men and luxury goods just from this specific micrasiatic region during the early Roman Empire.

Keywords: Cappadocia, slaves, freedmen, Petronius, Early Roman Empire.