Fonteius Capito, a
novus homo, was the son of Gaius Fonteius Capito and a supporter of the
Triumvir Marcus Antonius. Of
Plebeian origins, perhaps he was a
Plebeian Tribune in about 39 BC, and he may have belonged to one of the priesthoods of
Ancient Rome by this time. In 39/38 BC, Antonius appointed him to the office of
monetalis in one of the eastern
provinces of the
Roman Empire, during which time he minted coins with Antony's and his wife
Octavia's portrait. In the year 37 BC, at a time of increased tension between Marcus Antonius and his colleague
Octavianus, Fonteius Capito served as Antony's representative in Italy. After having negotiated with Octavianus, he travelled with
Gaius Maecenas, Lucius Cocceius Nerva, and a number of poets including
Horace and
Virgil, down to
Brundisium in order to discuss the situation with Marcus Antonius and to prepare the groundwork for the Pact of Tarentum. After concluding the initial treaty negotiations, Antony sent Fonteius Capito in the autumn of 37 BC to
Egypt. From there he escorted Queen
Cleopatra VII to
Antioch in
Syria, which was where Antony had his headquarters in the east. He arrived with Cleopatra in the winter of 37/36 BC. Then, in 33 BC, Fonteius Capito was appointed
suffect consul, a post he held from May to June of that year. ==See also==