FILOCALO, FURIO DIONISIO. — A renowned calligrapher of the 4th century. His name appears at the head of the calendar with which the collection of the Cronografo del 354 (v.) begins. In the loops of a tablet is written Furius Dionisius Filocalus titulavit, and on the tablet itself Valentine lege feliciter, as well as Valentine vivas floreas gaudeas in Deo. This Valentine must be identified with the man who, after having been tribunus protectorum ex primicerio, became dux Illyrici in 349 and consularis Piceni in 365. He was a Christian, as is shown by the good wish addressed to him by F. The latter must also have been his friend, as is apparent from the manner of the dedication; he too was a Christian and of no humble fortune, as is indicated by his polyonymy and by the friendship that bound him to Pope Damasus.
For Damasus, in fact, he engraved his celebrated inscriptions in the most elegant characters, invented by himself, remarkable for their solemnity and classical perfection of taste, contrary to the prevailing usage of his time. Beside some of them was written: Damasi papae cultur adque amator Furius Dionysius Filocalus scriptis. It is precisely this characteristic type of lettering that enables us easily to recognize the work of F. and also of Damasus. Since it disappears shortly after 382, F.’s death must have occurred at about that time.
It is disputed exactly what part F. played in the compilation of the Cronografo del 354. It seems certain that at least the calendar is entirely his work, especially its rich decoration (edited by J. Straygowski, Die Kalenderbilder des Chronographen vom Jahre 354, Berlin 1888). The other parts of the collection were copied and brought up to date by his assistants, and then bound together in a single historical-chronological manual for Valentine’s use; F. therefore had only a supervisory role in II.