63 BC

Millennium:	1st millennium BC
Centuries:	2nd century BC – 1st century BC – 1st century
Decades:	90s BC  80s BC  70s BC  – 60s BC –  50s BC  40s BC  30s BC
Years:	66 BC 65 BC 64 BC – 63 BC – 62 BC 61 BC 60 BC

63 BC in other calendars

Gregorian calendar	63 BC LXII BC
Ab urbe condita	691
Ancient Egypt era	XXXIII dynasty, 261
- Pharaoh	Ptolemy XII Auletes, 18
Ancient Greek era	179th Olympiad, year 2
Assyrian calendar	4688
Bengali calendar	−655
Berber calendar	888
Buddhist calendar	482
Burmese calendar	−700
Byzantine calendar	5446–5447
Chinese calendar	丁巳年 (Fire Snake) 2634 or 2574     — to — 戊午年 (Earth Horse) 2635 or 2575
Coptic calendar	−346 – −345
Discordian calendar	1104
Ethiopian calendar	−70 – −69
Hebrew calendar	3698–3699
Hindu calendars
- Vikram Samvat	−6 – −5
- Shaka Samvat	N/A
- Kali Yuga	3039–3040
Holocene calendar	9938
Iranian calendar	684 BP – 683 BP
Islamic calendar	705 BH – 704 BH
Julian calendar	N/A
Korean calendar	2271
Minguo calendar	1974 before ROC 民前1974年
Seleucid era	249/250 AG
Thai solar calendar	480–481

Year 63 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Cicero and Hybrida (or, less frequently, year 691 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 63 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Events

By place

Roman Republic

• Lucullus holds a triumph, then retires from war and politics to live a life of refined luxury.
• Establishment of the Decapolis and Year 1 of the Pompeian era.
• Pompey conquers the people of Phonecia, Coele-Syria, and Judea for the Roman Republic.
• Roman annexation of Judea as a client kingdom. King Judah Aristobulus II removed from power, while his brother John Hyrcanus II is reappointed king (ethnarch) under Roman suzerainty and high priest, until 40 BC.
• Massacre of over 12,000 Jews on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem by Roman troops, in support of John Hyrcanus II against Aristobulus II.
• Julius Caesar is elected Pontifex Maximus and praetor for 62 BC.
• Marcus Tullius Cicero is senior consul. He is the first novus homo (new man) to be elected to the consulship in 31 years.
• Cato the younger is elected tribune of the people for 62 BC, taking office in early December 63 BC.
• Second Catilinarian Conspiracy against the Roman Republic is foiled by Cicero.

Pontus

• Pharnaces II becomes King of Pontus.

Births

• September 23 63 BC – Gaius Octavius Thurinus (Augustus), first Roman Emperor (d. AD 14)
• Strabo, Greek historian, geographer and philosopher (d. c. AD 24)
• Didymus Chalcenterus, Greek scholar and grammarian (approximate date) (d. c. AD 10)
• Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, Roman statesman and general (d. 12 BC)

Deaths

• Those involved in the organisation of the Catilinarian conspiracy in Rome, including Publius Cornelius Lentulus Sura
• Mithridates VI, King of Pontus (b. 134 BC)
• Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius, pontifex maximus and general (b. c. 130 BC or 127 BC)