The imperial court

With the concentration of all power in the hands of the emperor, the imperial court {comitatus) began to play a prominent role in the affairs of the state. It consisted of a large number of officials {comites') and was headed by the chamberlain of the imperial household {praepositus sacri cubiculi) who often participated in the deliberations of the imperial council {sacrum consistorium).

The scrinia

As under the Principate, various tasks of the imperial administration were carried out by offices or cabinets {sacra scrinia), each being headed by a magister. The scrinium epistularum, based on the earlier scrinium ab epistulis, responded to letters sent to the emperor by public officials and was headed by the magister epistularum. The scrinium libellorum, which was a continuation of the scrinium a libellis of the early imperial period, handled various petitions {libelli) addressed to the emperor by state officials and private citizens. The scrinium dispositionum dealt with private matters of the emperor, including the organisation of his personal correspondence. Finally, the scrinium memoriae, which was first introduced in the time of Hadrian, was responsible for the drafting of official documents, such as those containing appointments and orders issued by the emperor. All the above offices operated under the general superintendence of the head of the imperial offices {magister officiorum).