Lewis & Short

fiscus, i, m., a basket or frail woven of slender twigs, rushes, etc. (like fiscina, fiscella, q. v.); used,

  1. I. For olives in the oilpress, Col. 12, 52, 22; 54, 2.
    Far more freq.,
  2. II. For keeping money in, a money-basket, or, as we say, a money-bag, purse (cf. aerarium): fiscos complures cum pecunia Siciliensi a quodam senatore ad equitem Romanum esse translatos, Cic. Verr. 1, 8, 22: mulus ferebat fiscos cum pecunia, Phaedr. 2, 7, 2; Suet. Claud. 18.
    Poet.: aerata multus in arca Fiscus, i. e. much money, Juv. 14, 259.
    1. B. In partic.
      1. 1. The public chest, state treasury, public revenues: quaternos HS, quos mihi senatus decrevit et ex aerario dedit, ego habebo et in cistam transferam de fisco, Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 85, § 197: qui fiscum sustulit, id. ib. 79, § 183: de fisco quid egerit Scipio, quaeram, id. Q. Fr. 3, 4, 5 Manut.; Eutr. 2, 16; Vulg. 1 Esdr. 7, 20.
      2. 2. In the times of the emperors, the imperial treasury, imperial revenues, emperor’s privy purse (opp. aerarium, the public chest or treasury): quantum pecuniae in aerario et fiscis et vectigalibus residuis, Suet. Aug. 101; 40; id. Claud. 28; id. Ner. 32; Sen. Ben. 7, 6: fisci de imperatore rapti, Tac. A. 1, 37: bona in fiscum cogere, id. ib. 6, 2; Dig. 39, 4, 9 fin.: fortasse non eadem severitate fiscum quam aerarium cohibes, Plin. Pan. 36 et saep.: Judaicus, the tax paid by the Jews into the imperial treasury, Suet. Dom. 12: quidquid conspicuum pulchrumque est aequore toto res fisci est, Juv. 4, 55.