Paulos 51 had the name Afiarta: Lib. Pont. 96. 28 (cited below), 97. 4 (cited below). He was a cubicularius at Rome: Lib. Pont. 96. 28, 96. 32, 97. 4 (all cited below). Possibly in 770 (see below) Paulos 51 and his followers accepted gifts from the Lombard king Desiderius (Desiderios 3) and agreed to plot against Christophoros 26 and Sergios 53: Lib. Pont. 96. 28 ("Paulo cubiculario cognomento Afiarta et aliis eius impiis sequacibus"). After Desiderios 3 reached Rome, Paulos 51 and his followers ("eius nefandissimi sequaces") schemed with him to arouse the Roman populace against them: Lib. Pont. 96. 29. During the night when Christophoros 26 and Sergios 53 were in apparent safety in St Peter's, Paulos 51 and his followers ("Paulus cubicularius et alii eius nefandissimi consentanei") gathered a mob, went to Desiderios 3 and with his approval dragged the two men from the church and with a crowd of Lombards took them to the city gate and blinded them: Lib. Pont. 96. 32. The date was after the election of Leo 114 as archbishop of Ravenna, and was perhaps in 770. In 772, as pope Stephen IV (III) (Stephanos 84) was dying, Paulos 51 and his associates sent into exile some of the civil and ecclesiastical authorities of Rome ("iudices illos huius Romanae urbis, tam de clero quamque militia"); these were recalled by the next pope, Hadrian I (Hadrianos 1), on the very day of his election: Lib. Pont. 97. 4 ("a Paulo cubiculario cognomento Afiarta et aliis consentaneis impiis satellitibus").

Cubicularius and superista; he was sent as envoy (?missus?), with Stephanos 87, by pope Hadrianos 1 (in April 772) to the Lombard king Desiderios 3 to seek restoration of the rights (?iustitiae?) claimed by the see of St Peter and to negotiate an agreement of permanent friendship; they were still en route from Rome and had only reached Perusia when news came that Desiderios 3 had seized further cities belonging to St Peter: Lib. Pont. 97. 6 ("suos missos pro his omnibus perficiendis, scilicet Stephanum notarium regionarium atque Paulum cubicularium et tunc superistam"), cf. Lib. Pont. 97. 7 (the date was two months after Hadrianos 1 became pope, which was in early February 772). They were still on their way to Desiderios 3 when the pope wrote again demanding the return of the newly seized cities: Lib. Pont. 97. 8 ("Stephanus sacellarius et Paulus superista"). Paulos 51 apparently became superista early in the pontificate of Hadrianos 1. Desiderios 3 refused their request and demanded that the pope visit him personally before he would agree to anything: Lib. Pont. 97. 8-9. While at the court of Desiderios 3 Paulos 51 ("praenominatus siquidem Paulus superista") promised the king that he would bring the pope to him, even if he had to drag him with ropes; meanwhile, the role played by Paulos 51 in the murder of Sergios 53 came to light, and the pope, fearing lest he might learn of this and either return to the court of Desiderios 3 or remain in Lombard territory and make trouble for the papacy, instructed the archbishop of Ravenna, Leo 114, to have him detained on his return journey either at Ravenna or Ariminum; Paulos 51 was then arrested in Ariminum and held in custody: Lib. Pont. 97. 9. During the investigation under pope Hadrianos 1, it emerged that Paulos 51, together with Gregorios 77, Ioannes 239 (brother of pope Stephen III) and Calvulos 1, had ordered Calventzulos 1 to remove Sergios 53 from his cell and hand him over to the Campanians Lunisso (Lounisso 1) and Leonatius (Leonatios 1); the latter had orders to take him away and kill him; this was admitted by Calventzulos 1 and confirmed by Lounisso 1 and Leonatios 1: Lib. Pont. 97. 10-11. Subsequently a copy of the trial of Calvulos 1, Lounisso 1 and Leonatios 1 was sent by pope Hadrianos 1 to Ravenna, for the information of Paulos 51 ("ut eidem Paulo omnia per ordinem redigerentur"); archbishop Leo 114, without instructions from the pope, handed Paulos 51 over to the consularis of Ravenna (Anonymus 264) for trial; the trial was held in public in Ravenna and the acts of the other trial were read out; Paulos 51 admitted his guilt and confessed that he had done wrong: Lib. Pont. 97. 14. Hadrianos 1 attempted to save Paulos 51 and drew up a request to the emperors Constantine (Konstantinos 7) and Leo (Leo 4) to send him into exile in the East and wrote to the archbishop of Ravenna, Leo 114, to send Paulos 51 to Constantinople with the request; Leo 114 prevaricated, claiming that Paulos 51 was needed by the dux of Venetiae, Maurikios 10, to exchange for his son (Anonymus 265) whom the Lombards had captured; a papal envoy, Gregorios 78, passed through Ravenna on his way to the Lombards and gave Leo 114 the pope's orders to keep Paulos 51 safe until his return and then he would take him back with him to Rome, but during Gregorios 78's absence Leo 114 had Paulos 51 murdered by the consularis of Ravenna (Anonymus 264); Hadrianos 1 later protested that he had been prompted by the desire to save Paulos 51's soul and so had wanted to give him the chance to do penance: Lib. Pont. 97. 15-17.

(Publishable link for this person: )