491

This article is about the year 491. For the film, see 491 (film).

Year 491 (CDXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Olybrius without colleague (or, less frequently, year 1244 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 491 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.

Millennium:	1st millennium
Centuries:	4th century 5th century 6th century
Decades:	470s 480s 490s 500s 510s
Years:	488 489 490 491 492 493 494

491 in various calendars

Gregorian calendar	491 CDXCI
Ab urbe condita	1244
Assyrian calendar	5241
Balinese saka calendar	412–413
Bengali calendar	−102
Berber calendar	1441
Buddhist calendar	1035
Burmese calendar	−147
Byzantine calendar	5999–6000
Chinese calendar	庚午年 (Metal Horse) 3188 or 2981     — to — 辛未年 (Metal Goat) 3189 or 2982
Coptic calendar	207–208
Discordian calendar	1657
Ethiopian calendar	483–484
Hebrew calendar	4251–4252
Hindu calendars
- Vikram Samvat	547–548
- Shaka Samvat	412–413
- Kali Yuga	3591–3592
Holocene calendar	10491
Iranian calendar	131 BP – 130 BP
Islamic calendar	135 BH – 134 BH
Javanese calendar	377–378
Julian calendar	491 CDXCI
Korean calendar	2824
Minguo calendar	1421 before ROC 民前1421年
Nanakshahi calendar	−977
Seleucid era	802/803 AG
Thai solar calendar	1033–1034
Tibetan calendar	阳金马年 (male Iron-Horse) 617 or 236 or −536     — to — 阴金羊年 (female Iron-Goat) 618 or 237 or −535

Emperor Anastasius I (491–518)

Events

By place

Byzantine Empire

• April 9 – Emperor Zeno, age 66, dies of dysentery (or of epilepsy) after a 17-year reign. He has no sons to succeed him and Anastasius, palace official (silentiarius) and favoured friend of empress Ariadne, is elevated to the throne.
• May 20 – Anastasius I marries Ariadne shortly after his accession. His reign is disturbed by religious distractions and a civil war started by Longinus, brother of late emperor Zeno.
• Anti-Isaurian riots break out in the Hippodrome at Constantinople. Longinus and several other Isaurians, including general Longinus of Cardala, are exiled to Thebaid (Egypt).

Britannia

• Aelle of Sussex besieges and conquers the fortified town Anderitum in southern Britain. He massacres the population, apparently sub-Roman Brythons (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).

Europe

• July 9 – Odoacer makes a night assault with his Heruli guardsmen, engaging Theodoric the Great in Ad Pinetam. Both sides suffer heavy losses, but in the end Theodoric repulses the attack, forcing Odoacer back into Ravenna.

Asia

• Munjamyeong becomes ruler of the Korean kingdom of Goguryeo.

By topic

Religion

• Lupicinus becomes bishop of Lyon. He is the founder of the abbeys of Saint Claude (Jura Mountains).

Births

• Approximate date - John Malalas, Byzantine chronicler (d. c. 578)

Deaths

• April 9 – Zeno, Byzantine Emperor
• Peter the Iberian, Georgian theologian and saint