The Scipiones Nasicae claimed a moral superiority over Rome with the epithet of "optimus vir" (the "best man"), carried at least since Lucius Scipio (consul in 259) as he is described as such on his epitaph. It seems that his descendants were able to convince their peers of this claim, because Corculum's father (the consul of 191) officially received the title of "Optimus Vir" from the senate when in 204 he was asked to bring the sacred stone of the goddess Magna Mater from Ostia to Rome. Corculum is likewise designated by Livy as the "best man" in the "Periochae". The Nasicae likely used the prestige of this epithet for their own benefit, but contrary to Africanus, Asiaticus, and Aemilianus, they followed a very conservative line and scrupulously respected the senatorial supremacy, while their cousins often breached constitutional rules with the support of popular assemblies.