12-05-2007, 10:19 PM
Taticus, Histories 1.57:
…nec manipuli quoque et gregarius miles viatica sua et balteos phalerasque, insignia armorum argento decora, loco pecuniae tradebant…
[not only did wealthy civilians and officers help to finance the campaign] but units and ordinary soldiers handed over their viatica or in place of money, their belts and phalerae, and the beautiful (or honourable) silver insignia on their arms.
As Maxfield (Military Decorations) points out, phalerae could be horse harnesses or the military decorations known as phalerae. She prefers the latter; I agree, partly because of the context – the phalerae are clearly in association with the belts, and Tacitus is talking here about ordinary legionaries – the vast majority of whom were infantry. Insignia could mean indications of rank, but again here is more likely to mean military decorations, and they’re silver. In answer to the original question, Tacitus does not indicate what metal(s) the phalerae are made from, but I’d suggest it’s pretty safe to assume that they’re silver, or silvered, at the very least.
…nec manipuli quoque et gregarius miles viatica sua et balteos phalerasque, insignia armorum argento decora, loco pecuniae tradebant…
[not only did wealthy civilians and officers help to finance the campaign] but units and ordinary soldiers handed over their viatica or in place of money, their belts and phalerae, and the beautiful (or honourable) silver insignia on their arms.
As Maxfield (Military Decorations) points out, phalerae could be horse harnesses or the military decorations known as phalerae. She prefers the latter; I agree, partly because of the context – the phalerae are clearly in association with the belts, and Tacitus is talking here about ordinary legionaries – the vast majority of whom were infantry. Insignia could mean indications of rank, but again here is more likely to mean military decorations, and they’re silver. In answer to the original question, Tacitus does not indicate what metal(s) the phalerae are made from, but I’d suggest it’s pretty safe to assume that they’re silver, or silvered, at the very least.
