07-16-2015, 02:06 PM
Nathan, to be honest I struggle a bit with Latin metric poetry. It's quite time consuming (for me at least). So only a rough idea: The text bemoans an unnamed man's untimely death at young age (iuvenili aetati) – or at least before he had been able to fully enjoy the fruits of his labour (meritis gauderet suis quae olim labore quaesiit). Before he could bed his wife they both were laid down in this grave (uno iacent ambo non toro sed tumulo). No offspring was left to remember them, so his comrads (contubernales), to whom he had been a dear friend (omnibus semper suis fuit carus amicus), decided to erect this monument, allegedly against his or their vows and custom (contra votum).
The "contubernales" in particular seem to suit a military context, indeed. If the deceased had been an officer I reckon those would be his mess mates. They may be paying tribute to themselves (therefore perhaps "contra votum") by mentioning the man's select company ("viri lecti" is rather unspecific, I'm afraid; could imply promotion or just be a honouring or complacent description) . Maybe the inscription was dedicated by soldiers to their deceased officer – yet the text reveals a higher level of education, so maybe not.
No mention of centurions here. And still possible it's got nothing to do with the army at all. However, at first glance that context seems widely accepted, and for good reasons.
The "contubernales" in particular seem to suit a military context, indeed. If the deceased had been an officer I reckon those would be his mess mates. They may be paying tribute to themselves (therefore perhaps "contra votum") by mentioning the man's select company ("viri lecti" is rather unspecific, I'm afraid; could imply promotion or just be a honouring or complacent description) . Maybe the inscription was dedicated by soldiers to their deceased officer – yet the text reveals a higher level of education, so maybe not.
No mention of centurions here. And still possible it's got nothing to do with the army at all. However, at first glance that context seems widely accepted, and for good reasons.
Tilman
