07-13-2006, 04:23 AM
That's a slightly different translation than I've seen before:
Lest the soldiers in the confusion of battle should be separated from their comrades, every cohort had its shields painted in a manner peculiar to itself. The name of each soldier was also written on his shield, together with the number of the cohort and century to which he belonged.
No mention of rank or that the personal information should be written on the front of the scutum. Of course I know that translations are not always super-accurate, so here's what is supposed to be the actual text:
(XVIII.) Sed ne milites aliquando in tumultu proelii a suis contubernalibus aberrarent, diuersis cohortibus diuersa in scutis signa pingebant, ut ipsi nominant, digmata, sicut etiam nunc moris est fieri. Praeterea in aduerso scuto uiuscuiusque militis litteris erat nomen adscriptum, addito et ex qua esset cohorte quaue centuria.
I don't really know any Latin, but the translator program I have doesn't seem to show any mention of rank or that the information was specifically on the front- or did I miss it?
Matt
Lest the soldiers in the confusion of battle should be separated from their comrades, every cohort had its shields painted in a manner peculiar to itself. The name of each soldier was also written on his shield, together with the number of the cohort and century to which he belonged.
No mention of rank or that the personal information should be written on the front of the scutum. Of course I know that translations are not always super-accurate, so here's what is supposed to be the actual text:
(XVIII.) Sed ne milites aliquando in tumultu proelii a suis contubernalibus aberrarent, diuersis cohortibus diuersa in scutis signa pingebant, ut ipsi nominant, digmata, sicut etiam nunc moris est fieri. Praeterea in aduerso scuto uiuscuiusque militis litteris erat nomen adscriptum, addito et ex qua esset cohorte quaue centuria.
I don't really know any Latin, but the translator program I have doesn't seem to show any mention of rank or that the information was specifically on the front- or did I miss it?
Matt
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