Leather Squamata.......Really?

[Flavivs Aetivs]

We're way off topic here, but the reason the Roman Empire worked for so long was because they allowed each nation to maintain their local customs, religion, identity and in some cases rulers. They all maintained their own national identity under the umbrella of being "Roman" but in name only.

Until of course they adopted the Roman Government, Culture, and identity after (approximately) 75 years of Roman rule. Hence the term Romanization.

Egypt, unlike other provinces in the empire was run by a prefect rather than a governor who could raise troops in a crisis or client ruler who had his own forces. From the time of Octavian & the death of Cleopatra it was considered like a personal fiefdom of the emperor probably because it was so rich & important for the supply of grain & it had no client rulers but after the sack of Jerusalem on 70AD a lot of Jews moved to Alexandria which was always a hotspot of trouble between Greeks & Jews & later on Christians & Jews which probably meant most units were stationed around Alexandria or Nile delta. Unless the wealthy landowners could maintain private armies which I don't think the Romans would tolerate then more than likely the armour belonged to Roman legionaries or auxiliaries. There is always the possibility that over time these units recruited locally & had 'gone native' using local means & methods to make armour. Zenobia took over Egypt temporarily while Aurelian was occupied in the west so possibility of Palmyran troops there but except for a few units from Thebes (cohorts Thebaeorum I & II) which remained in Egypt & 3 legions at first but later down to 2 legions I think all units based in Egypt were foreign Auxilliaries. When the empire split it became part of Eastern empire so I am not sure how it was run or garrisoned after that though.

After that it's based on the way it was run in the Notitia Dignitatum. The last Legion in Egypt was V Macedonica, which survived until it's conquest by the Arabs.

Beginning in the 4th century you start to see wealthy landowners hiring private armies that later became the system of Bucellarii under Aetius, Stilicho, and Belisaris.