09-21-2018, 06:33 PM
(This post was last modified: 09-23-2018, 04:41 PM by Nathan Ross.)
(09-21-2018, 04:18 PM)Julian de Vries Wrote: mil(es) leg(ionis) / XIIII G(eminae) / librari[u]s / numeri s(uprascripti)
I believe all that's saying is 'librarius of the above unit' (i.e. of Legio XIIII Gemina). The word 'numerus' is used here in an entirely generic sense.
There's a similar inscription from Rome (CIL 06, 32803): Frontinius Castus librar(ius) n(umeri) s(upra) s(cripti). In this case the name of the unit is missing. The formula is presumably to avoid having to write the name out again.
(09-21-2018, 04:18 PM)Julian de Vries Wrote: most numerus inscriptions of the Later Roman Army refer to the “ethnic” sense (whatever that could mean).
As far as I know, it was more usual for 'numerus' to refer to (probably irregular) 'ethnic' units in the 1st-3rd century - like the Numerus Hnaudifridi that we find at Housesteads, or the Numerus Brittonum Murrensium from Ohringen.
The word seems to be used more commonly to refer to military units of all sorts in later centuries, becoming ubiquitous by the 4th century. Although, as we see from the examples above, it was already used in this way in the earlier 3rd century.
Nathan Ross
