08-20-2016, 03:01 PM
(This post was last modified: 08-20-2016, 03:57 PM by Marcel Frederik Schwarze.)
Nathan, your drawing looks really very beautiful. And maybe this is the solution. Who knows.
I personally always go with the signs and symbols of the Strategicon. But your grafic is of course more attractive to the eyes of the reader.
Marcus Junkelmann (in: Die Reiter Roms, esp part 2, page 134/135) offers similar fine painted horses and soldiers.
cavalry&veredarii
Let me say first that I'm aware of the cursus publicus.
Yet, the veredarius was not (necessarily) just a messenger. He was a fast hunter.
Veredus is also the etymon of German Pferd (horse).
a. We know the numerus burgariorum et veredariorum at Praetorium, the camp was destroyed during or after an armed conflict. (compare IDR 2 588 = CIL III 13796)
stables and barracks are evidenced.
b. Pannonian veredarii appear as an active combat group in Hyginus De mun. castr. 30 [...] Pannonii veredarii DCCC [...] - after all 800 men.
c. ibid 24, veredarii support and protect other military troops
d. ILS 9181 [...] in h.d.d. Genio / veredariorum n.M.[...] - a small cavalry troop of veredarii is supporting the numerus Nidensium at Kaspersburg (CIL XIII 7439, most likely messengers, however connected to the local numerus and very military). stables and barracks are evidenced, furthermore a steel has survived which which I saw with my own eyes, it shows a group of horses behind a woman.
e. and a light source at the end. A poem speak about the fast "hunter".:
Valerius Martialis Prisco, XII, 14 [...] Parcius utaris, moneo, rapiente veredo / Prisce, nec in lepores tam violentus eas. [...]
It is interesting that all veredarii which are evidenced by inscriptions belong to the ancient numeri - at least those I have observed.
In the middle of the third century the old ancient (barbarian) numeri began to equalize their internal structer with those of gentile Roman troops. During the reign of Alexander Severus the old numeri got their own officium praepositi.
We know about several numeri who received another classification during the 3rd or early 4th centuries. For example the old numerus equitum sarmatarum - became the cuneus sarmatarum, the ancient numerus palmyrenorum became a cuneus and an ala (ND Or VII 34; XXXI 49).
And of course it is possible that our Perge-unit has preserved the ancient smallest tactical body of cavalry with round about (+/-) 30 soldiers - the turmae. In the Strategicon the cavalry is divided in several hekatontarchiai and commanded by the hekatontarchos (which is the centenarios for new-styled units) or centurion (for old units) - furthermore they are subdivided in smaller files, in the same way like the infantry, the leader is the decarchus, another soldier behind him is pentarchus, and finally we find again the uragus (the file closer).
The Strategicon must be carefully handled - since it just describes the battle order after the arrival of all troops on battle field. It doesn't describe the internal structure of our regiments! This was never the aim of Mauricius.
The troops are put into ad-hoc tagmas - albeit we can get some information indirectly by observing the file structure as given in the Strategicon.
Sources for a cavalry-centenatius are given in one of my upper posts.
campiductor
In Slab B one can read that there is just one campiductor, and he is responsible for all other instuctors and for the training in general. Since I have evaluated and translated all slabs long time ago I can tell you that those people are the Armaturae Duplares and their deputies (Armaturae semissales). We know that the campiductor was one of the most important people in the regiment. So, we have 2 options now. Either it is the tribunus minor, or the first of all ordinarii. Since all ordinarii get the same anonnae I would say we go with the first option. However, it is also possible that the "role" or "task" of the campiductor went from one soldier to the next in a kind of cyclic procedure - a kind of honour which was indeed not better paid. Possible.
optio
Since the last man, the file-closer or Uragus of a file was reponsible to take care for the rear-side of the file (see my upper post about his exact jobs) - the optio wasn't needed anymore. We see a shift from an active soldier to a kind of deputy of the principes of the centuriae. In other words, the optio was now the right hand of the centurion in administrative issues.
Optio Abraham - he checks the ἀννώνας (annona) of his contubernii (the files). = O.Douch 2 61
Furthermore their job was the distribution and securing of food supply. = SB 6 9455 Herakleopolis
And since we just find 10 of them regarding our Perge-unit, they were most likely responsible for a cavalry unit as well - administratively attached to the corresponding centuria.
The New-Optio can most likely be indentified with the former actuarius.
He (the actuarius) was civil servant and responsible for the food supply,
they confirm the death of a soldier for the wives/widows with a kind of document (Nov Iust CXVII 11),
they calculated the needed food for the next weeks (Cod. Theod. VII, 4, 13),
they were responsible for the payment of money to the soldiers (Cod Iust XII 37, 16).
Finally they can be identified with the optiones (cod. Theod. VII, 4, 24) [...] actuarios vel optiones [...].
Even the optio wrote a kind of "death-certificate" for the widow of a cavalry soldier (Nov Iust CXVII 11) and he demanded or arose a sportulae for his service in the same way like the actuarius did - means: he took money from the soldiers and the state for his job (a fifteenth = 1/15) - a procedure already at that time often criticized and sometimes punished. Thanks to Justinian we get the first time a quite good overview about the different "provisions-officers".
The titel actuarius is used for the scholae units, optio for the foederatii and the chartularios for numeri and foederati.
[...] primis scholae et actuario, si autem foederatus, ab optione [...] (Nov Iust CXVII 11).
The χαρτουλαριων was responsible for the γενναιοτατων αριθμον and φοιδερατοι (Cod Iust XII 37, 19). Since slab C mentions the task or role of the soldiers, not the actual rank, it is possible once more that another name is hidden behind our Perge-optio - it was the actuarius, chartularius or even the optio.
file leader
λοχαγους (lochagus) is the file leader of the κοντουβερνάλιος (contuberni), for infantry & cavalry. Both groups are commanded by either the κεντηναρίῳ (centenarius) or κεντυρίων (centurion) - depending if it's an old unit or a regiment following a new style of internal order. Mauricius tries to establish a kind of pattern to integrate all units into an equal system. Vegetius calls the file leader decanus and caput contubernii, so obviously the same.
Hieronymus (PL XXIII) contra iohannem hierosolym [...] tiro, eques, circitor, biarchus, centenarius, ducenarius, Senator, primicerius, tribunus [...]
The biarchus is listed directly behind the centenarius. If a file leader was existing, then he was most likely called biarchus in new-styled units and decanus or caput contubernii in units following the old structure. Esp. the decanus get a transformation of the word (like many others as well) and is named in its graeco-latin version dekarchos or decarchus. Biarchus and Circitor are recorded in infantry as well as cavalry units. But I agree that this is a minor issue at the moment. We could however think about the option that the file-closer (uragus) is connected to the circitor (see post above).
banners&flags
long topic. I would like to hear the opinion of all readers why a unit (true legion, ancient numerus or cohors miliaria equitata) has a need of 10 imaginifer.
by the way, slab B (as metioned with sources in my post above) calls the magister draconum as supervisor for all other draconarii. But he is most likely just one of the 30 standard bearers displayed on slab C. We know today that certain groups within a military unit have established Collegia, a procedure lasting until the 6th century.
I personally always go with the signs and symbols of the Strategicon. But your grafic is of course more attractive to the eyes of the reader.
Marcus Junkelmann (in: Die Reiter Roms, esp part 2, page 134/135) offers similar fine painted horses and soldiers.
cavalry&veredarii
Let me say first that I'm aware of the cursus publicus.
Yet, the veredarius was not (necessarily) just a messenger. He was a fast hunter.
Veredus is also the etymon of German Pferd (horse).
a. We know the numerus burgariorum et veredariorum at Praetorium, the camp was destroyed during or after an armed conflict. (compare IDR 2 588 = CIL III 13796)
stables and barracks are evidenced.
b. Pannonian veredarii appear as an active combat group in Hyginus De mun. castr. 30 [...] Pannonii veredarii DCCC [...] - after all 800 men.
c. ibid 24, veredarii support and protect other military troops
d. ILS 9181 [...] in h.d.d. Genio / veredariorum n.M.[...] - a small cavalry troop of veredarii is supporting the numerus Nidensium at Kaspersburg (CIL XIII 7439, most likely messengers, however connected to the local numerus and very military). stables and barracks are evidenced, furthermore a steel has survived which which I saw with my own eyes, it shows a group of horses behind a woman.
e. and a light source at the end. A poem speak about the fast "hunter".:
Valerius Martialis Prisco, XII, 14 [...] Parcius utaris, moneo, rapiente veredo / Prisce, nec in lepores tam violentus eas. [...]
It is interesting that all veredarii which are evidenced by inscriptions belong to the ancient numeri - at least those I have observed.
In the middle of the third century the old ancient (barbarian) numeri began to equalize their internal structer with those of gentile Roman troops. During the reign of Alexander Severus the old numeri got their own officium praepositi.
We know about several numeri who received another classification during the 3rd or early 4th centuries. For example the old numerus equitum sarmatarum - became the cuneus sarmatarum, the ancient numerus palmyrenorum became a cuneus and an ala (ND Or VII 34; XXXI 49).
And of course it is possible that our Perge-unit has preserved the ancient smallest tactical body of cavalry with round about (+/-) 30 soldiers - the turmae. In the Strategicon the cavalry is divided in several hekatontarchiai and commanded by the hekatontarchos (which is the centenarios for new-styled units) or centurion (for old units) - furthermore they are subdivided in smaller files, in the same way like the infantry, the leader is the decarchus, another soldier behind him is pentarchus, and finally we find again the uragus (the file closer).
The Strategicon must be carefully handled - since it just describes the battle order after the arrival of all troops on battle field. It doesn't describe the internal structure of our regiments! This was never the aim of Mauricius.
The troops are put into ad-hoc tagmas - albeit we can get some information indirectly by observing the file structure as given in the Strategicon.
Sources for a cavalry-centenatius are given in one of my upper posts.
campiductor
In Slab B one can read that there is just one campiductor, and he is responsible for all other instuctors and for the training in general. Since I have evaluated and translated all slabs long time ago I can tell you that those people are the Armaturae Duplares and their deputies (Armaturae semissales). We know that the campiductor was one of the most important people in the regiment. So, we have 2 options now. Either it is the tribunus minor, or the first of all ordinarii. Since all ordinarii get the same anonnae I would say we go with the first option. However, it is also possible that the "role" or "task" of the campiductor went from one soldier to the next in a kind of cyclic procedure - a kind of honour which was indeed not better paid. Possible.
optio
Since the last man, the file-closer or Uragus of a file was reponsible to take care for the rear-side of the file (see my upper post about his exact jobs) - the optio wasn't needed anymore. We see a shift from an active soldier to a kind of deputy of the principes of the centuriae. In other words, the optio was now the right hand of the centurion in administrative issues.
Optio Abraham - he checks the ἀννώνας (annona) of his contubernii (the files). = O.Douch 2 61
Furthermore their job was the distribution and securing of food supply. = SB 6 9455 Herakleopolis
And since we just find 10 of them regarding our Perge-unit, they were most likely responsible for a cavalry unit as well - administratively attached to the corresponding centuria.
The New-Optio can most likely be indentified with the former actuarius.
He (the actuarius) was civil servant and responsible for the food supply,
they confirm the death of a soldier for the wives/widows with a kind of document (Nov Iust CXVII 11),
they calculated the needed food for the next weeks (Cod. Theod. VII, 4, 13),
they were responsible for the payment of money to the soldiers (Cod Iust XII 37, 16).
Finally they can be identified with the optiones (cod. Theod. VII, 4, 24) [...] actuarios vel optiones [...].
Even the optio wrote a kind of "death-certificate" for the widow of a cavalry soldier (Nov Iust CXVII 11) and he demanded or arose a sportulae for his service in the same way like the actuarius did - means: he took money from the soldiers and the state for his job (a fifteenth = 1/15) - a procedure already at that time often criticized and sometimes punished. Thanks to Justinian we get the first time a quite good overview about the different "provisions-officers".
The titel actuarius is used for the scholae units, optio for the foederatii and the chartularios for numeri and foederati.
[...] primis scholae et actuario, si autem foederatus, ab optione [...] (Nov Iust CXVII 11).
The χαρτουλαριων was responsible for the γενναιοτατων αριθμον and φοιδερατοι (Cod Iust XII 37, 19). Since slab C mentions the task or role of the soldiers, not the actual rank, it is possible once more that another name is hidden behind our Perge-optio - it was the actuarius, chartularius or even the optio.
file leader
λοχαγους (lochagus) is the file leader of the κοντουβερνάλιος (contuberni), for infantry & cavalry. Both groups are commanded by either the κεντηναρίῳ (centenarius) or κεντυρίων (centurion) - depending if it's an old unit or a regiment following a new style of internal order. Mauricius tries to establish a kind of pattern to integrate all units into an equal system. Vegetius calls the file leader decanus and caput contubernii, so obviously the same.
Hieronymus (PL XXIII) contra iohannem hierosolym [...] tiro, eques, circitor, biarchus, centenarius, ducenarius, Senator, primicerius, tribunus [...]
The biarchus is listed directly behind the centenarius. If a file leader was existing, then he was most likely called biarchus in new-styled units and decanus or caput contubernii in units following the old structure. Esp. the decanus get a transformation of the word (like many others as well) and is named in its graeco-latin version dekarchos or decarchus. Biarchus and Circitor are recorded in infantry as well as cavalry units. But I agree that this is a minor issue at the moment. We could however think about the option that the file-closer (uragus) is connected to the circitor (see post above).
banners&flags
long topic. I would like to hear the opinion of all readers why a unit (true legion, ancient numerus or cohors miliaria equitata) has a need of 10 imaginifer.
by the way, slab B (as metioned with sources in my post above) calls the magister draconum as supervisor for all other draconarii. But he is most likely just one of the 30 standard bearers displayed on slab C. We know today that certain groups within a military unit have established Collegia, a procedure lasting until the 6th century.
