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Roman Names on Equipment....help
#1
Certain equipment has been found with the name of the person and the century they belonged to. For example what has been found is the following (I changed the names because I do not recall the actual ones), Lucius Firmus > Q Sertorius Festus. The symbol “>”: in the century of. So the equipment belongs to Firmus in the century of Festus. Likewise, something could be Q Sertorius Festus……. > Q Sertorius Festus designating that it his specifically his equipment.
I did not write the latin for the people above in the appropriate form because I am not sure how it would be.
However, what if a legate needed his name on a piece of equipment like his musculata? What would go in the place of “>” to designate that the equipment belonged to him. Some sort of writing to designate the Legion.

Thanks
"You have to laugh at life or else what are you going to laugh at?" (Joseph Rosen)


Paolo
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#2
Quote:However, what if a legate needed his name on a piece of equipment ...
I'm not sure that the governor was quite as likely to misplace his armour as, say, Lucius Bloggs. :wink:
posted by Duncan B Campbell
https://ninth-legion.blogspot.com/
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#3
Hello Mr. Campbell,

I thought of that but I was looking at "in the event something". However, I thought I'd ask anyway. Good point.
"You have to laugh at life or else what are you going to laugh at?" (Joseph Rosen)


Paolo
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#4
I think it is very much as Duncan has pointed out that a commander would very likely not need to put any name or names on his equipment, it may well be that the need to put ones name on a piece of gear is amongst ordinary soldiers where things could have been so very similar or indeed a lot of theft going on.

When we look at the very famous decorative shield boss from the river Tyne of Dubitatus it is written
> IVLI MAGNI-IVNI DUBITATI where of course things do go a little bit in reverse to read Junius Dubitatus of the century of Julius Magnus, The shield boss does of course have symbols of the VIII AVG so it would be within the Legion where it needed to be identified.

With ordinary soldiers helmets there are cases where there are two and even three or more names insrcibed on them, so this may well imply that these pieces of gear were around for some time.
Brian Stobbs
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#5
As Duncan says, the legate being a fabulously wealthy individual, his armour and equipment would be custom made, perhaps inherited, and hard to mistake for anyone else's! Also, as a legate would only spend a few years with an individual legion, it's unlikely they would want to inscribe the legion name on their very expensive helmet or whatever.

There might be a case for certain senators having their family name inscribed on armour, perhaps especially if it was a prestige piece handed down through the generations, but since we don't have any evidence for senatorial armour anyway it's hard to guess how this might be done! I would suppose an inscription, done by a skilled craftsman rather than just scratched or punched, with the possessive (?) form of the name might work - ACILII GLABRIONES, for example. But I could more easily imagine the decoration of the armour itself (embossed figures or designs) being used as an identifier rather than an inscription.
Nathan Ross
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#6
Frankly, I do not believe that he would do so. It would only be necessary to designate the ownership of a piece of equipment if there were a danger of its becoming mixed up with the property of another soldier. There was, of course, only one legate of a legion at a time and he would only hold that position for a limited length of time before moving on to another stage in his career. However, assuming that he did want to mark his cuirass with his name, rank and legion, I would imagine that he would put his name in the genitive, to denote ownership, followed by his rank in abbreviated form and the number and cognomen of his legion, also abbreviated, e.g., Q. Petillii Cerialis leg leg VIIII hisp.
Michael King Macdona

And do as adversaries do in law, -
Strive mightily, but eat and drink as friends.
(The Taming of the Shrew: Act 1, Scene 2)
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#7
Very good points gentlemen. Thanks!!
As I responded to Mr. Campbell, I was thinking along the same lines. But as I said, I needed to ask because you never
know what evidence is around.

You can never be too careful with the Romans. They were an interesting bunch to be sure.
"You have to laugh at life or else what are you going to laugh at?" (Joseph Rosen)


Paolo
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#8
There are saddle plates with names on which were certainly ownership identifiers. Shame they weren't the horses' names instead ;-)
Moi Watson

Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, Merlot in one hand, Cigar in the other; body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming "WOO HOO, what a ride!
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#9
Quote:Shame they weren't the horses' names instead ;-)
You mean like Pulchritudo Nigra?
Michael King Macdona

And do as adversaries do in law, -
Strive mightily, but eat and drink as friends.
(The Taming of the Shrew: Act 1, Scene 2)
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#10
Quote:
Doc post=326636 Wrote:However, what if a legate needed his name on a piece of equipment ...
I'm not sure that the governor was quite as likely to misplace his armour as, say, Lucius Bloggs. :wink:
And unlike praefecti, who it seems could occasionally lose their horses. The Xanten phalera is wonderfully oblique as to what it actually means, but one interpretation may be that it belonged to Pliny. Perhaps he was prone to 'senior moments'...

Mike Bishop
You know my method. It is founded upon the observance of trifles

Blogging, tweeting, and mapping Hadrian\'s Wall... because it\'s there
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