Black Roman soldiers

[Theodosius the Great]

Of course, whether someone calling themselves Mauri or Afri would be 'black' as we would understand it is unknown.

Not likely, I would think. The emperor John II Komnenos was known to contemporaries as "the Moor" because of his dark complexion. See his portrait on wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_II_Komnenos

And he was of European descent.

~Theo

[AMELIANVS]

Also liutprand of Cremona described emperor Nicephoros Phocas as..."in color rather an Aethiopian..."

I found nice Fayum portrait which seems to depict Afro Roman(term modeleled on Afro American :winkor at least romanized Black African.

[Nathan Ross]

Not likely, I would think. The emperor John II Komnenos was known to contemporaries as "the Moor" because of his dark complexion.

Yes, that was my point above about Maurus as a cognomen or signum, like Ausonius' grandmother.

I think 'natione Maurum/Afro', on the other hand, refers specifically to somebody born in or of a place - it's more properly an ethnic origin. Trouble is, it's still unclear: somebody of 'natione Maurum' could come from one of the Berber peoples along the Mauretanian coast, and 'Afri' could refer to old Africa, around Carthage. However, these were populous places, and as the designation is uncommon that I suspect it might actually mean something else, and refer to a man from sub-saharan or 'black' Africa.

'Afer' occurs most frequently among sailors of the Misenum fleet:

(CIL 10, 03389) Misenum: D(is) M(anibus) / L(ucio) Urbinio Quar/tino mil(iti) ex clas(se) / pr(aetoria) Misen(ensi) |(centuria) Faeni / Iusti nat(ione) Afer...

(CIL 10, 03433) Misenum: D(is) M(anibus) / Iulio Felici na(tione) / Afer mil(itavit) an(nos) XIIII / gubernator / Flavia Nicopolis co(n)iugi / b(ene) m(erenti) f(ecit)

(CIL 10, 03435) Misenum: D(is) M(anibus) / G(ai) Pomponi Felicis / natione Afer vixit / an(n)is XXXX me(n)sibus VIII / diebus IV militavit an(nis) / XXIII me(nsibus) VIII gubern(atoris) / cl(assis) pr(aetoriae) M(isenensis) / Iulia Marciane con(iugi) / be(ne) m(erenti) f(ecit)

(CIL 10, 03634) Misenum: D(is) M(anibus) L(uci) Surdini Sa/turnini lib(urna) Ar/mata nat(ione) Afer / vix(it) ann(os) XXXX / mil(i)t(avit) ann(os) XVIIII / Clodia Secunda / mater fil(io) ben(e) m(erenti) f(ecit)


All of these look 2nd-3rd century, I reckon. We know that the Misenum fleet drew men from Alexandria, so possibly these four were black Africans born or living in Egypt who entered Roman service that way.


Here's another 'African', from the Praetorian Guard:

(CIL 06, 02431) Roma: D(is) M(anibus) / Decimius Auguri/nus mil(es) coh(ortis) I pr(aetoriae) |(centuria) / Martini vix(it) an(nos) XXX / mil(itavit) ann(os) VIII nat(ione) Af/er Claudia Nunna / co(n)iux et her(es) b(ene) / m(erenti)


And another sailor, this time serving in the British fleet:

(CIL 12, 00686) Arelate: ]entius Saturninus ex / classis Britannicae Philippianae / [na]tione Afer Bizacinus oriundus] / municipio Septimia Libera / Thy(s)dritanus te[stamento]

Interestingly, he mentions that he was actually from Thysdrus in Tunisia, which could provide an origin for the 'Afer' designation.


Similarly, this imaginifer of II Traiana was originally from Theveste, and transferred to Egypt from III Augusta:

(CIL 03, 12057) Alexandria: Q(uintus) Iul(ius) Primus imag(inifer) leg(ionis) II Traian(ae) / Ger(manicae) For(tis) Antoninianae stip(endiorum) XXII / nat(ione) Afer domo Theveste trans/lat(um) ex leg(ione) III Aug(usta) P(ia) V(ictrici) vixit an//nis XXXXV Aurelia Dios/corus(!) marito amantissimo fecit

While another veteran of II Traiana retired to Puteoli, which might suggest a connection with the fleet again:

(CIL 10, 01772) Puteoli: D(is) M(anibus) / Q(uintus) Cornel(ius) Victor / veteran(us) ex leg(ione) II Traian(a) / nat(ione) Afer vixit ann(os) LXXVIII / L(ucius) Cornelius Victor / filius piissimus patri / b(ene) m(erenti) f(ecit)


Lastly, does anyone know what this man might have been? A 'faction agitator'?

(CIL 03, 12013,09) Carnuntum: Scorpianus [agita]/tor factionis / natione Afer / vivit DCC

Something to do with chariots, perhaps? :neutral:

[M. Demetrius]

I have come to believe that the Romans were much more concerned whether people were citizens of Rome than whether they were of a different skin color. It was "racism", I guess, but based not on physical race, but nationality, so to speak.

[AMELIANVS]

Photo of very rare type of Roman reenactor and Numidian auxiliary

[Ioannis]

I found nice Fayum portrait which seems to depict Afro Roman(term modeleled on Afro American :winkor at least romanized Black African.

I don't think the guy portrayed is of African origin. I would say typical Mediterranean complexion.

[Lyceum]

I found nice Fayum portrait which seems to depict Afro Roman(term modeleled on Afro American :winkor at least romanized Black African.

I don't think the guy portrayed is of African origin. I would say typical Mediterranean complexion.

I see your point, and its a very important one, really hits some of the presumptions most people have in terms of how these people looked, but don't you think the facial features are a little too south-easterly here?

Incidentally have you seen Susan Walker's article on the Fayum portraits ("Painted Hellenes" in the Edwards and Swain book on late Antiquity)? pretty good.

I have come to believe that the Romans were much more concerned whether people were citizens of Rome than whether they were of a different skin color. It was "racism", I guess, but based not on physical race, but nationality, so to speak.

Well, yeah, I mean I think you have it here. That tends to be the accepted view, in terms of the finer points I'm reticent to comment since I haven't read that much and I know that there's a lot of work going on now about identity etc so I could be easily out of date with the Romans - whom I pay little attention to. But I would say that, as per this thread, their "colour/ethnic" boundaries were not the same as ours at all. This is very important and often overlooked by those historians adopting a Romanising senatorial air where we assume not only that our modern categories were shared by the Romans, but that we would have been in the inclusive group.

I'm also against simplistic post-modern constructions of the "other", its obviously more a tempered inclusivity/exclusivity model. Personally I'm more intrigued on how the Roman elites differentiated status amongst themselves, mainly through language register and education if the epistolary evidence is anything to go by.

So, yes, I'd say you're very much right in that citizenship was a much larger role but then I'd also say that Roman citizenship was also an alien concept to us, I feel Dench's "Romulus' Asylum" is the best all in one exegesis on this. Actually I'm going to re-read that chapter.

[Nathan Ross]

That tends to be the accepted view

It has been, I think, since Snowden's Before Color Prejudice back in 1991. Benjamin Isaac tried to counter it in 2006 with The Invention of Racism in Classical Antiquity, but I don't think his view has gained so much ground since.

For anyone interested, there's a detailed article here about Roman perceptions of Black Africans, mainly as expressed in literature. The author (from the Department of Classics at the University of Ibadan!) argues that many of the apparently negative sterotypes of Africans in Latin satire derive from the cultural assumptions of early 20th century translators, rather than being inherent in the sources.

An example, I suppose, would be Catullus' dismissal of Caesar: 'I don't care if he's black or white' (Carmina 93) - the point is not that he would be somehow inferior if black, but that the poet quite literally doesn't care what he looks like - quite a subtle dig at someone as vain as Caesar!

Personally I'm more intrigued on how the Roman elites differentiated status amongst themselves, mainly through language register and education if the epistolary evidence is anything to go by.

It's intriguing too how permeable the Roman elite could be. Septimius Severus supposedly spoke with a very strong Punic accent throughout his life. The Syrians introduced into the imperial mainstream during his reign would presumably have added their own inflections to the mix.

But (returning to the subject) the anecdote about Severus and the black soldier in Britain not only proves that there were black Africans in the army, but that they were accepted among their fellows and on occasion could address passing emperors in terms of familiarity!

[Tarbicus]

'Africans in Yorkshire? The deepest-rooting clade of the Y phylogeny within an English genealogy' King et al (2007), cites 'Staying power: the history of black people in Britain', whick looks like it might be worth checking from a library.

That's the same Turi King who got to announce today that the skeleton found under the car park in Leicester is Richard III, by the way.

[AMELIANVS]

I found nice Fayum portrait which seems to depict Afro Roman(term modeleled on Afro American :winkor at least romanized Black African.

I don't think the guy portrayed is of African origin. I would say typical Mediterranean complexion.

Yeah, I'm not saying that it must necessarily be black but at least he has the darkest skin of all the Fayum portraits I've seen.I saw this portrait even in a better quality somewhere and there the impression of black man was even greater.

[M. Demetrius]

Concerning the earlier "black or white" statement earlier, it's important to remember that the word "black" as ascribed to Africans is a very late convention. The use of Black as a "race-accepted" name for those of generally African descent only goes back to the late 60s or early 70s in the US, at least. Other adjectives were politely used prior to that, including "Colored, and Negro (which is now in disrepute, though it is just Spanish for "black", which is now accepted. Go figure.)

So I don't believe that Caesar was being referred to as being "of African descent", I agree with the conclusion that it was just a metaphoric contrast, like perhaps, "hot or cold", "tall or short", or any other opposites. Just for the record.

There were most likely more olive skinned Mediterranean complexions in the ranks than any other skin color. Except in Numidia, of course.