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XII.—A Test of Certain Centurial Stones

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 January 2012

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A few years ago, in commenting upon certain inscriptions published by Dr. Bruce, I contended that they referred to the estates of Roman colonists called centuriæ, and not to the cohortal divisions known by the same name, as maintained by Dr. Bruce. In a later publication Dr. Bruce controverts my view and reasserts his own. Thus there is a distinct antiquarian issue between us. As such divergences of opinion will never be rare in archæology, I should have left the matter where it stood if there were not something else to import into the question, which at the time I had the honour of bringing the subject before the Society I did not think necessary to state, believing that my evidences were sufficient without it. What I now refer to, and propose to import, are two rules of the formal language of Rome, which of their own force determine the meaning of the word centuria, according as it occurs in conjunction with one quality of proper name or another.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © The Society of Antiquaries of London 1873

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References

page 225 note a Proc. Soc. Antiq. 2 S. iv. 21.

page 226 note a The same writer says, at p. 160, “agri … assignantur viritim nominibus.”

page 226 note b For Numerius as a prœnomen see Festus. For Numisius as a nomen see Orelli, 449, 7, “Numisia, C L. Glafyra.” Also Revue Archéologique, vol. xvii. N. S. p. 289.

page 227 note a Orelli, 4333.

page 227 note b Ibid. 4324.

page 228 note a “Hyginus Gromaticus de limitibus constituendis” (p. 195, Lachman). “Incipiamus ergo ponere lapides a decumano maximo et Kardine inscriptions qua debet.”—“Inscribendi nobis una sit ratio.” (Ibid.)—“Cum centurias omnes inscriptiones lapidibus terminaverimus, &c.” (Ibid p. 196), and passim.

page 228 note b Vigilum Romanorum latercula duo Cœlimontana magnam partem militiaœ Romanœ explicantia. Romæ, 1835.

page 228 note c The constitution of the Vigiles was the same as that of the Legion. Kellermali (who wrote under the inspiration of the great Borghesi) says (p. 1, ibid.): “Eavero peropportune est diversorum militiaæ urbanæ generum inter se similitudo, ut optimo tuo jure tibi liceat ad alium genus transferre munera atque instituta quæ in alio existere cognoveris. Ita quæcunque nova apud vigiles inveneris (invenies autem neque pauca neque levia) eadem recte cohortibus et prsetorianis et urbanis attribueris, si ea modo exceperis quæ nisi solorum vigilum esse non potuerunt. Tota autem militia urbana non ita dispar erat militia; legionaryæ, ut non magnam partem munerum nororum legionariis quoque cohortibus recte attribueris. Ut paucis dicam, his monumentis totæ Romanorum rei militari lux affertur, maxime erro militiaæ urbanæ imprimisque militiaæ vigilum urbanorum.” Borghesi (vol. iii. Œuvres complètes, p. 542) takes the same view. “Ora l'ordinamento dei vigili non era cosi discorde da quello del resto della milizia urbana, ed anche dalla legionaria che nella massima parte non convenissero insieme,” &c.

page 231 note a See next note.

page 230 note a “Centuria Barbati” (No. 1020, Zell); “Centuria Reperti” (Orelli, 3541); “Centuria Lucani Augurini” (a double cognomen. No. 1032, Zell); “Con. III. Centuria Probiani” (Dr. Brace's Boman Wall, p. 264); “Centuria Bassi” (Muratori, p. 790, 2); “Centuria Sabiniani” (Ibid. p. 544, 4); “Centuria Grani” (Ibid. p. 1093). [This is Granus. and should not be confounded with Granins. Granus is found in company with other unquestionable cognomina: in an early Martyrology (Ruinart's Acta Martyrum, p. 512, in note) — “Granus, Hilarius, Donatus, Concessus, et Saturninus.”] In Reinesius (28, 11) occurs “Centuria Vari” : this is Varus. For this cognomen see Orelli, 3892 ; Gruter, 172, 2 ; and Zell, No. 900.

page 232 note a Sic. Flaccus (p. 158, Lachman) : “Limitum quoque modus in quibusdam regionibus per amplum spatium exceptus est ; in quibusdam vero, modo adsignationis cessit.” So Ulpian, Dig. 43, tit. 7, e. 3. “Viæ vicinales quæ ex agris privatorum collatis facta? sunt, quarum memoria non extat, publicarum viarum numero sunt.” This also is the meaning of the expression continually used in the LL. Coloniarum, “iter populo non debetur ”

page 232 note b See the Lex Thoria (Zell, p. 235) : “Limitesque inter centurias itineri publico inserviunto.”