A New Diploma for Syria-Palaestina (1979)

A New Diploma for Syria-PalaestinaAuthor(s): C. N. ReevesSource: Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik, Bd. 33 (1979), pp. 117-123Published by: Dr. Rudolf Habelt GmbH, Bonn (Germany)Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20185609 .

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117

A NEW DIPLOMA FOR SYRIA-PALAESTINA*)

(Plates III-IV)

The small fragment published here for the first time was recently purchased from a

London dealer by the writer. It is reputed to have been acquired from an American source,

though the original provenance remains unknown 1)

In brief, the diploma appears to have been issued in Syria-Palaestina (being one of

only three known for that province 2)) sometime between AD 149 and 161 during the reign

of Antoninus Pius, doubtless one of a number presented to those serving in probably three

aloe and, according to the present restoration of the text, at least eleven cohortes. Units

which can be directly identified from the fragment are an ala Ant[iana.. .J and cohortes I

Sebastena milliaria, I Flavia [civium Romanorum], 11[11 BracaraugustanorumJ and [VI UlpiaJ

Pet[raeorumJ. A restoration based upon the diplomata for the province of 139 and 186

plausibly supplies cohortes I Thracum milliaria, I Damascenorum, I and 11 Ulpia Galatarum

and 1111 Ulpia Petraeorum, with space for at least two further units. The grounds for these

restorations will be considered in more detail presently.

I. The diploma

The dimensions of the new diploma fragment are set out below:

max. height: 30 mm

max. width: 28 mm

ave. thickness: 1 mm

ave. height of letters: (intus) 3 - 4 mm

(extrinsecus) 2 - 3 mm

The execution of the lettering is indicative of the diploma's post-Trajanic date: whilst

the interior script is rather cursive and negligent, the outer face is engraved with more care,

the letters being smaller and more regular. There is a shallow, engraved border on the outer

face.

*) My thanks are due to Dr Margaret M.Roxan for her help and encouragement in the preparation of this paper; also, to Dr B. Isaac, who read the manuscript in draft form and made a number of useful suggestions.

1) The fragment is included as t60 in Roman Military Diplomas published between 1954 and 1977, by M. M. Roxan (to be published).

2) The other diplomata for this province, of AD 139 and 186, are discussed in CIL XVI 87 and Roxan, op.cit. t69 respectively. The latter supersedes B. Lifshitz, ' Un fragment d'un diplome militaire de Hebron', Latomus 35,1 1976 (Brussels) 117ff pl.XII1 and XIV.



118 C. N . Reeves

The edges of the fragment suggest that the diploma was purposely broken up at some

stage, a feature seemingly common to many of the pieces which survive.

Although the present fragment is in a reasonably good state of preservation, several of

the letters on the broken edges were difficult to decipher. Some mechanical cleaning,

together with X-ray photography, undertaken by Kathryn Tubb of the Institute of Archaeo

logy Conservation Department, University of London, enabled a fairly definite reading to

be made:3)

intus: tabella I extrinsecus: tabelia I

tSbiUxN

_ ' D I vITL H I C N E PD QV

I AN V SA N ETANT

I B P 0 ETCOH\

5 E D I T ETISEBOD 5

ETIF LAV

ETII

3) A note concerning technical details of the X-raying processes involved is shortly to be published by Mrs Tubb in the Bulletin of the Institute of Archaeology, 15,1978.



A New Diploma for Syria-Palaestina 119

II. Discussion - Date

Two features suggest that the fragment is to be dated to the reign of Antoninus Pius:

i) the nominative ending E.. .]IANVS (I intus 1.3) followed by AN[... I refers to an

emperor whose names include Hadrianus Antoninus;

ii) the claim EPARTJHIC(i) NEP(os) (I intus 1.2) refers to the adoptive grandfather of

Pius, Trajan.

One further point suggests that the date can be narrowed down still more:

iii) diplomata issued during the early part of the reign of Pius as a rule list the alae

and cohortes without a break after the words qui militaverunt. CIL XVI 97 of AD 149 is

the latest extant diploma that lists the alae and cohortes together. The new fragment,

however, has been read as having the list of aloe following straight on from the words

[in alis], and the cohortes directly following et cohortibus; this separation can first be

paralleled by CIL XVI 104 of 154. It is, therefore, apparent that, from the formula

employed, the new diploma ought not to pre-date the period AD 149-154.

Province

From the surviving list of units it is possible to infer the province. The combination of

ala Ant(iana)[...] and cohortes I Seb(astena) (milliaria), I Flav(ia) [c(ivium) R(omanorum)]

and [VI Ulp(ia)] Pet[r(aeorum)] can, at this date, refer only to Syria-Palaestina.

Suggested restoration of the text

A comparison with the diplomata of 139 and 186, together with an estimate for the

average number of characters to the line, enables certain restorations to be made to the

text, some plausible, others a little more tentative. Wherever possible, the abbreviations

employed in the restored portions of the text are based upon those used in diplomata of

comparable date.

T a b e I I e I i n t u s . (Suggested average of characters to the I ine: 29-31)

I M P C A S D I V I H D R I A N I F D I V I T' R A I A N I

P A R T H I C N E P D V I N E R V A E P R O0 1 T A E L I V S

H A D R I A N V S A TO N I N V S A V G P I V S P O N T

M A X T IBPO . . I M P II C O S IIII P P

5 E Q E T E D I QvI M I L I T A V E R I N A L I S . . 5



120 C . N . Reeves

[Imp(erator) CaJes(ar), divi Ha[driani f., divi Traiani Part]hic(i) nep(os), dEivi Nervae

pron(epos), T. Aelius HadrJianus AnEtoninus Aug(ustus) Pius, pont(ifex) max(imus),

t]rib(unicia) pot(estate) [... , imp(erator) 11, co(n)s(ul) 1111, p(ater) p(atriae)]

[eq(uitibus) et] pedit(ibus) Equi militaver(unt) in alis .e. f2Jet[...]

1 Since the attribution to Antoninus Pius is certain, and a date post-149 demonstrable, the emperor's titles have been restored accordingly. It is not possible to be specific con cerning his tribunician power; from the estimated date of the diploma, however, it must have been between XII and XXIIII.

2 Taking into consideration the space left for reconstruction of the units on the outer face, three alae seem likely.

T a b e I I a I e x t r i n s e c u s . (Suggested average of characters to the I ine: 31-32)

ITIB ET PEDIT QVI MILIT IN ALIS

QV APPEL

ET AN' ANA

ET COH *. ... ET I THRAC O

5 ET I SEB W I DAMASC LT... 5

ET I FLA R ET I VLP GALATET II VLP GALAT

ET I BRAC AR ET. .. .. VLP

1 2 Eq[uitib(us) et pedit(ibus) qui milit(averunt) in alis ...J , qua[e appel(lantur)

(c.22-23)] et Ant[iana ... .3(c.22-23)] et coh(ortibus) [...4 . .5(c. 17-18) et

I Thrac(um) (milliaria)] et I Seb(astena) (milliaria) Let I Damasc(enorum) et ...

(c. 13-14)] et Flav(ia) Ec(ivium) R(omanorum) ? et I Ulp(ia) Galat(arum) 1 et 11 Ulp(ia)

Galat(arum)] et 11[11 Bracar(augustanorum)13 et ... (c.10-11) et ... Ulp(ia)] 15 16

Pet[r(aeorum) ...]

1 See above, intus note 2.

2 It is impossible at this stage in our knowledge to restore fully the list of alae in the present diploma with any certainty, bearing in mind the difficulties of nomenclature dis closed by the diploma of 186. (See M. M. Roxan, op. cit. t 69, note 3).

3 The manner in which the alae of CIL XVI 3 of AD 54 and CIL XVI 87 of 139 are

listed makes it difficult to determine to which ethnic title or titles the adjective Antiana should be applied. Cf. M.M.Roxan, ' Pre-Severan auxilia named in the Notitia Digni tatum', Aspects of the Notitia Dignitatum (Oxford 1976) edd. R.Goodburn, P.Bartholomew, 62 and Table IV.




4 Spatial considerations suggest at least eleven cohortes. There may or may not have

been a further cohors listed after [... I Pet[r(aeorum)] in 1.8. (See note 16 below).

5 The diploma of 186 lists an unidentified cohors in first place (Roxan, Roman Military Diplomas etc, t69 note 4). Considerations of space would suggest that the present fragment also contained a unit before the restored El Thrac(um) milliaria)]. (See note 16 below).

6 Cohors El Thrac(um) (milliaria)] is listed in both the diploma of 139 and in that of 186

before I Sebastena (milliaria), in the former taking first position and in the latter second.

(See note 5 above). CIL XVI 33; CIL XVI 87; IEJ 12 1962 259; IEJ 17 1967 52 = IEJ 19 1969 211; IGR IV 1565; Lat. 35, 1 1976 117ff; Not. Dig. Or. XXXVII 31; Roxan t69.

7 Cohors I Seb(astena) (milliaria). AE 1947 no.172; CIL 111, 1 2916 (and 9984); CIL XVI 87; Lat. 35, 1 1976 117ff.; Roxan t60; Roxan t 69.

8 Cohors El Damasc(enorum)] listed in 139 and 186 occupying the same position after I Sebastena (milliaria).

CIL XVI 87; ILS I 2722; Lat. 35, 1 1976 117ff; Mitteis, Chrest. no.207; Not. Dig. Or. XXXII 33; Roxan t69; Wilcken, Chrest. no.144.

9 Space demands another unit here. Cohors I Mont(anorum) is listed in the same

position after I Dam(ascenorum) in the diploma of 139; it is not mentioned in that of 186, and the homonym of Pannonia Inferior is now attested in that province in 139 and 148

(CIL XVI 175; 179, 180). I Montanorum civium Romanorum of Moesia Superior is attested there in AD 100 (it took part in the Dacian Wars) and is certainly back in the same pro vince by the latter part of the reign of Pius (CIL XVI 111, Roxan t 55).

10 Cohors I Flav(ia) [c(ivium) R(omanorum)]. AE 1925 no.44; CIL 111 600; CIL XVI 87; ILS I 2724; Not. Dig. Or. XXXIV 45; Roxan t 60.

11 Cohors El Ulp(ia) Galat(arum)] listed in the diplomata of 139 and 186 in the same general sequence - in that of 139 being referred to in the shortened form Gala(tarum). AE 1934 no.230; CIL XVI 87; IGR IV 882; Lat. 35, 1 1976 117ff; Roxan t 69.

12 Cohors ElI Ulp(ia) Galat (arum)]: as note 11 above.

CIL XVI 87; Lat. 35, 1 1976 117ff; Not. Dig. Or. XXXIV 44; Roxan t69.

13 Cohors 11E1I Bracar(augustanorum)] listed in the diplomata both of 139 and 186, in that of 139 together with III Brac(araugustanorum). This latter unit does not appear in 186 -

independent evidence indicates that by this time Ill Bracaraugustanorum was in Raetia. (See H.-J . Kellner, 'Zwei neue raetische Militdrdiplome', Bayerische Vorgeschichts bldtter 33, 1968, 96 and Beilage 1). CIL XVI 87; ILS 11, 1 5549; Lat. 35, 1 1976 117ff; Roxan t 69.

14 et 15 Spatial considerations suggest the restoration of two cohortes here. In view of the title PetEr(aeorum)] in the following line (1.8), it is likely that the units listed were [1111 Ulp(ia) Petr(aeorum)] and EVI Ulp(ia)] Pet[r(aeorum)]. In the very abbreviated formula

used in the diploma of 139 the Ulpia is omitted (cf. note 11 above). Cohors [1111 Ulp(ia) Petr(aeorum)]: CIL XVI 87. Cohors [VI Ulp(ia)] Pet[r(aeorum)]: AE 1924 no.132; CIL XVI 87; Roxan t60.



122 C . N . Reeves

16 A cohors V gem(ella) c(ivium) R(omanorum) is listed in the diploma of 139 after the Petraean units, though it does not occur in the list of 186, at least in that position. B. Lifshitz, in his original publication of the diploma of 186, read the first cohors in the list as V [Ge]mella c(ivium) R(omanorum). His reading is to be doubted since, in view of the general ascending numerical sequence of the subsequent cohortes, in this and in other diplomata, V gemella c.R. would be out of place. If Lifshitz was right, however, in thinking that cohors V gemella c.R. does head the list on the 186 diploma, for whatever reason, then it is probable that the cohortes Petraeorum ended the list on the present diploma and that V gemella c.R. headed the list of cohorts. If his reading is not correct, and it is very difficult to be certain since the surface of the diploma of 186 is rather cor roded at this point, then there is the possibility that the cohors V gemella c.R. should be inserted after VI Ulp(ia) Petr(aeorum) in the present list.

Ill. Conclusion

A restoration of the text of the new diploma would suggest, even on spatial grounds

alone, that the strength of the Roman auxilia in Syria-Palaestina had not significantly

altered since the issue of the diploma of 139. The only unit known with any certainty to

have left the province is cohors Ill Bracaraugustanorum, which by this date (AD 149-161)

had been returned to Raetia. The diploma of 139 is generally considered to have been

issued subsequent to the running down, militarily, of Syria-Palaestina following the

suppression of the Second Jewish Revolt of AD 132-135; thus it should not surprise us to

find the auxiliary strength of the province substantially unchanged for the next decade

or so.

What is interesting is that the new fragment does seem to narrow down the date for the

possible further run down in the garrison reflected in the diploma of 186. It may be that this

latter document does not record the true military strength of the province at the time it was

issued,4) a problem which could only be resolved by determining the location of the 'missing'

units subsequent to 186. A consideration of the historical situation, however, does indicate

that the period immediately following the death of Antoninus Pius was one of intense mili

tary activity, when the legionary and auxiliary composition of many of the provinces was

altered due to the urgent needs of the Parthian and Marcomannic wars.5) It is just possible

that in the diploma of 186 we have a reflection of the consequence of such military de

nudation in one of the lesser provinces of the Empire.

4) Units mentioned on specific diplomata are merely those discharging troops at that particular time.

5) In connection with this, B. Isaac has pointed out to me that VI Ferrata certainly took

part in Lucius Verus' Parthian campaign (PIR2 A 754).




Table of known diplomata for Syria-Palaestina. Restored units in square brackets.

Pubn. CIL XVI (87) Roxan t 60 Roxan t 69

Provenance Phi k (unknown) Hebron

Date 22.11.139 c.a.149-161 24/27.11.186

Under P.Calpurnius _ Julius Lepidianus Atilianus

Strength III al. XII coh. Ill? al. XI+coh. 11 al. VIl coh.

Alae GalI(orum) et [uncertain] Antiana Gallor(um) Thr(acum) et Thrac(um)

Ant(iana) GallIorum) Ant(iana)[...] Antiana(?)

VIl Phry(gum) [uncertain]

Cohortes [uncertain] (uncertain)

I Thr(acum) a [I Thrac(um) ac] I Thrac(um) ac

I Seb(astena) aD I Seb(astena) am I Sebaste(na) cm

I Dam(ascenorum) [I Damasc(enorum)] I Damascenor(um)

I Mont(anorum) [uncertain]

I FI(avia) c.R. I Flav(ia) [c.R.]

I (Ulpia) [I Ulp(ia) I Ulp(ia) GaIa(tarum) Galat(arum)] Galatar(um)

11 (Ulpia) [11 Ulp(ia) 11 Ulp(ia) Gala(tarum) Galat(arum)] Galatar(um)

III Brac(ar augustanorum)

1111 Brac(ar-I 1I[lI Bracar- 1111 Bracar augustanorum) (augustanorum)] (augustanorum)

1111 Petr(aeorum) [1111 Ulp(ia) Petr (aeoru m)]

VI Petr(aeorum) [VI Ulp(ia)] Petr (aeorum)

Vgem(ella) c.R. (see extrinsecus, note 16)

Recipient Gaius Lucii f.

of Nicaea, Bithynia

Unit coh. 11 Ulp. Galat. - coh? I Thracum cm

London C .N .Reeves



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A New Diploma for Syria-Palaestina (1979)

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