Alba Regia. Annales Musei Stephani Regis. – Alba Regia. Az István Király Múzeum Évkönyve. 19. 1979 – Szent István Király Múzeum közleményei: C sorozat (1981)

Szemle – Rundschau - Lőrincz Barnabás: Some Remarks on the History of the Pannonian Legions in the late first and early second Centuries A. D. p. 285–288.

SOME REMARKS ON THE HISTORY OF THE PANNONIAN LEGIONS IN THE LATE FIRST AND EARLY SECOND CENTURIES A. D. I. Since the publication ofE. Ritterling'

s Legio monograph in 1924—25 researchers have generally held the view that legio XIIII Gemina arrived in Pannónia in 92 A. D. to replace legio XXI Rapax which had been annihilated in the Sarmatian wars (Ritterling 1924/25, 1277, 1736; Syme 1928, 50—51; Syme 1938, 270—271; Alföldy 1959, 126; MÓCSY 1974, 84—85). As a stamped brick of legio XIIII Gemina is known from Mursella [Petrijevci] {CIL, III, 3755), this site was thought to represent the base camp of both units (Ritterling 1924/25, 1277, 1736; Syme 1928, 50—51; Syme 1938, 270—271; Alföldy 1959, 126; MÓCSY 1974, 84—85). In the following it is intende I to examine whether the source material relating to the history of the unit is sufficient to substantiate this view. From the data referring to Pannónia it must be emphasized that, while it can be easily demostrated that other troops had taken part in Domitian's war in the Danube region {cf. DOBÓ 1975, Nos. 501—510, 769b—

776), for the time being we have no evidence for the involvement of legio XIIII Gemina. The stamped brick already referred to cannot be dated, so it cannot be used as a proof of the legion's stay in Mursella.

(*) So the Pannonian evidence does not prove the troop's presence here under Domitian's rule. On the examining the evidence from Germania, it turns out that the most important (i. e. single) proof of legio XIIII Gemma's departure in 92 A. D. is the altarstone of Q. Antonius Silo which came to light in the territory of Area Flaviae [Germania Superior] {CIL, XIII, 6357). The last office of the person who had erected the inscription was (centurio) leg(ionis) XXII p(iae) f(idelis) D(omitianae) which is, according to the majority of the researchers, unambiguous proof of the fact that legio XIIII (1) See e.g. the tile of legio X Gemina in Mursa (SZILÁGYI 1933, 57, No. 145 p =Bulat 1965, 11 ; PI. II. 1.), which belongs to the period when the troop was garrisoned in Vindobona, not in Aquincum, cf. most recently O. HARL—B. LŐRINCZ, Die römischen Ziegelstempel des Territoriums von Vindobona (forthcoming). (2) Cf. the Mogontiacum inscriptions {CIL, XIII,6661—7209, 11799—11937; Finke 1927, 66—72, Nos. 202—220; Nesselhauf 1937, 84—88, Nos. 111 — 120; Nesselhauf-Lieb 1959, 182—190, Nos. 160—181; Schülinger-Häfele 1977, 489—507, Nos. 59—98; Herz 1978/79, 275—290) and stamped bricks {CIL, XIII, 12348

1202

; BAATZ 1962, 52; cf. also Baatz 1969, 126—128). gemina was replaced under Domitian's rule (in 92 A. D.) by the legio XXII Primigenia in Mogontiacum (Ritterling 1924/25, 1277, 1736; Mann 1962, 162; most recently Schönberger 1969, 160). However, it should be stated that the altar, which was not found in Mogontiacum, does not necessarily prove the legion's presence there. Not a single find of legio XXII Primigenia is known from Mogontiacum under the rule of Domitian,(

2

) but its D(omitiana) stamped bricks have come to light in Germania Inferior and Gallia Belgica {CIL, XIII, 12378

2021 [Vetera], 12327

79 [Treveri]). The first trustworthy evidence of the legion's stay in Germania Superior comes from the end of 97 A. D. when Hadrian arrived in Germania Superior and became the tribunus militum of the troop {cf. SHA v. Hadr. 2,5 and CIL, III, 550. On the dating see most recently : ALFÖLDY 1967, 23—24; see also Baatz 1969, 128). It means that the legio XIIII Gemina was replaced in Mogontiacum before the end of 97 A. D., probably in 97 A. D. (see Baatz 1969, 128) when the bellum Suebicum broke out in Pannónia {CIL, V, 7425; AÉ 1923, 8. See most recently: Lőrincz 1975, 343—351) and legio XIIII Gemina was transferred here.(

3

) Here the question arises: which legion replaced legio XXI Rapax on the limes opposite the Sarmatians. It has been established already that legio IUI Flauia, which certainly took part in the bellum Suebicum et Sarmaticum {CIL, XI, 5992, on the dating see Syme 1928, 44, n. 5), was not the garrison troop of Aquincum at the end of the 1st century A. D. (Lőrincz 1978, 299—312). Since this troop could be stationed only on the limes opposite the Sarmatians, it is highly probable that this was the unit which replaced the annihilated legio XXI Rapax.{

á

) (3) Its camp on the limes opposite the Germans was probably at Ad Flexum, see Alföldy 1959, 137; Lőrincz 1975, 345. (4) According to Yugoslavian research the legion was already the garrison troop of Singidunum at the end of the 1st century A. D., see MIRKOVIC

— DUSANIC 1976, 27—32; DuSanic—Vasic 1977, 301—302; Gabricevic 1972, 408—416. But this inscription cannot be used as evidence because its date is uncertain, cf. MÓCSY 1978, 14, п. 23 (with a 2nd—3rd century A. D. dating). 285