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Cults (5 threads, 111 posts)
    Cults of the Roman Military (60 posts)
    Historical Thread 0 Featured August 21 , 2003

    For discussion of the cults and religious practices of the Roman Military. ...
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    Epona - military units
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    Author: * Nantonos Aedui - 18 Posts on this thread out of 210 Posts sitewide.
    Date: Aug 20, 2003 - 18:58

    Sulpicia Ulpius scripsit

    I really very bad on my military units here, so where do these units originate, and out of interest does the spread of Epona artifact mirror the movements or a select number of units, or is it cavalry from all over the show?

    Most Epona artefacts fo not have any inscription on them; of those that do, few mention a unit. The previous posting tries to narrow the unit and timeperiod down for two Eponas. The number where we know trhe unit for definite because it says right there in the inscription is fairly small.

    Having said that, here is a list of all the known, clearly identified units that made Epona dedications. Its a small list as you can see. Expanding it to include likely or probable dedicants, or dediccating units inferred from means other than the inscription itself, would be useful and I may get around to that later.

    Legio I Adiutrix

    Duklja (Montenegro, Yugoslavia) [AE 1933, 0076]

    Legio II Adiutrix Pia Fidelis

    Vác (Pest, Hungary) [CIL III, 3420]

    Legio II Augusta (?ex Eq. Sing. Aug.)

    Auchendavy (East Dunbartonshire, Scotland, United Kingdom) [RIB 2177]

    Legio IIII Flavia Felix (exercitor, ex Eq. Sing. Aug.)

    Sarmizgetusa (Hunedoara, Romania) [CIL III, 07904]

    Legio XI Claudia Pia Fidelis (beneficiarius consularis attached to legion)

    Kastell Abritus (Razgrad, Bulgaria) [AE 1993, 01370 ]

    Legio XXII Primigenia

    Mainz (Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany) [CIL XIII, 11801] (dedicant was Syrian)

    Naix (Meuse, Lorraine, France) [CIL XIII, 4630]

    Solothurn (Solothurn Canton, Switzerland) [CIL XIII, 5170] (dedicant was immunis consularis)

    Cohors novae Severianae Gordianae Surorum sagittariorum

    Szentendre (Pest County, Hungary) [AE 1973, 0438]

    Ala I Tungrorum Frontiana

    Ilisua (Cluj, Transylvania, Romania) [CIL II, 788]

    Ala I Singularium Pia Fidelis

    Pförring (Bayern, Germany) [CIL III, 5910 and 11909]

    By far the largest group of Epona dedications (11, all in Rome) comes from the Equites Singulares Augusti, and from the list above it seems that ex-members (kept on as drill masters, customs officers, consular staff, etc) attached to other units were also frequent dedicants. So, at this stage of studies, it looks as if the emperors bodyguard was the main unit that produced the spread of Epona dedications through the empire. Its not clear whether the same or a different mechanism produced the spread of uninscribed artefacts.

    Copyright ©2003 Nantonos Aedui. May be copied online, with attribution.


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