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LOT 0123
Fragment of a Roman Bronze Military Diploma Granted by Emperor Septimius Severus
195 A.D.
2 in. (27.13 grams, 50 mm).
Issued for a member of the equites singulares Augusti, the emperor’s horse guards; granted by Septimius Severus in the summer of AD 195, during his Parthian expedition; obverse with seven lines of text with well engraved letters: (1) [… IMP] • VI • C[OS …] / (2) [EQVITIBVS Q]VI•INTER•S[INGVLAR MILITAVERVNT CASTRIS] / (3) [NOVIS QVIB]VS PRAEEST [. . .] / (4) [TRIBVNVS QVI]NIS ET VICEN[IS PLVRIBVSVE STIPENDIS] / (5) [EMERI]TIS DIMISSIS H[ONESTA MISSIONE QVORVM] / (6) [NOMINA SVB]SCRIPTA SVNT [CIVITATEM ROMANAM] / (7) . . . + ++ . . . . On the inner face traces of 7 lines of text: (1) [- - -]MAX·TR[IB / (2) [- - -]+ COS [- - -] / (3)[EQVITIBVS QVI I]NTER·SINCV[LAR MILITAVER CASTRIS] / (4) [NOVIS QVIBVS] PRAEEST + [- - -] /(5) TRIBVNVS] QVINIS ET VI[CENIS PLVRIBVSVE STIPENDIS] / (6) [EMERITIS] DIM[ISSIS HONESTA MISSIONE QVORVM] / (7) +++. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceProperty of a European gentleman, acquired on the London art market.
PublishedF. Matei-Popescu and P. Rothenhöfer, A new fragment of a military diploma for the equites singulares Augusti in Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology 12, 2025, pp. 256-258.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0123
Fragment of a Roman Bronze Military Diploma Granted by Emperor Septimius Severus
Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,300
-
Roman Fresco Wall Plaster Collection
1st century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £390
Fragments of wall plaster with rendered surface painted with mainly Pompeii red, pale blue, brown and white detailing; some with an impression of timber laths to the reverse. 1.46 kg total, 7.9-16 cm
Acquired in the 19th century. Ex Jeger collection, Switzerland. UK gallery, early 2000s.
These small fragments, for analogies with the fragments of Pompeii, seem to belong to the second style of Roman painting, red panels representing highlight and shadow, decorated with vegetal interlaces. A red grenade fillet probably framed some panels. A fragment shows alternate blue and red colours over a cream background, maybe pertinent to a socle. -
Roman Lead Seal Collection
2nd-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £111
Each with a figural impression, including a lion, a bird, a seated figure, Victory, and two with a standing figure. 12.16 grams total, 13-20 mm
From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s. -
Roman Green Glass Bottle
Circa 3rd-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £85
Bulbous body with dimple base and tubular neck with thickened rim. 80.4 grams, 10.2 cm
From the collection of a late Norfolk, UK gentleman's collection, formed from the late 1960s-1970s.
