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Page 6 of 11
[1412]
Von Beuchel, p.77, has rightly emphasized that that kind of commitment of Legio I Italica can only have occurred in the western part of the province, from the border with Moesia Superior until Sexanta Prista, halfway between Novae and Durostorum. This is understandable if one realizes that the legion occupied the westernmost legionary camp (of three) in the province in the 2nd century CE after the closing down of the legionary camp at Oescus under Trajan, just as the legion had earlier been the easternmost legion in the province. These dispersed bases can only be proven in a few specific cases. At least one larger detachment was continually garrisoned in Almus (Lom), the last large city on the Danube before Moesia Superior. Principales of this garrison are enumerated on CIL III 14409-1 (discussed by Van de Weerd, Trois legions rom. du Bas-Danube 259ff.) The <i>centurio frumentarius</i> (CIL III 7420) from Antoninus Pius’ reign probably belongs to the same border guard detachment. Beuchels’ claim (p.76), that a vexillatio of I Italica temporarily took over the garrison of Troesmis when V Macedonica left its permanent base there in Marcus Aurelius’ reign cannot be proven by the inscriptions of centurions (see above) nor by a tile stamp (III 6239c). On the other hand, the altar to Neptune (CIL III 14433) found to the west of Durostorum (probably moved during fortress construction in Silistria) was set up by a <i>vexillatio leg. I Ital(icae)</I> (and V Maced.?) during construction works of some sort. It’s text has, even after the improved reading by Von Premerstein in Klio XII 1912.148, not been established without faultlessly. Legio VII cannot have been named in the text and also the mention of V Macedonica, as Von Premerstein suggested, is very improbable. The difficult to read line 3 may have contained the meaning after, for instance, the word <i>AGENT(es)</i>. If only I Italica is named, the inscription cannot be dated any better. If V Macedonica were also on the inscription, then it probably dates to Trajan’s reign. The third legion of Moesia Inferior, XI Claudia, based in Durostorum, understandably took no part in construction works of the vexillations commanded to its own garrison town.
Naturally, Legio I Italica also had to give up officers and men for vexillations sent out from the army of Moesia Inferior for the protection of the Greek towns on the Taurian Chersonesos. They were allied to the Empire since Nero’s reign (see also CIL III 13750; Rostowzew, Klio II 83ff.) In Commodus’ reign the commander of this apparently large vexillation was a tribunus militum of Legio I Italica, Fl(avius) Sergianus Sosibius (CIL III 14214-34); the same or perhaps a little earlier, goes for a second tribunus militum of the legion, Ti.Plautius Felix Ferruntianus (CIL VIII 619), who styles himself praepositus
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