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71 f.), assumed to be in Saparevsko Banja, east of Dupnica, south of Serdica (Skopje), could have been possibly a suitable base of a troop; at that time, when it was responsible to be able to intervene with the force of arms, being in proximity in Thrace since 46 CE. An alternate possibility for it would be that the place might be found a little more east than assumed by Jirecek, close to the line Serdica - Philoppopolis, from where the main entrance to Thrace could be controlled. As was done later from the well-known Succi pass (Ammian. XXI 10, 2. XXII 2, 2. XXVI 10, 4 among other things; compare with Jirecek 89). The temporary stationing of a Moesian legion so far south in the interior, if really testified, would not seem to be too remarkable, because the river border was covered by two legions (V Macedonica and VIII Augusta) - likewise Schultze (De leg. XIII gem. 1887, 37) seeks to explain the impossible ex Germania by a mistake of Tacitus: the source taken as a basis had spoken only about a legion IIII as been shifted to Syria and thereby the author had erroneously thought of the legion of this number (IIII Macedonica), that actually stood in Germania at that time, and instead of the number he used the garrison province.
4. Whichever way the corruption of the indications of the writer may have developed, the absolute fact is that legion IIII Scythica was shifted directly from Moesia and not by a detour over Germania. This measure will have been taken some years before 58 CE, as is pretended by the recapitulatory report about the incidents in the Orient (ann. XIII 35), indeed approximately in the years 56 - 57 CE. In the Orient the legion was subordinated to the governor of Syria, Ummidius Quadratus, as it does not appear with the legions commanded by Corbulo in the next years (III, VI, X; see above to note page 1255). Thus the relationship to the departure of IIII Scythica in the inscription of the Moesian governor Plautius Aelianus, who speaks about the reduction of his army, quamvis parte(m) magna(m) exercitus in Armeniam misisset (CIL XIV 3608), is virtually impossible (despite the opposing remarks by Filow, Legions of Moesia 21) - see below with Legion V Macedonica.
It remains doubtful if IIII Scythica was one of the two legions sent to Armenia by Corbulo, who combined all 5 legions of the Orient under his command after the death of Quadratus in 60 CE, in order to protect the Roman client King Tigranes and which were futilely besieged e in Tigranocerta by the king of Parthia (Tac. ann. XV 3, 4). Only in 62 CE, on the division of the armed forces between Corbulo and Caesennius Paetus, was IIII Scythica subordinated to the latter (Tac. ann. XV 6) and under its guidance it took part with its legate Funisulanus Vettonianus in the invasion of Armenia, which ended with the disgraceful contract at the river Arsanias and led to the evacuation of the country (Tac. ann. XV 7 - 17). Soon after this Corbulo sent the thereby numerically and morally weakened |
