The Verulamium Forum Inscription (tentatively dated to AD 79, during the reign of the emperor

Titus Titus Caesar Vespasianus ( ; 30 December 39 – 13 September AD 81) was Roman emperor from 79 to 81. A member of the Flavian dynasty, Titus succeeded his father Vespasian upon his death, becoming the first Roman emperor ever to succeed h ...

) is one of the many Roman

inscription Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...

s in Britain. It is also known as the "Basilica inscription", as it is believed to have been attached to the

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...

of Verulamium (on the edge of modern

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

). The surviving fragments have been reconstructed as a large dedication slab (approx. 4.3m x 1.0m) on display at Verulamium Museum. The fragments were found in 1955 during construction work in the yard of St Michael's Primary School, St Albans. The find-spot lay near the north-east entrance to the forum and basilica of Verulamium. The inscription is notable because it mentions Gnaeus Julius Agricola, the Roman

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

from AD 77–84, who is otherwise known from a

biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curri ...

written by his son-in-law

Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars. Tacitus’ two major historical works, ''Annals'' ( ...

Text

The inscription was reconstructed by Professor

Sheppard Frere Sheppard Sunderland Frere, CBE, FSA, FBA (23 August 1916 – 26 February 2015) was a British historian and archaeologist who studied the Roman Empire. He was a fellow at All Souls College, Oxford. Biography The son of Noel Gray Frere, of the ...

to read as follows:

MP TITO CAESARI DIVIVESPA IANIF VES ASIANO AUGbr /> M TR P VIIII IMP XV COS VIIDESI VIII CENSORI PATRI PATRIAEbr /> [ ET CAESARI DIVI VESPASIANI F DOMITIANO COS VI DESIG VII PRINCIPI ">ET CAESARI DIVI VESPASIANI F DOMITIANO COS VI DESIG VII PRINCIPI ">[ ET CAESARI DIVI VESPASIANI F DOMITIANO COS VI DESIG VII PRINCIPI br /> [ [ IVVENTVTIS ET OMNIVM COLLEGIORVM SACERDOTI ] ]
[CN IVLIO A]GRIC[OLA LEGATO AUG PRO] PR
[MVNICIPIVM] VE[RVLAMIVM BASILICA OR]NATA

This version would be expanded to read:

IMP(eratori) TITO CAESARI DIVI VESPASIANI F(ilio) VESPASIANO AVG(usto)
P(ontifici) M(aximo) TR(ibuniciae) P(otestatis) VIIII IMP(eratori) XV CO(n)S(uli) VII DESIG(nato) VIII CENSORI PATRI PATRIAE
ET CAESARI DIVI VESPASIANI F(ilio) DOMITIANO CO(n)S(uli) VI DESIG(nato) VII PRINCIPI IVVENTVTIS ET OMNIVM COLLEGIORVM SACERDOTI
GN(aeo) IVLIO AGRICOLA LEGATO AVG(usti) PRO PR(aetore)
MVNICIPIVM VERVLAMIVM BASILICA ORNATA

This translates as:

For the Emperor Titus Caesar Vespasian Augustus, son of the deified Vespasian,
Pontifex Maximus, in the ninth year of tribunician power, acclaimed
Imperator The title of ''imperator'' ( ) originally meant the rough equivalent of ''commander'' under the Roman Republic. Later, it became a part of the titulature of the Roman Emperors as their praenomen. The Roman emperors generally based their autho ...
fifteen times, having been
consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...
seven times, designated consul for an eighth time, censor, Father of the Fatherland,
and to Caesar Domitian, son of the deified Vespasian, having been consul six times, designated consul for a seventh term, Prince of Youth, and member of all the priestly brotherhoods,
when Gnaeus Julius Agricola was legate of the emperor with pro-praetorian power,
the Verulamium basilica was adorned.

The last line is particularly fragmentary, and the alternative reconstruction CIVITAS CATVVELLAVNORVM FORO EXORNATA ("the forum of the Catuvellaunian tribal council was embellished") has been considered, along with the less likely RESPVBLICA VERVLAMIVM LATIO DONA ("... donated the funds to widen the Verulamium public-works"). The inscription can be dated either to AD 79, the year

Vespasian Vespasian (; ; 17 November AD 9 – 23 June 79) was Roman emperor from 69 to 79. The last emperor to reign in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for 27 years. His fiscal reforms and consolida ...

died (he would not have been referred to as ''divus'' until after his death) and Titus had his seventh consulship, or to AD 81 (by altering the various numerals).See Wikipedia's list of early imperial Roman consuls The reference to his brother

Domitian Domitian ( ; ; 24 October 51 – 18 September 96) was Roman emperor from 81 to 96. The son of Vespasian and the younger brother of Titus, his two predecessors on the throne, he was the last member of the Flavian dynasty. Described as "a r ...

was defaced, as were most inscriptions referring to him, after ''

damnatio memoriae () is a modern Latin phrase meaning "condemnation of memory" or "damnation of memory", indicating that a person is to be excluded from official accounts. Depending on the extent, it can be a case of historical negationism. There are and have b ...

'' was pronounced on him in 96.

Publication

The inscription has been published as: * ''

L'Année épigraphique ''L'Année épigraphique'' (''The Epigraphic Year'', standard abbreviation ''AE'') is a French publication on epigraphy (i.e the study of inscriptions or epigraphs as writing). It was set up by René Cagnat, as holder of the chair of 'Epigraphy a ...

'' (AE) 1957, 169 * '' Roman Inscriptions of Britain'' (RIB) 3123

References

{{reflist Latin inscriptions in the United Kingdom Roman archaeology Forum 1st-century inscriptions 1st-century establishments in Roman Britain

Text

Publication

See also

References