RIB 3424. Centurial stone of Flavius Bassus

https://romaninscriptionsofbritain.org/inscriptions/3424

Support

Type of object
Building stone
Material
Buff sandstone
Dimensions
0.355 × 0.20 × 0.24 m
Site
Hadrian’s Wall: Carvoran to Birdoswald (Cumb.) sector
Find context
Found during consolidation, fallen from the south face of the Wall, 217.5 m from the east wall of Birdoswald fort.
Find date
1957
Modern location
Now in Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery, Carlisle.
Institution/acc. #
Tullie House Museum: 1966.75.5

Text field

Style of lettering
(not specified)
Letter heights
(not specified)

Text

Origin of text
Hadrian’s Wall: Carvoran to Birdoswald (Cumb.) sector
Text type
Centurial stone
Date
(no indication)

Edition

c(o)ho(rtis) VIII
(centuria) Fla(vi) Bas(s)i

Translation

Of the Eighth Cohort, the century of Flavius Bassus (built this).

Commentary and notes

There is a diagonal stroke before C, not transcribed, which was presumably a mis-cut for the centurial sign.

Wright favoured Basi(li), but this cognomen is Greek and rather ‘late’ in the west; it would be unlikely when Hadrian’s Wall was built, whereas Bassus is common. The stone-cutter may have not geminated S, or simply been pressed for space.

Bibliography