Works of Art: Roman Tombstones from Cirencester

Tombstones are thought to be an important source of knowledge about the Roman army in Britain. Roman tombstones reveal details about the lives of Cirencester's men, women, girls, army men, and slaves. The public will learn about various problems related to the distribution, movement, uniforms, and equipment of various military forces from the inscriptions made on the stones. When carved with figures, the viewer may deduce the deceased's personal appearance, rank badges, and the manner in which he or she desired to be depicted. Since this is a common phenomenon with most tombstones, the public also gets to know about whom the soldiers were, the various units in which they served, the manner in which they were organized, the person under whose command they served, the part of Britain in which they were stationed, and the length of their service as well as age.

The 1st century tombstone shown above was sculptured from locally sourced limestone and displays a relief of a Roman cavalryman. This particular tombstone was the handiwork of an extremely skilled sculptor who included its details of the dress and armor of the solder, in addition to the horse’s harness. Translated, the inscription appearing on this Genialis tombstone reads “Sextus Valerius Genialis, trooper of the Calvary Regiment of Thracians, a Frisian tribesman, from the troop of Genialis, aged 40, of 20 years' service, lies buried here. His heir had this set up.” The buried soldier was possibly enlisted in lower Germany where the unit is believed to have operated from until 43 A.D. Based on his twenty years of service, it is estimated that he died around 60 A.D. Genialis served in a contingent of cavalry from Thrace (today’s Bulgaria), which is in close proximity to Turkey and the Black Sea. However, he was a Frisian and hailed from present day Netherlands (Bbc.co.uk).

The tombstone was discovered in 1836 at Watermoor, Cirencester, becoming one of the earliest acquisitions of the Corinium Museum. Corinium had been initially set up as a Roman fortress during the early days into their occupation of Britain after the AD43 invasion. Years later, this became a significant town and eventually the capital of the Roman presence in the western part England. Genialis, the soldier whose grave is shown in Fig.1 died about 60 AD as earlier stated. This was a few years prior to the establishment of the town of Corinium, meaning that he may have been one of the early Roman invaders. The image on the tombstone shows Genialis on horseback as he rides down a barbarian fighter whose body is lying down crumpled at the bottom of the panel. With his sword still in his hand, his nakedness contrasts the heavily armored stature of Genialis. He is wearing a helmet, a body armor that has been decorated with the head of Medusa and a long sword for a belt. His right hand holds a spear while his left is holding a shield. The harness and trappings of his horse are also visible, and are decorated with fridges and discs. Genialis carries what is assumed to be kind of standard on a pole. The trampling of the enemy by the horseman depicts his victory and superiority over his foes, and is a common feature on Roman and earlier Greek military tombstones.

In studying the Roman army, one would be easily swayed to pay more attention to the legions, the heavily armed infantry bearing short swords, oblong shields, and javelins. However, legions were supported by units of supplementary troops who provided extra infantry and professional soldiers including cavalry, slingers and archers. Initially, the auxiliary units comprised native Roman allies commanded by their own leaders, though later recruitment saw them source from the provinces in the empire after which they received a formal command structure. Whereas a legionary had to have Roman citizenship, this was the ultimate reward for supplementary soldiers who were discharged after 25 years of service. Sadly, Genialis died five years before he could achieve his Roman citizenship.



Significance of the Genialis’ Tombstone

The tombstone of Genialis perfectly represents the cultural diversity prevalent in the Roman Empire. The recruitment of a Germanic man into a cavalry troop consisting of east Europeans who lived close to the Black Sea was a symbol of inclusivity. His regiment fought for the Romans at the time of invading Britain. It was during this time that he died and had his grave. The tombstone was made using stone sourced from the western part of England, though it depicts a unique Graeco-Roman outlook with a Latin (the language of the Romans) inscription.

Both archaeological and epigraphic studies have provided scholars with an overarching narrative regarding the Roman military, telling of its creation, growth and development, tactics and organization. In some instances, the public has been able to peer into the personal lives of the individual soldiers. Available material and written records point to the existence of a military culture which functioned as a crucial subset of the entire Roman entity. According to the available information, serving in the Roman military was a lifelong commitment which involved total control of the soldiers’ lives, down to the littlest details, by military mandate. Owing to the nature of war and patrolling of outlying locations, the death of soldiers was imminent and rather prevalent. Funerary stelae were put up throughout the Empire, and are depictive of an organized and quite consistent set of burial rituals. Historical records tell of military organized funds for burial, similar to present day insurance plans. The soldiers would accumulate money in a fund, and in the event that they were killed in battle or succumbed to the various conditions prevalent in war zones, their colleagues would use the money to oversee their burial. It is critical to note that the comrades carried out the burial ceremony in accordance with the particular wishes of the fallen soldier in regards to the burial rites as well as the final erection of the military funerary tombstone.

The Genialis tombstone is of utmost importance to historians and lovers of art. As a work of art, numerous visitors have visited the museum to have a view of the artifact. Historians, on the other hand, have taken up the information inscribed on the tombstones to try and discern various historical issues regarding the Roman military. One such study sought to specifically address the question of the possibility to discern the native ethnic identity of cavalrymen in the military through studying iconography and epigraphy in depth. Roman cavalry stelae present a distinctive subset of tombstones that are within the larger categories of Roman military monuments. These unique visual representations and characteristics provide a starting point in addressing the topic of ethnicity in a Roman context by extracting exact evidence held in the archaeological records. In addition, historical accounts sourced from the classical era have documented a large number of ethnic groups with specific expertise in horse training, and cavalry talents among others. The Thracans (highly favored by Alexander the Great), for instance, were noted to be overly present at the major cavalry training centers in Syria. This has been adequately documented during the Roman period. When such information is engraved or inscribed on the tombstones of the various dead solders, scientists, researchers, or archaeologists can easily depict the ethnic combination of the soldiers at the time of war.

Clearly, the significance of tombstones is held in equal regard today as it was during the times of the Roman military, which is the obligation of respect for the deceased by the living. While the Genialis tombstone, alongside other funerary monuments, may not necessarily depict the reality of the military society, they reflect the rhetoric of image and language through which the construction of society happened. The lack of tombstone evidence in some of the regions in comparison to others shows that the people made use of alternative methods of commemorating the dead. These included the use of perishable wooden tombstones, that would not have survived the climatic conditions, or the use of unmarked grave sites. All in all, the tombstones are a critical and monumental work of art, while at the same time playing the all important function of culture.



Works Cited

Haynes, Ian. “Blood of the provinces: The Roman Auxilia and the Making of Provincial Society form Augustus to the Severans. Oxford. Oxford University Press. 2013. Print.

Heyn, Maura. “Gesture and Identity in the Funerary Art of Palmyra.” The American Journal of Archaeology. Vol. 114, no.4, 2010, pp. 631-661

Hope, Valerie. “Inscription and Culture : the Construction of Identity in the Military Tombstones of Roman Mainz.” In the Epigraphy of death: Studies in the Hiistory and Society of Greece and Rome, 155-183. Liverpool. Liverpool University Press. 2000. Print.

Hope, Valerie. “Trophies and Tombstones: Commemorating the Roman Soldier.” World Archaeology. Vol. 35, no. 1, 2003, pp. 79-97

Kramer, Jessica C. “The Roman Riders: Ethnicity and Iconography on Roman Cavalrymen Tombstones.” BYU Scholars Archive. 2014