01-18-2013, 07:42 PM
Quote:It becomes even more fuzzy with vexillationes.
It does! There are plenty of inscriptions describing a centurion commanding a vexillation, with or without the added distinction of a praepositus position. But none that I can find give any real information about how large the vexillation was. When we have information on the composition of a vexillation (eg ILS 2487: Hadrian's speech to III Augusta, with a cohort in one place and 'a cohort and four men from each century' in another), the commander of the vexillation (if there was one) is not stated.
The only possible exception might be this one, from Olbia (AE 1995, 01348):
per vexil(lationem) / [leg(ionum)] I Ital(icae) V Mac(edonicae) / XI Cl(audiae) et c(ohortium) VI sub Ma/lico |(centurione) leg(ionis) XI Cl(audiae)
Malicus is a centurion, and appears to command the vexillation (?), which includes six cohorts of... something! Extra auxilaries? Does Malicus just command the extra cohorts, or the legionaries too?
:unsure:
Nathan Ross