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Submitted for award of PhD September 2006. - King's College London

Submitted for award of PhD September 2006. - King's College London

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a number <strong>of</strong> scholars, I do not believe that we can come to a firm conclusion on the basis<br />

<strong>of</strong> the available epigraphic evidence. 644 When the evidence is so scarce, we cannot be<br />

sure that there were no other magistrates in these towns.<br />

The Cippus Abellanus mentions the senates <strong>of</strong> Nola and Abella twice: first,<br />

because each appointed a commission <strong>of</strong> `legates' to settle the disputed issues about the<br />

common sanctuary (side A line 8), and second, because each senate would have to<br />

authorize any new building at the sanctuary (side B line 9).<br />

The words lfgatüs (nom. plur. ) and ligatüfs (dat/abl. plur. ) are unique to the<br />

Cippus, <strong>for</strong> they appear in no other Oscan text. Clearly the word is adopted from the<br />

Latin legatus. 645 We have other derivations from the same stem (lex, leg-), in the Lex<br />

Osca Bantina, namely, ligud (abl. sing) and ligis (dat-abl plur. ) meaning `law', and in the<br />

Agnone Tablet, Liganakdikef, the name <strong>of</strong> a divinity. Legates in Rome were appointed<br />

by the senate or a magistrate to carry out a particular task. Commissions <strong>of</strong> ten legati<br />

(decemviri) were frequently appointed by the senate from the third century BC on to<br />

resolve particular issues: in 204 BC they appointed a delegation to investigate a<br />

complaint by the Locrians; 646 in 196 BC ten delegates were sent to assist T. Quinctius<br />

Flaminius in drawing up peace terms <strong>for</strong> Greek states. 7 Delegations normally consisted<br />

<strong>of</strong> senators <strong>of</strong> different ranks, and sometimes included one or more magistrates in <strong>of</strong>fice.<br />

The Nolan and Abellan commissions use the Latin term legati and they were also<br />

appointed by the senates. These delegations may have consisted <strong>of</strong> ten men each, but<br />

considering that they were much smaller towns, perhaps only four members as in ST Cm<br />

48 and ST Cm 47.<br />

643<br />

Franchi de Bellis (1988) 85.<br />

644<br />

Sartori (1953) 149-51; Campanile in Campanile-Letta (1979) 23; Mazzarino (1992) 246.<br />

645<br />

Camporeale (1956) 61 and Untermann (2000) under ligatüis.<br />

646<br />

Livy 29.16.6.<br />

647<br />

Pol. 1.63.1. Livy 33.24.7 and 34.57.1.<br />

182

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