第5巻 第23章

Greek Ἐς μέντοι πύλην τὴν ὑπὲρ ποταμὸν Τίβεριν, ἣ Παγκρατιανὴ καλεῖται, δύναμις τῶν πολεμίων ἐλθοῦσα οὐδὲν ὅ τι καὶ ἄξιον λόγου ἔδρασε, χωρίου ἰσχύϊ· ἀνάντης τε γὰρ καὶ πρὸς τὰς ἐφόδους οὐκ εὐπετὴς ταύτῃ ὁ τῆς πόλεως περίβολός ἐστι.

Dewing But at the gate beyond the Tiber River, which is called the Pancratian Gate, a force of the enemy came, but accomplished nothing worth mentioning because of the strength of the place; for the fortifications of the city at this point are on a steep elevation and are not favourably situated for assaults.

Greek Παῦλος ἐνταῦθα φυλακὴν εἶχε, ξὺν καταλόγῳ πεζικῷ οὗ αὐτὸς ἦρχεν. οὐ μὴν οὐδὲ πύλης Φλαμινίας ἀπεπειράσαντο, ἐπεὶ ἐν χώρῳ κρημνώδει κειμένη οὐ λίαν ἐστὶν εὐπρόσοδος.

Dewing Paulus was keeping guard there with an infantry detachment which he commanded in person. In like manner they made no attempt on the Flaminian Gate, because it is situated on a precipitous slope and is not very easy of access.

Greek οἱ Ῥῆγες ἐνταῦθα, πεζικὸν τέλος, ἐφύλασσον καὶ Οὐρσικῖνος, ὃς αὐτῶν ἦρχε. ταύτης δὲ μεταξὺ τῆς πύλης καὶ τῆς ἐν δεξιᾷ ἐχομένης πυλίδος, ἣ Πιγκιανὴ ὀνομάζεται, μοῖρά τις τοῦ περιβόλου δίχα τὸ παλαιὸν ἀπὸ ταὐτομάτου διαιρεθεῖσα, οὐκ ἐξ ἐδάφους μέντοι, ἀλλ’ ὅσον ἐκ μήκους τοῦ ἡμίσεος, οὐκ ἔπεσε μὲν οὐδὲ ἄλλως διεφθάρη, ἐκλίθη δὲ οὕτως ἐφ’ ἑκάτερα, ὡς τὸ μὲν ἐκτὸς τοῦ ἄλλου τείχους, τὸ δὲ ἐντὸς φαίνεσθαι.

Dewing The "Reges,"⁠ an infantry detachment, were keeping guard there with Ursicinus, who commanded them. And between this gate and the small gate next on the right, which is called the Pincian, a certain portion of the wall had split open of its own accord in ancient times, not clear to the ground, however, but about half way down, but still it had not fallen or been otherwise destroyed, though it leaned so to either side that one part of it appeared outside the rest of the wall and the other inside.

Greek καὶ ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ Περίβολον Διερρωγότα Ῥωμαῖοι τῇ σφετέρᾳ γλώσσῃ ἐκ παλαιοῦ καλοῦσι τὸν χῶρον.

Dewing And from this circumstance the Romans from ancient times have called the place "Broken Wall"⁠ in their own tongue.

Greek τοῦτο δὲ τὸ μέρος καθελεῖν τε καὶ ἀνοικοδομήσασθαι Βελισάριον κατ’ ἀρχὰς ἐγχειροῦντα ἐκώλυον Ῥωμαῖοι, Πέτρον σφίσι τὸν ἀπόστολον ὑποσχέσθαι ἰσχυριζόμενοι αὑτῷ μελήσειν τοῦ ἐνταῦθα φυλακτηρίου. τοῦτον δὲ τὸν ἀπόστολον σέβονται Ῥωμαῖοι καὶ τεθήπασι πάντων μάλιστα.

Dewing But when Belisarius in the beginning undertook to tear down this portion and rebuild it, the Romans prevented him, declaring that the Apostle Peter had promised them that he would care for the guarding of the wall there. This Apostle is reverenced by the Romans and held in awe above all others.

Greek ἀπέβη τε αὐτοῖς ἅπαντα ἐν τῷδε τῷ χωρίῳ ᾗ διενοοῦντο καὶ προσεδόκων. οὐδὲ γὰρ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ, οὐ μὴν οὐδὲ ἐς τὸν ἅπαντα χρόνον καθ’ ὃν Γότθοι Ῥώμην ἐπολιόρκουν, οὔτε πολεμίων τις δύναμις ἐνταῦθα ἀφίκετο οὔτε τινὰ ταραχὴν γενέσθαι ξυνέβη.

Dewing And the outcome of events at this place was in all respects what the Romans contemplated and expected. For neither on that day nor throughout the whole time during which the Goths were besieging Rome did any hostile force come to that place, nor did any disturbance occur there.

Greek καὶ ἐθαυμάζομέν γε ὅτι οὐδὲ ἐς μνήμην ἡμετέραν ἢ τῶν πολεμίων αὕτη τοῦ περιβόλου ἡ μοῖρα παρὰ πάντα τὸν χρόνον ἦλθεν, οὔτε τειχομαχούντων οὔτε νύκτωρ ἐπιβουλευόντων τῷ τείχει, οἷα πολλὰ ἐνεχείρησαν.

Dewing And we marvelled indeed that it never occurred to us nor to the enemy to remember this portion of the fortifications during the whole time, either while they were making their assaults or carrying out their designs against the wall by night; and yet many such attempts were made.

Greek διὸ δὴ οὐδὲ ὕστερόν τις ἀνοικοδομήσασθαι τοῦτο ἐτόλμησεν, ἀλλ’ ἐς ἡμέραν τήνδε οὕτω τὸ ἐκείνῃ διῄρηται τεῖχος. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ὧδέ πη ἔσχεν.

Dewing It was for this reason, in fact, that at a later time also no one ventured to rebuild this part of the defences, but up to the present day the wall there is split open in this way. So much, then, for this.

Greek Ἐν δὲ Σαλαρίᾳ πύλῃ Γότθος ἀνὴρ εὐμήκης τε καὶ ἀγαθὸς τὰ πολέμια θώρακά τε ἐνδιδυσκόμενος καὶ κράνος ἐν τῇ κεφαλῇ ἔχων, ὤν τε οὐκ ἀφανὴς ἐν τῷ Γότθων ἔθνει, οὐκ ἐν τάξει ξὺν τοῖς ἄλλοις ἔμεινεν, ἀλλ’ ἐπὶ δένδρου ἱστάμενος ἔβαλλε συχνὰ ἐς τὰς ἐπάλξεις.

Dewing And at the Salarian Gate a Goth of goodly stature and a capable warrior, wearing a corselet and having a helmet on his head, a man who was of no mean station in the Gothic nation, refused to remain in the ranks with his comrades, but stood by a tree and kept shooting many missiles at the parapet.

Greek τοῦτον δὲ τὸν ἄνδρα μηχανὴ ἐν πύργῳ κατὰ μέρος τὸ λαιὸν οὖσα τύχῃ τινὶ ἔβαλε.

Dewing But this man by some chance was hit by a missile from an engine which was on a tower at his left.

Greek διαβὰν δὲ τόν τε θώρακα καὶ τὸ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου σῶμα τὸ βέλος ὑπὲρ ἥμισυ ἐς τὸ δένδρον ἔδυ, ἐνέρσει τε αὐτοῦ τὸν ἄνδρα ξυνδῆσαν νεκρὸν ἤρτησεν.

Dewing And passing through the corselet and the body of the man, the missile sank more than half its length into the tree, and pinning him to the spot where it entered the tree, it suspended him there a corpse.

Greek ὅπερ ἐπεὶ οἱ Γότθοι κατεῖδον, κατορρωδήσαντες καὶ βελῶν ἔξω γενόμενοι ἔμενον μὲν ἔτι ἐν τάξει, τοὺς δὲ ἐν τῷ τείχει οὐκέτι ἐλύπουν.

Dewing And when this was seen by the Goths they fell into great fear, and getting outside the range of missiles, they still remained in line, but no longer harassed those on the wall.

Greek Βέσσας δὲ καὶ Περάνιος, Οὐιττίγιδος ἐν Βιβαρίῳ ἰσχυρότατα ἐγκειμένου σφίσι, Βελισάριον μετεπέμποντο. ὁ δὲ δείσας περὶ τῷ ἐνταῦθα τείχει ʽἦν γὰρ ταύτῃ ἐπιμαχώτατον, ὥσπερ εἴρηταἰ κατὰ τάχος ἐβοήθει αὐτός, τῶν τινα ἐπιτηδείων λιπὼν ἐν Σαλαρίᾳ.

Dewing But Bessas and Peranius summoned Belisarius, since Vittigis was pressing most vigorously upon them at the Vivarium. And he was fearful concerning the wall there (for it was most assailable at this point, as has been said),⁠ and so came to the rescue himself with all speed, leaving one of his friends at the Salarian Gate.

Greek καὶ τοὺς στρατιώτας εὑρὼν ἐν Βιβαρίῳ τὴν προσβολὴν τῶν ἐναντίων πεφοβημένους, μεγάλην τε οὖσαν καὶ πολυάνθρωπον, ὑπερφρονεῖν τε τῶν πολεμίων ἐκέλευε καὶ ἐπὶ τὸ θαρσεῖν ἀντικαθίστη.

Dewing And finding that the soldiers in the Vivarium dreaded the attack of the enemy, which was being pressed with great vigour and by very large numbers, he bade them look with contempt upon the enemy and thus restored their confidence.

Greek ἦν δὲ ὁ ταύτῃ χῶρος ὁμαλὸς κομιδῆ καὶ ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ ταῖς ἐφόδοις τῶν προσιόντων ἐκκείμενος. τύχῃ τέ τινι τὸ ἐκείνῃ τεῖχος οὕτως ἐπὶ πλεῖστον διερρυήκει ὡς τῶν πλίνθων μὴ λίαν τὴν ξυνθήκην ξυνίστασθαι.

Dewing Now the ground there⁠ was very level, and consequently the place lay open to the attacks of any assailant. And for some reason the wall at that point had crumbled a great deal, and to such an extent that the binding of the bricks did not hold together very well.

Greek τείχισμα δὲ ἄλλο βραχὺ περιέβαλλον ἔξωθεν αὐτῷ οἱ πάλαι Ῥωμαῖοι, οὐκ ἀσφαλείας τινὸς ἕνεκα ʽοὐ γὰρ οὖν οὐδὲ πύργων ὀχύρωμα εἶχεν, οὐ μὴν οὐδὲ ἐπάλξεις τινὲς ἐνταῦθα πεποίηντο οὐδέ τι ἄλλο ὅθεν ἂν καὶ ἀπώσασθαι οἷόν τε ἦν τὴν ἐς τὸν περίβολον ἐπιβουλὴν τῶν πολεμίων̓, ἀλλὰ τρυφῆς τινος οὐκ εὐπρεποῦς χάριν, ὅπως δὴ λέοντάς τε καὶ τἄλλα θηρία καθείρξαντες ἐνταῦθα τηροῖεν.

Dewing Consequently the ancient Romans had built another wall of short length outside of it and encircling it, not for the sake of safety (for it was neither strengthened with towers, nor indeed was there any battlement built upon it, nor any other means by which it would have been possible to repulse an enemy's assault upon the fortifications), but in order to provide for an unseemly kind of luxury, namely, that they might confine and keep there lions and other wild animals.

Greek διὸ δὴ καὶ Βιβάριον τοῦτο ὠνόμασται· οὕτω γὰρ Ῥωμαῖοι καλοῦσι τὸν χῶρον οὗ ἂν τῶν ζῴων τὰ μὴ χειροήθη τρέφεσθαι εἴωθεν. Οὐίττιγις μὲν οὖν μηχανάς τε ἄλλας ἄλλῃ τοῦ τείχους ἡτοίμαζε καὶ ὀρύσσειν τὸ ἔξω τείχισμα τοὺς Γότθους ἐκέλευεν, οἰόμενος, ἢν τούτου ἐντὸς γένωνται, πόνῳ οὐδενὶ τοῦ τείχους κρατήσειν, ὅπερ οὐδαμῆ ἐχυρὸν ξυνηπίστατο εἶναι.

Dewing And it is for this reason that this place has been named the Vivarium; for thus the Romans call a place where untamed animals are regularly cared for. So Vittigis began to make ready various engines at different places along the wall and commanded the Goths to mine the outside wall, thinking that, if they should get inside that, they would have no trouble in capturing the main wall, which he knew to be by no means strong.

Greek Βελισάριος δὲ ὁρῶν τοὺς πολεμίους τό τε Βιβάριον διορύσσοντας καὶ πολλαχῆ τοῦ περιβόλου προσβάλλοντας, οὔτε ἀμύνειν τοὺς στρατιώτας οὔτε ἐν ταῖς ἐπάλξεσι μένειν, ὅτι μὴ λίαν ὀλίγους, εἴα, καίπερ ἅπαν ξὺν αὑτῷ ἔχων εἴ τι ἐν τῷ στρατοπέδῳ λόγιμον ἦν.

Dewing But Belisarius, seeing that the enemy was undermining the Vivarium and assaulting the fortifications at many places, neither allowed the soldiers to defend the wall nor to remain at the battlement, except a very few, although he had with him whatever men of distinction the army contained.

Greek κάτω δὲ ἅπαντας ἀμφὶ τὰς πύλας ἐν παρασκευῇ εἶχε τεθωρακισμένους τε καὶ ξίφη μόνα ἐν χερσὶ φέροντας. ἐπεὶ δὲ οἱ Γότθοι, διελόντες τὸν τοῖχον, ἐντὸς Βιβαρίου ἐγένοντο, Κυπριανὸν ξὺν ἄλλοις τισὶ κατὰ τάχος ἐπ’ αὐτοὺς ἐσβιβάσας ἔργου ἐκέλευεν ἔχεσθαι.

Dewing But he held them all in readiness below about the gates, with their corselets on and carrying only swords in their hands. And when the Goths, after making a breach in the wall, got inside the Vivarium, he quickly sent Cyprian with some others into the enclosure against them, commanding them to set to work.

Greek καὶ οἱ μὲν τοὺς ἐσπεπτωκότας ἅπαντας ἔκτεινον, οὔτε ἀμυνομένους καὶ ὑπὸ σφῶν αὐτῶν διαφθειρομένους ἐν τῇ ἐς τὴν ἔξοδον στενοχωρίᾳ.

Dewing And they slew all who had broken in, for these made no defence and at the same time were being destroyed by one another in the cramped space about the exit.

Greek τῶν δὲ πολεμίων τῷ ἀπροσδοκήτῳ καταπλαγέντων καὶ οὐκ ἐν τάξει συντεταγμένων, ἀλλὰ ἄλλου ἄλλῃ φερομένου, τοῦ περιβόλου τὰς πύλας ἀνακλίνας ἐξαπιναίως ἅπαν ἐπὶ τοὺς ἐναντίους ἠφίει τὸ στράτευμα.

Dewing And since the enemy were thrown into dismay by the sudden turn of events and were not drawn up in order, but were rushing one in one direction and one in another, Belisarius suddenly opened the gates of the circuit-wall and sent out his entire army against his opponents.

Greek καὶ οἱ μὲν Γότθοι ἐς ἀλκὴν ἥκιστα ἔβλεπον, ἀλλ’ ἐς φυγήν, ὅπη ἕκαστος ἔτυχεν, ὥρμηντο· ἐπισπόμενοι δὲ Ῥωμαῖοι τοὺς ἀεὶ ἐν ποσὶ ῥᾷστα ἔκτεινον, ἥ τε δίωξις πολλὴ γέγονεν, ἐπεὶ οἱ Γότθοι μακρὰν ἀπολελειμμένοι τῶν σφετέρων χαρακωμάτων τῇδε ἐτειχομάχουν.

Dewing And the Goths had not the least thought of resistance, but rushed off in flight in any and every direction, while the Romans, following them up, found no difficulty in killing all whom they fell in with, and the pursuit proved a long one, since the Goths, in assaulting the wall at that place, were far away from their own camps.

Greek Βελισάριος δὲ τὰς τῶν πολεμίων μηχανὰς καίειν ἐκέλευεν, ἐπὶ πλεῖστόν τε ἡ φλὸξ αἰρομένη μείζονα τὴν ἔκπληξιν, ὡς τὸ εἰκός, τοῖς φεύγουσιν ἐποίει.

Dewing Then Belisarius gave the order to burn the enemy's engines, and the flames, rising to a great height, naturally increased the consternation of the fugitives.

Greek Ἐν τούτῳ δὲ καὶ κατὰ πύλην Σαλαρίαν ξυμπεσεῖν τὴν ὁμοίαν τύχην ξυνέβη. τάς τε γὰρ πύλας ἐξαπιναίως ἀνέῳγον καὶ ἐς τοὺς βαρβάρους ἐκ τοῦ ἀπροσδοκήτου ἐνέπιπτον, τούτους τε οὐκ ἀμυνομένους, ἀλλὰ τὰ νῶτα στρέψαντας ἔκτεινον,

Dewing Meanwhile it chanced that the same thing happened at the Salarian Gate also. For the Romans suddenly opened the gates and fell unexpectedly upon the barbarians, and, as these made no resistance but turned their backs, slew them; and they burned the engines of war which were within their reach.

Greek καὶ τὰ κατ’ αὐτοὺς μηχανήματα ἔκαιον. καὶ ἣ τε φλὸξ πολλαχῆ τοῦ τείχους ἐπὶ μέγα ἤρθη ἥ τε τῶν Γότθων ὑπαγωγὴ κατὰ κράτος ἤδη ἐκ παντὸς τοῦ περιβόλου ἐγίνετο, καὶ ἡ κραυγὴ ἀμφοτέρωθεν ὑπερφυὴς ἦν, τῶν μὲν ἐν τῷ τείχει τοῖς διώκουσιν ἐγκελευομένων, τῶν δὲ ἐν τοῖς χαρακώμασι τὴν τοῦ πάθους ὑπερβολὴν ὀδυρομένων.

Dewing And the flames at many parts of the wall rose to a great height, and the Goths were already being forced to retire from the whole circuit-wall; and the shouting on both sides was exceedingly loud, as the men on the wall urged on the pursuers, and those in the camps bewailed the overwhelming calamity they had suffered.

Greek ἀπέθανον δὲ Γότθων ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τρισμύριοι, ὡς αὐτῶν οἱ ἄρχοντες ἰσχυρίζοντο, καὶ τραυματίαι πλείους ἐγένοντο· ἅτε γὰρ ἐν πλήθει πολλῷ οἵ τε ἀπὸ τῶν ἐπάλξεων τὰ πλεῖστα ἐτύγχανον εἰς αὐτοὺς βάλλοντες καὶ οἱ τὰς ἐπεκδρομὰς ποιούμενοι πάμπολύ τι χρῆμα καταπεπληγμένων τε καὶ φευγόντων ἀνθρώπων διέφθειρον.

Dewing Among the Goths there perished on that day thirty thousand, as their leaders declared, and a larger number were wounded; for since they were massed in great numbers, those fighting from the battlement generally hit somebody when they shot at them, and at the same time those who made the sallies destroyed an extraordinary number of terrified and fleeing men.

Greek ἥ τε τειχομαχία πρωῒ ἀρξαμένη ἐτελεύτα ἐς δείλην ὀψίαν. ταύτην μὲν οὖν τὴν νύκτα ηὐλίσαντο ἑκάτεροι, Ῥωμαῖοι μὲν ἐν τῷ περιβόλῳ παιανίζοντες καὶ Βελισάριον ἐν εὐφημίαις ποιούμενοι καὶ τὰ τῶν νεκρῶν σκυλεύματα ἔχοντες, Γότθοι δὲ τούς τε τραυματίας σφῶν θεραπεύοντες καὶ τοὺς τελευτήσαντας ὀδυρόμενοι.

Dewing And the fighting at the wall, which had commenced early in the morning, did not end until late in the afternoon. During that night, then, both armies bivouacked where they were, the Romans singing the song of victory on the fortifications and lauding Belisarius to the skies, having with them the spoils stripped from the fallen, while the Goths cared for their wounded and bewailed their dead. The Loeb Editor's Notes: 1 Cf. chap. xi.26, note. ❦ 2 The quaestor held an important position as counsellor (πάρεδρος) of the emperor in legal matters. It was his function, also, to formulate and publish new laws. ❦ 3 Built in 312 B.C. by the censor, Appius Claudius. ❦ 4 Chiefly basalt. As built by Agrippa, however, the surface was of gravel; the stone blocks date from later years. ❦ 5 Apparently an error, for lava quarries have been found along the road. ❦ 6 i.e. on the left of the defender. The battlement, then, in horizontal section, had this form ┏ ┏ ┏, instead of the usual series of straight merlons. Winged merlons were used on the walls of Pompeii; for an excellent illustration see Overbeck, Pompeji4, p46. ❦ 7 i.e. too great to be defended at every point: the total length of the circuit-wall was •about twelve miles. ❦ 8 Probably either the Biferno or the Sangro. ❦ 9 sic Procopius. The customary form "Beneventum" shows less clearly the derivative from "ventus" which Procopius favours. Other possible explanations are "bene" + "venio" or "bene" + (suff.) "entum." ❦ 10 Cf. Pliny III.xi.16, § 105, who says that the name was originally "Maleventum, on account of its unwholesome air. Thayer's Note: The derivation from malum ventum belongs to folk etymology, even if one admittedly already current in Antiquity. The early Oscan name of the settlement was Malies or Maloes: early coins of southern Italy with the legend Malies are known, and three centuries before Procopius, the Latin writer Festus records (s.v. Beneventum) that the Greek-speaking inhabitants of the area called the town by a name the accusative of which was Μαλόεντον; at any rate the oblique case (Maloenton, Malϝenton) was then taken, as often happens, as a new Latin nominative — as indeed did happen with the names of other southern Italian towns: Tarentum, Grumentum, Buxentum, etc. From there, as is well known, folk etymology took over already in Roman times, Maloentum being parsed as mal(um) eventum = evil occurrence, which the superstitious Romans typically averted by turning it into a good occurrence. For further details, see Garrucci, "Di Benevento e delle sue varie forme di governo", in Dissertazioni archeologiche, pp93‑94. [And if my two bits don't have sufficient authority with you, see Hodgkin's note in Italy and Her Invaders, VII.64.] ❦ 11 The Forum of Constantine was a short distance west of the hippodrome. One of its principal monuments, a huge porphyry column, still stands and is known as the "Burnt Column." ❦ 12 i.e. the Adriatic Sea; see note 4. ❦ 13 Chap. vii.36. ❦ 14 By the "Adriatic" is meant the part of the Mediterranean which lies between Africa on the south, Sicily and Italy on the west, and Greece and Epirus on the east; Procopius' "Ionian Gulf" is therefore our Adriatic Sea. ❦ 15 Now the gulf of Saros, north and west of the Gallipoli peninsula. ❦ 16 i.e. to the north-west. Procopius means that the Adriatic should incline at its upper end more toward the left (the west) in order to form the isthmus which he is surprised to find lacking. ❦ 17 Hydruntum; cf. Book III.1.9, note. ❦ 18 Modern Croatia. ❦ 19 Modern Belgrade. ❦ 20 Procopius seems to have erred: Liguria, as well as Aemilia (below), was south of the Po. Cf. chap. xii.4, where Liguria is represented as extending to the Alps. ❦ 21 Whose capital was Placentia (Piacenza). ❦ 22 Modern Spoleto. ❦ 23 Modern Perugia. ❦ 24 The Mulvian Bridge. ❦ 25 Cf. chap. v.3. ❦ 26 Having a white spot, "White-face." ❦ 27 See plan opposite p185. ❦ 28 See plan opposite p185. ❦ 29 For Procopius' description of the wall "across the Tiber," see chap. xix.6‑10. ❦ 30 See plan opposite p185. ❦ 31 Cf. Book IV.xxvii.38, note. ❦ 32 Chap. xxvii.25‑29. ❦ 33 This is an error. Procopius means the Porta Cornelia. ❦ 34 According to tradition the Basilica of St. Peter was built over the grave of the Apostle. ❦ 35 The Aurelian. ❦ 36 The Janiculum. ❦ 37 The wall described was a part of the wall of Aurelian. ❦ 38 This is an exaggeration; the channels vary •from four to eight feet in height. Thayer's Note: Horses generally range in height from five to six feet at the withers. Adding another two feet (60 cm) for the horse's head, and assuming the rider crouched down in the saddle, those channels measuring over seven feet (2.1 meters) in height (e.g., the Aqua Marcia, the Anio Novus) probably did in fact allow the passage of a small horse at least, with their rider. ❦ 39 The Pons Aurelius. See section 10 of this chapter. ❦ 40 Cf. the description of the ballista and other engines of war in Ammianus Marcellinus, XXIII.iv. The engine here described by Procopius is the catapult of earlier times: the ballista hurled stones, not arrows. See the Classical Dictionaries for illustrations. ❦ 41 The "shaft" is a holder for the missile, and it (not the missile) is driven by the bowstring. When the holder stops, the missile goes on. ❦ 42 A popular etymology of βάλλιστρα, a corrupted form of βάλλιστα; the point is in the Greek words βάλλω + μάλιστα, an etymology correct only as far as βάλλω is concerned. ❦ 43 Called also "scorpions": described by Ammianus, l.c. ❦ 44 This contrivance was not one familiar to classical times. The "lupi" of Livy XXVIII.iii were hooks; Vegetius, De Re Militari, II.25 and IV.23, mentions "lupi" (also hooks), used to put a battering‑ram out of action. ❦ 45 See chap. xxiii.15‑17 and note. ❦ 46 Procopius errs again (cf. chap. xix.4). He means the Porta Cornelia. ❦ 47 Now called Castello di Sant' Angelo. ❦ 48 i.e. no mortar or other binding material. ❦ 49 The square structure was the base of the monument, each side measuring •300 Roman feet in length and 85 feet in height. Above this rose a cylindrical drum, surrounded by columns and carrying the statues, and perhaps capped by a second drum. For details see Jordan, Topographie der Stadt Rom, III.663 ff. ❦ 50 Procopius neglects to say that the tomb was across the river from the circuit-wall at this point, at the end of a bridge (Pons Ælius) which faced the gate (Porta Cornelia) which he calls the Aurelian Gate. ❦ 51 From the Pons Ælius. ❦ 52 Because of the quadrangular shape of the building the Goths were able to take their enemy in flank and in rear by advancing beyond the corners. ❦ 53 i.e. the Cornelian. ❦ 54 "No doubt these are the same as the Regii, one of the seventeen 'Auxilia Palatina' under the command of the Magister Militum Praesentalis, mentioned in the Notitia Orientis, cap. v." — Hodgkin. ❦ 55 Murus Ruptus. "Here, to this day, notwithstanding some lamentable and perfectly unnecessary 'restorations' of recent years, may be seen some portions of the Muro Torto, a twisted, bulging, overhanging mass of opus reticulatum." Hodgkin. ❦ 56 Chap. xxii.10. ❦ 57 The exact location is hard to determine; the majority of the authorities agree on the location given in the plan (opposite p185), near the Porta Labicana. Thayer's Notes: a The straight-line distance from the Cave of the Sibyl in Cumae to Naples (today's Town Hall, taken as approximating the center of town) is 11.4 Roman miles, which by the usual rough reckoning of 8 stadia to the mile is a bit more than 90 stadia. Calling the distance 128 stadia would make a mile equivalent to about 11 stadia. ❦ b The straight-line distance from Narni to Rome (measured from the cathedral of S. Giovenale to the Senate House in the Roman Forum, taken as approximations to the center of each city respectively) is 47 Roman miles, which by the usual rough reckoning of 8 stadia to the mile is around 375 stadia. Allowing for extra mileage due to the difficult terrain especially as we approach Narni, Procopius' estimate would seem to confirm that equivalence of 8 stadia to the mile. ◂ previous next ▸ Images with borders lead to more information. The thicker the border, the more information. (Details here.) UP TO: Gothic Wars Ancient Military History Military History Home Procopius Greek & Latin Texts LacusCurtius A page or image on this site is in the public domain ONLY if its URL has a total of one *asterisk. If the URL has two **asterisks, the item is copyright someone else, and used by permission or fair use. If the URL has none the item is © Bill Thayer. See my copyright page for details and contact information. Page updated: 14 Sep 20 Accessibility