# Officers and datable soldiers of Legio IX (VIIII) Hispana — prosopographical dossier

Companion file: `officers.json` (same directory; 20 entries, machine-readable). Working copies of the raw material (EDCS/EDH JSON, Dessau OCR, Eck 1972 PDF, Graafstal 2025 text, Wikipedia/de.wikipedia extracts, blog/review captures) are not included in this folder.

**Verification key.** *Verified online* = Latin text read in EDCS (edcs.hist.uzh.ch API), EDH (Heidelberg API), RIB online, or Dessau's ILS (archive.org OCR); fixed points marked (V) were read in an online source (Eck 1972 Chiron PDF, Graafstal, Britannia 56 (2025) text, Wikipedia/de.wikipedia with their citations, EDCS diploma texts); (R) = recalled from standard literature, not re-checked. Hodgson 2021 (Britannia 52) is closed-access and Cambridge Core was blocking; his positions are taken from his abstract, from Graafstal 2025 (who quotes him), and from a detailed reader's summary on RomanArmyTalk (Feb 2026) — all second-hand and flagged as such. Campbell 2018 could not be read; his positions come from the book blurb, a review (Spooner, Classics for All 2019), his blog and his RAT posts.

## 0. Cursus intervals used (standard scheme; R — Birley, Fasti of Roman Britain 1981, Part I; Eck, ANRW II.1 (1974) 'Beförderungskriterien'; Morris, LF 1964/65; E. Birley, PBA 39 (1954) — all as cited by Eck 1972)

| step | usual age / interval |
|---|---|
| vigintivirate (IIIvir a.a.a.f.f., Xvir stl. iud., IIIvir capitalis, IIIIvir viarum) | c. 18–20 |
| tribunus laticlavius | c. 19–23, tenure 1–3 years (Eck 1972 n.18 citing E. Birley: "häufig bis zu drei Jahren") |
| quaestor | minimum 25 |
| tribunus plebis / aedile | c. 27–29 |
| praetor | minimum 30; typically 30–33 for plebeians |
| legatus legionis | 2–6 years after the praetorship, c. 3 years |
| praetorian proconsulship (Narbonensis, Sicily) | one year, c. 4–7 years after the praetorship |
| praetorian imperial province (Arabia) | c. 3 years, 6–12 years after the praetorship |
| consulship | patricians c. 32–33; nobiles c. 36–40; novi homines c. 40–45 |

Rule of thumb used below: **tribunate ≈ consulship − (20 ± 3) years**; a legionary command ends 1 year before a praetorian proconsulship and c. 4 years before a praetorian imperial province.

---

## 1. Q. Petillius Cerialis Caesius Rufus — legate, 60/61
- Source: Tacitus, *Ann.* 14.32 (Latin verified, Latin Library): "*et victor Britannus, Petil[l]io Ceriali, legato legionis nonae, in subsidium adventanti obvius, fudit legionem, et quod peditum interfecit: Cerialis cum equitibus evasit in castra*".
- Fixed point: the Boudican revolt (60/61). Later cos. suff. 70, 74; governor of Britain 71–73/4 (R).
- Service: 60/61. (Birley, Fasti 231: 59–61.)

## 2. C. Caristanius C. f. Ser. Fronto — legate "in Britannia" under Vespasian, c. 76–79
- ILS 9485 = AE 1914, 262, Antioch in Pisidia (EDCS-16201163; Latin verified EDCS + Dessau):
  *C. Carist[a]nio C. f. Ser. Fr[on]toni trib. mil. pr[aef.] eq. alae Bosp. adl[e]cto in senatu(m) inter tribunic. promoto inter praetorios leg. pro pr. Ponti et Bithyn. leg. Imp. divi Vespasian. Aug. leg. IX Hispanae in Britann(ia) leg. pro pr. Imp. divi Titi Caes. Aug. et Imp. Domitian. Caes. Aug. provinc. Pamphyliae et Lyciae patrono col. / T. Caristanius Calpurnianus Rufus ob merita eius h. c.*
- Fixed points: command under Vespasian (d. 24 June 79) — on the stone (V); Lycia-Pamphylia under Titus + Domitian, c. 81–84 (Eck, Chiron 12, 1982, 307–9 via Wikipedia) (V); cos. suff. 90 (Gallivan via Wikipedia) (V).
- Arithmetic: adlection 74/75 → legate of Bithynia → legion c. 76–79 → Lycia 81–84 → cos. 90. **Service c. 76–79** (Birley, Fasti 234). Proves the legion was in Britain in the late 70s.

## 3. L. Roscius M. f. Qui. Aelianus Maecius Celer — tribune with a vexillation on the German expedition, 83
- CIL XIV 3612 = ILS 1025, Tibur (EDCS-05801602; verified): *… trib. mil. leg. IX Hispan. vexillarior. eiusdem in expeditione Germanica donato ab Imp. Aug. militarib. donis corona vallari et murali vexillis argenteis II hastis puris II …*
- Fixed points: *expeditio Germanica* = Domitian's Chattan war 83 (Dessau ad loc.) (V); cos. suff. Nov–Dec 100 (Fasti Ostienses via Wikipedia; Dessau cites CIL VI 451) (V); procos. Africae 117/118 (Eck 1983 via Wikipedia).
- **Service 83** (c. 82–84). Cos. 100 = 17 years later, normal.

## 4. C. Velius Salvi f. Rufus — praefectus vexillariorum of nine legions incl. VIIII Hispana, Domitianic
- ILS 9200 = IGLS VI 2796, Baalbek (EDH HD031653; EDCS-16300627; verified): *… praef. vexillariorum leg. VIIII: I adiut., II adiut., II Aug., VIII Aug., VIIII Hisp., XIIII gem., XX vic., XXI rapac. …* (eight names for "nine" legions: Dessau n.3–4 thinks XI Claudia dropped out).
- Fixed points: dona from Vespasian and Titus in the Jewish war (V); the vexillation command placed by Ritterling in Domitian's German war (83) — Dessau n.5 — the same occasion as no. 3; Marcomannic/Sarmatian war c. 89–92.
- **Vexillation of the Ninth on the Rhine c. 83 (–89)**; the legion itself stayed in Britain.

## 5. L. Burbuleius L. f. Quir. Optatus Ligarianus — *tribunus laticlavius leg. IX Hispanae*, c. 113–117
- CIL X 6006 = ILS 1066, Minturnae (EDCS-20600417; verified EDCS + Dessau). Descending cursus: *… cos., sodal. Aug., leg. Imperat. Antonini Aug. Pii pro pr. prov. Syriae in quo honor. decessit, leg. eiusdem et divi Hadriani pro pr. prov. Cappad., cur. oper. locor.q. publ., praef. aerar. Saturn., procos. Sicil., logiste Syriae, legat. leg. XVI Fl. Firm., cur. rei p. Narbon. item Anconitanor. item Tarricin., curat. viar. Clodiae Cassiae Ciminae, pr., aed. pl., q. Ponti et Bithyn., trib. laticl. leg. IX Hispan., IIIvir. kapit., patr. col.* — the only stone that actually writes **laticlavio**.
- Fixed points: cos. suff. in office 19 May 135 — diploma AE 1999, 1352 (EDCS-16100210, text verified: *M. Aemilio Papo L. Burbuleio Ligariano cos.*) (V); procos. Siciliae 130/131 (Eck 1983, 169–71 via Wikipedia) (V); praef. aer. Sat. 132–134 (Alföldy) (V); quaestor of Bithynia after Pliny (c. 112+) (V, argument from silence).
- Arithmetic: 135 cos. (age c. 42 for a IIIvir capitalis) ← praef. aer. 132–4 ← Sicily 130/1 ← logista + XVI Fl. F. c. 126–9 ← curatorships c. 124–5 ← praetor c. 122/3 ← aedile c. 120/1 ← quaestor c. 118/9 (aged 25 → born c. 93) ← **tribunate c. 113–117** (range 110–118). A. Birley (Fasti 271ff) put it at the start of Hadrian's reign (Wikipedia table: c. 118–122); de.wikipedia: quaestor "probably at the beginning of Hadrian's reign". Either way a laticlave in the Ninth in the last Trajanic/first Hadrianic years.

## 6. T. (CIL: L.) Aninius L. f. Pap. Sextius Florentinus — legate, c. 121–124
- CIL III 87 (p. 968) = CIL III 14148,10, Petra, the rock-cut "Sextius Florentinus tomb" (EDCS-21200156; verified). **Not in ILS** (Dessau index checked: no Aninius Florentinus; "ILS 1057" is wrong).
  *T. Aninio L. f. Pap. Sextio Florentino IIIviro aur. arg. flando trib. milit. leg. I Minerviae quaest. prov. Achaiae trib. pleb. leg. leg. VIIII Hisp. proco(n)sul. pr[ov.] Narb. leg. Aug. pr. pr. prov. Arab. patri piis[sim]o ex testamento ipsius.* — Praenomen: CIL read L., the papyrus gives T. (Eck 1972 n.4); the praetorship is omitted by the cutter (Birley, Fasti 238 n.9).
- Fixed points: governor of Arabia on **2 December 127** — P. Yadin 16 (Yadin, JVEG 17, 1963, 238, cited by Eck 1972 n.4; A. Birley 2005, 244 via Graafstal n.121) (V); successor **T. Haterius Nepos attested 17 Nov 130** (P. Yadin 23; Eck JRS 1999, 84 via Wikipedia) (V) — Florentinus died in office between the two dates; proconsulate of Narbonensis **123/4 or 124/5** (Eck, Chiron 13, 1983, 158 n.376, via Graafstal n.122; Birley, Fasti 238: 124/5) (V); tribunate in I Minervia c. 110 (Birley) (V).
- Arithmetic: Arabia (3-year post) c. 126/7 → 129/30; Narbonensis (1 year) 123/4 or 124/5; legionary command (c. 3 years) immediately before → **c. 120/1 – 123/4**; praetorship (omitted) c. 118–120; born c. 88–90. Range: earliest start c. 119, latest end c. 124. **Most likely c. 121–124.**
- Views: E. Birley 1971, 79 (per Eck: "etwa 123 n. Chr. prätorischer Legat"); A. Birley 1981, 238: "first few years of the reign of Hadrian"; A. Birley 2005, 228: "unlikely to have left the legion much before 124"; Hodgson 2021: compatible with loss in the 120s, "last attested officers on record around 124" (Graafstal's résumé of Hodgson); Graafstal 2025: legion's end "not much before 123/4".

## 7. L. Aemilius L. f. Cam. Karus — tribune (first of two tribunates), c. 121–125
- CIL VI 1333 = 31633 = ILS 1077, Rome (EDCS-17800486; verified EDCS + Dessau; photograph on Campbell's blog, 4 Mar 2023). Descending cursus: *L. Aemilio L. f. Cam. Karo co[s.], leg. Aug. pr. pr. provinciae Cappadociae, leg. Aug. pr. pr. censitori provinciae Lugdunensis, leg. Aug. pr. pr. provinciae Arabiae, curatori viae Flaminiae, leg. leg. XXX U. V., praet., trib. pleb., quaest. Aug., trib. militum leg. VIII Aug., trib. militum leg. VIIII Hispanae, Xviro stlitib. iudic., sodali Flaviali, XVviro s. f. / C. Iulius Erucianus Crispus praef. alae primae Ulpiae Dacorum amico optimo.* Since the cursus is inverted, **IX Hispana was his first tribunate**, VIII Augusta (Strasbourg) the second (so de.wikipedia; Graafstal: "quaestor Augusti after his two tribunates").
- Fixed points: cos. suff. (with Q. Egrilius Plarianus) in office **19 March 144** — diplomas, Eck & Pangerl, ZPE 193 (2015) 253–60 (via de.wikipedia and Graafstal n.124) (V); governor of Arabia **142** (diploma + inscription, de.wikipedia; tenure c. 141–144) (V); legate of XXX Ulpia Victrix c. 136–8 (two Lower-German inscriptions, de.wikipedia) (V). NB PIR distinguishes his homonymous son, governor of Tres Daciae c. 173–5 (Dessau conflated them).
- Arithmetic: cos. 144 at c. 42 → born c. 102 → Xvir c. 120 → **tribunate in IX c. 121–123**, VIII Aug. c. 123–125 → quaestor Aug. c. 127 → praetor c. 132 → XXX c. 136–8 → via Flaminia c. 138–41 → Arabia c. 141–4 → cos. 144. Bounds: consul at 45 gives 118–121; consul at 40 gives 124–126. **Earliest c. 118, latest c. 127, most likely c. 121–125.** Imperial favour (quaestor Augusti, double tribunate, Xvir) argues against a retarded career (A. Birley 2005, 228).
- Views: Ritterling 1925, 1668f (used him to push the end past 119/120); E. Birley 1971, 79; A. Birley 1981, 274ff: c. 123 (remarking that IX and XXX were both in Germania Inferior); A. Birley 2005: c. 124; Hodgson 2021: "Aemilius Karus and others brought back to somewhere around the mid 120s. They really don't fit much earlier than that though" (RAT summary of the paper); Graafstal 2025: "around 124"; Livius: "cannot have served earlier than 122".

## 8. L. Novius Crispinus Martialis Saturninus — tribune, c. 124–128
- CIL VIII 2747 = ILS 1070 (+ CIL VIII 18273), Lambaesis (EDH HD031258/HD031261; verified). Descending cursus: *L. Novio Crispino Martiali Saturnino cos. desig., leg. Aug. pr. pr. provinciae Africae [= legate of III Augusta], procos. Galliae Narbonensis, leg. Aug. leg. I Italicae, leg. Aug. iuridico Astyriae et Gallaeciae, praetori, trib. pleb., quaestori pro praet. provinciae Macedoniae, trib. mil. leg. VIIII Hisp., IIIIviro viarum curandarum, seviro eq. Romanorum / veterani [[leg. III]] Aug. qui militare coeperunt Glabrione et Torquato item Asiatico II et Aquilino cos.* (NB: the brief's "tribune of IX; legate of III Augusta 147–149; cos. 150" is right, but the intervening posts are iuridicus of Asturia-Callaecia, legate of I Italica and proconsul of Narbonensis — not a Spanish/Cappadocian sequence.)
- Fixed points: veterans enrolled under the consuls of 124 and 125, discharged after 25 years → stone of **149/150**, Crispinus *cos. designatus* (Dessau: positus a. 150) (V); legate of III Augusta attested **147–149** (CIL VIII 2542, 2682 per Dessau; Thomasson, Fasti Africani no. 29) (V); cos. suff. 150 or 151 (Eck 2013, 76 via Wikipedia) (V); praetor c. 135 at the latest (Alföldy 1977, 340; A. Birley 2005, 287) (V).
- Arithmetic: cos. 150 at c. 45 (a slow IIIIvir-viarum career) → born c. 105 → sevir/IIIIvir c. 123–4 → **tribunate c. 124–128** → quaestor pro pr. Macedoniae c. 130 → trib. pl. c. 132 → praetor c. 135 → iuridicus c. 136–8 → I Italica → Narbonensis 144/5 → III Aug. 147–9 → cos. 150. **Earliest c. 120 (consul at 50), latest c. 130; most likely mid-120s.**
- Views: Ritterling 1925, 1668f: tribune "höchstens kurz vor dem Jahre 130"; E. Birley 1971, 77f; Alföldy 1977, 277: c. 125; A. Birley 1981, 276ff and 2005, 228: "can hardly have been tribune earlier than the mid-120s"; Hodgson 2021 (via Graafstal n.128, Hodgson p. 6): the careers "rule out the traditional loss of the legion in 117–19 but are compatible with loss or disbanding at some point in the 120s".

## 9. Q. Camurius Q. f. Lem. Numisius Iunior — *tr(ibunus) [mil(itum)] leg. VIIII Hi[spanae]*: c. 139–143 or c. 105–118
- CIL XI 5670, Attidium (EDCS-23000342; verified), with CIL XI 5671–2 (EDCS-23000343). Full text as edited:
  *[Q. C]amur[io Q. f. Lem.] / Numisio Iu[niori] / IIIvir. a. a. a. f. f. tr. [mil.] / leg. VIIII Hi[spanae] / sodali Titiali [Flaviali] / qua[e]st. urb. ae[d. cur.] / pr. [le]g. Aug. leg. [---] / et [leg.] VI Victr. [---] / et [Iu]nior pa[tri ---]*. CIL XI 5671: *Q. Camurio [- f.] / Lem. Numi[sio] / Iuniori III[vir. ---]*.
  - The stone says **tr(ibuno) [mil(itum)]**, not *laticlavio* (only Burbuleius' stone uses that word); the laticlave status is inferred from the IIIvirate monetalis. The numeral **VIIII is on the stone** (only *spanae* is restored); no dispute about the numeral appears in EDCS, Eck 1972 or Campbell's blog (2025, listing this stone among the "VIIII HISP" spellings). The **career runs only to the legateship of VI Victrix** (in Britain from c. 122): no consulship, and the dedicators are his children (*[…] et Iunior patri*) — the stone was cut before any consulship (EDCS: 151–161).
- Fixed point: a **Q. Numisius Iunior cos. suff. with M. Annius Libo, in office 8 Feb 161** (diploma from Moesia Superior, Eck, Chiron 2, 1972, 459–62, PDF read) and 26 April 161 (Panciera, in Eck's corrigendum) (V).
- Arithmetic if tribune = consul (Eck 1972; A. Birley 1981, 255; Alföldy 1977): consul at c. 40 → born c. 120 → IIIvir c. 138–40 → **tribune c. 139–143** ("nicht vor etwa 140/141" — Eck) → praetor c. 150 → two legionary commands c. 152–158 (VI Victrix under Cn. Iulius Verus) → one more post → cos. 161. Then the legion existed under Pius (Eck: hence Elegeia 161).
- Arithmetic if the dedicating son "Iunior" is the consul of 161 (Keppie 1989, 251–2; followed by Hodgson 2021 and Graafstal 2025 n.19): the father was born c. 85–95 and a **tribune c. 105–118** (Trajanic), commanding VI Victrix on the Rhine or in Britain c. 125–135. Note that the diploma's consul is "Q. Numisius Iunior" without *Camurius*, and that de.wikipedia records the ambiguity ("entweder um den Konsul selbst oder seinen Vater").
- Verdict: the one prosopographical item that would carry the legion to c. 140 is exactly the one whose identification is open; it cannot be a *secure* terminus.

## 10. Anonymous equestrian from Mersch — *tribunus militum leg. VIIII Hispanae*, c. 105–125
- CIL XIII 4030 = AE 1973, 361 (EDH HD011186; EDCS-10601003; verified): *------] / flam[en] Augu[sti] / flamen Leni M[art]is quinq[uennalis] / praef. cohort. [II His]panor. eq[uitatae] / tribunus militu[m le]g. VIIII Hi[spanae] / praefect. e[quitum alae Augustae] / Vocon[tiorum ------*. Krier & Schwinden, Trierer Zeitschrift 37 (1974) (cited in Hodgson 2021's bibliography — inaccessible here); Kremer 2007, 2016.
- Dating (second-hand, via a search summary of Kremer 2016): the tribunate was served "in Lower Germany at Nijmegen", the military career ending by c. 125; the tomb monument c. 130 at the earliest, stylistically late-Hadrianic. The ala Augusta Vocontiorum was in Britain by 122 (R). **Range c. 100–125; no fixed point.**

## 11. L. Latinius L. f. Publilia Macer (Verona) — primus pilus, praefectus castrorum: Aachen altar
- AE 1968, 323 = AE 2005, +1060 (EDH HD014357; EDCS-10700516; verified): *L. Latinius L. f. Publilia Macer Ver(ona) p(rimi)p(ilus) leg. VIIII Hisp. praef. castr. pro se et suis Apollini v. s. l. m.* Nesselhauf & v. Petrikovits, BJ 167 (1967).
- No internal date (EDH: 2nd c.). Dated only by the Nijmegen context: Bogaers 1967 (120s), Haalebos 2000 (detachment c. 104–120), Hodgson 2021 (detachment only, c. 105–120), Bogaers-Haalebos 1977 (part of the legion). **c. 105–130.** The camp prefect's presence implies a large part of the legion, not a token vexillation (E. Birley 1971, 75f vs. Nesselhauf).

## 12. L. Decrius L. f. Ser. Longinus — praefectus castrorum leg. VIIII Hisp., c. 110–120
- AE 1913, 215, Agnano (EDH HD027393; EDCS-16300271, dated 101–140; verified): *… praef. fabrum, (centurioni) leg. II Aug. et VII gemin. bis et XXII Deiotar(i)an., p. p. legion. eiusdem, praef. castr. leg. VIIII Hispa(nae) — L. Decrius … Iulianus qui et Numisianus princeps leg. XI Cl. p. f. patri …*
- Terminus: his primipilate in XXII Deiotariana precedes that legion's disappearance (last attested 119; R). **c. 100–125, probably 110–120.**

## 13. L. Valerius L. f. Proclus — centurion, discharged from the Ninth, c. 115–122
- CIL III 12411 = ILS 2666b = ILBulg 432, near Nicopolis ad Istrum (EDH HD042822 dated 121–150; EDCS-29100179; verified): *… mil. leg. V M., b. f. lega., opt. ad spe. ordin., (cent.) leg. eiusd. donatus tor. ar. phaler. bel. Dac., (cent.) leg. I Ital., (cent.) leg. XI Cl., (cent.) leg. XX V. v., (cent.) leg. VIIII Hisp., mis. h. mis., vix. an. LXXV.*
- Fixed point: decorated in the Dacian war (101–106) as centurion of V Macedonica. Four posts follow at c. 3.3 years each (Graafstal 2025, Table 1, in which Proclus figures): **Ninth c. 116–120, discharge c. 120 (±5)**. Transfer XX V.V. → VIIII Hisp. = both in Britain. A Trajanic/early-Hadrianic terminus.

## 14. Ti. Claudius Ti. f. [Ga]l. Vitalis — centurion of IX Hisp., c. 109–115
- CIL VI 3584 = ILS 2656, Rome (Dessau OCR read; EDCS text not retrieved): *… ex equite R. ordinem accepit in leg. V [Mac.] … in leg. I Ital., donis d. … bello Dacico … in leg. I Miner., iter. donis d. … bello Dacico … in leg. XX Vict., item prom. in leg. ead., item successione promotus ex leg. XX Vict. in leg. IX [Hi]sp., succ. promot. ex leg. IX [Hi]sp. in leg. VII Cl. p. f., item successit in leg. ead., milit. (cent.) in II pr. post. annis XI, vixit annis XLI.*
- Two Dacian-war decorations (101/2, 105/6), then two XX Victrix posts, then the Ninth, then VII Claudia (Strobel, Tyche 2, 1987). **c. 107–118, probably 109–115.**

## 15. L. Servaeus Sabinus — centurion leg. VIII(I) Hispanae → III Aug. → VI Victrix
- AE 1930, 109, Savatra (EDH HD025791; EDCS-16100418, dated 101–150; verified): *Lucio Servaeo [Sa]bino (cent.) leg. VIII(I) Hispanae (cent.) leg. III Au[g]. (cent.) leg. VI victricis statuam ex testam[ento]*; father T. Servaeus Sabinus p.p. (CIL III 14398). The stone actually reads **VIII HISPANAE** (emended) — a warning about numerals. Undated; Trajanic–Hadrianic on the sequence (VI Victrix in Britain from 122).

## 16. Aelius Asclepiades, natione Cilix — *miles leg. IX*, 8 stipendia (CIL X 1769, Puteoli)
- EDCS-11500706 (verified): *D. M. / Aelius Asclepiades nati(one) [C]il(ix) mil. leg. IX vix. ann. XXXXII mil. ann. VIII Aelia Seleria b. m. f.*
- Why cited as "late": the nomen Aelius suggests citizenship from Hadrian, so enlistment in 117 or later and eight years' service → the Ninth alive c. 125+ (Bogaers 1967, 73, who also used the Cilician origin for eastern recruitment; Eck 1972 n.7). Objections: Jarrett & Mann 1970, 185; Keppie 1989, 252–3; Hodgson 2021, 18–19 (no praenomen P., so no proof of a personal Hadrianic grant; Aelius could be inherited or later; "leg. IX" bare). Even on the favourable reading his service ends c. 125–6. **Not a usable terminus.**

## 17. Comparandum: M. Pontius Laelianus Larcius Sabinus, tribune of VI Victrix "cum qua ex Germania in Brittanniam transiit"
- CIL VI 41146 = 1497 + 1549 = ILS 1094 + 1100 (EDCS-01000265; verified EDCS + Dessau): *… praetori, trib. pleb. candidato Imp. divi Hadriani, ab act. senat., quaestori prov. Narb., trib. mil. leg. VI Victr. cum qua ex Germ. in Brit{t}an. transiit, IIIIvir. viar. curandar. …*
- Fixed points: cos. suff. July–Aug 145 (Eck 2013, 74; Holder 2006, 810) (V); governor of Pannonia Inferior 7 Aug 143 (diploma, Roxan 1999) (V). Arithmetic: born c. 103–5 → tribunate c. 121–125 → **VI Victrix moved to York c. 122 (Ritterling/A. Birley) or "broadly around 123" (Graafstal)**. Since the Sixth took over York, the Ninth had left York by then — consistent with Karus'/Florentinus' service in a legion that, by the mid-120s, was no longer at York.

## 18. Unit-level fixed points
- **RIB 665** (EDH HD069928; verified): Trajan trib. pot. XII = 10 Dec 107 – 9 Dec 108, *[portam] per leg. VIIII Hi[sp. fecit]* — last dated monument of the legion as a unit.
- RIB 659 (cornicularius L. Celerinius Vitalis; RIB: "must antedate the arrival of the Sixth Legion at York about A.D. 120"); RIB 673 (signifer L. Duccius Rufinus, late 1st–early 2nd c.); Lincoln RIB 254–257 (pre-Flavian, "leg. VIIII" without title); Nijmegen tile stamps LEG VIIII HISP (EDH HD020257, 71–130), Ewijk pendant; Carlisle-area stamps RIB 2462.x.
- ILS 2288 (Rome, list of legions c. 165–170) omits IX and XXII: the legion no longer existed by then (Eck 1972 n.2).

## 19. Negative checks
- M. Vettius Valens (CIL XI 395 = ILS 2648): XIII Gemina, VI Victrix, XIV Gemina — **not** the Ninth. Agricola (Tac. Agr. 5) and Titus (Suet. Tit. 4.1): tribunes in Britain c. 58–61, legion unnamed. Earlier legates Caesius Nasica (Tac. Ann. 12.40, c. 50) and P. Cornelius Lentulus Scipio (ILS 940, Africa c. 22) (R).

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## 20. The scholars, side by side

| officer | Ritterling 1925 | E. Birley 1971 (as reported by Eck 1972 / Graafstal) | Eck 1972 | A. Birley 1981 / 2005 | Keppie 1989 | Campbell 2018 | Hodgson 2021 | Graafstal 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florentinus | (end under Hadrian, after 119/120) | legate c. 120–2 (→ IX moved Carlisle → Nijmegen → East) | "etwa 123" praetorian legate | 1981: first years of Hadrian; 2005: not gone "much before 124" | — | survived; officers' careers continue | last officers c. 124; loss in the 120s | end "not much before 123/4" |
| Karus | used to push end past 119/120 | 1971, 79 | — | 1981: c. 123; 2005: c. 124 | — | — | "brought back to … the mid 120s" | c. 124 |
| Crispinus | tribune "at most shortly before 130" | 1971, 77f | (cites Ritterling) | 2005: not before the mid-120s; praetor c. 135 | — | — | 120s | mid-120s |
| Numisius | — | — | tribune ≥ c. 140/1 → legion under Pius → Elegeia 161 | 1981: 140s | consul of 161 = the tribune's son | "a new discovery" (blurb); window mid-120s–mid-160s | consul = son/grandson | follows Keppie |
| Asclepiades | — | (Bogaers 1967 pro) | n.7 cautious | — | 252–3 contra | — | 18–19 contra | follows Keppie/Hodgson |
| Nijmegen/Aachen | — | legion moved to Nijmegen after the Wall (c. 126) | confirms transfer | — | eastern move unproven | legion (or most of it) at Nijmegen | only a detachment, c. 105–120 | detachment; legion back in Britain by the 120s |

Hodgson's four-officer conclusion (his p. 6, quoted by Graafstal n.128): "the careers rule out the traditional loss of the legion in 117–19 but are compatible with loss or disbanding at some point in the 120s." Hodgson also stresses the unbroken flow of British auxiliary discharges 122–135 and the absence of any vacant eastern legionary base (RAT summary); Campbell (RAT, Feb 2026) replies that Cappadocia's fortresses are largely unknown.

## 21. Bottom line — what the officers actually prove

1. **Secure, agreed by everyone:** the legion was a functioning unit in **107/108** (RIB 665) and had a *laticlave* (Burbuleius) c. 113–117.
2. **Secure on career arithmetic, whatever the model:** Florentinus commanded the Ninth **no earlier than c. 119 and until c. 123/124** (Arabia 127 + Narbonensis 123/4–124/5 leave no room to push the command back into Trajan's reign); Karus was its tribune **c. 121–125 (bounds 118–127)**. Hence **the legion certainly existed into 122/123, and almost certainly to c. 124**. This kills the 117–119 destruction.
3. **Probable:** Crispinus' tribunate mid-120s (bounds 120–130) and Valerius Proclus' last centurionate c. 116–122 extend the floor to **c. 125–128**.
4. **Not secure:** anything after c. 130 rests on (a) Numisius Iunior *if* he is the consul of 161 (then c. 139–143) — an identification rejected by Keppie, Hodgson and Graafstal because the stone was dedicated by a son called Iunior and stops before any consulship; (b) Asclepiades' nomen; (c) the intrinsically undated Nijmegen/Aachen material.
5. **Terminus ante quem:** ILS 2288 (c. 165–170) omits the legion.

**Latest secure terminus post quem for the legion's existence from this prosopography: c. 123/124 (Florentinus' legateship ending before his Narbonensis proconsulate of 123/4 or 124/5), with Karus and Crispinus making c. 125–128 highly probable; nothing later than c. 130 is secure.**