★ A highly interesting military diploma mentioning the Roman legate whose career inspired the Gladiator movie ★

Antoninus Pius, 138-161. Military Diploma (Bronze, 42x88 mm, 11.18 g, 3 h), for an unknown auxiliary soldier stationed in Pannonia Inferior. M. Nonius Macrinus, legate, 151. W. Eck & A. Pangerl: Neue Diplomzeugnisse für die Truppen in den Donauprovinzen aus dem 2. Jh., in: Acta Musei Napocensis 55 (2018), pp. 34-38, 5 ( this piece ). A highly interesting diploma mentioning the legate M. Nonius Macrinus. Fragmentary, otherwise, extremely fine.

Obverse:
IMP CAES DIVI [HADRIANI F DIVI TRAIANI]
PARTHIC NEP D[IVI NERVAE PRON T AELI-]
VS HADRIANV[S ANTONINVS AVG PIVS PONT]
MAX TR POT X[IV IMP II COS IV P P]
EQVIT ET PEDIT [QVI MIL IN ALIS IV ET COH XI]
QVAE APPEL I [FL AVG BRIT | (miliaria) ET I THR VET]
ET I C R ET PR[AETOR C R ET I ALPIN]
EQV ET III BA[TAV | (miliaria) VEXILL ET I ALPINOR]
PEDIT ET I NOR[IC ET III LUSIT ET II ASTVR]
CALLAEC VII B[REVC ET I LUS ET II AVG]
THR ET I MONT[AN ET I AVG THRA C R]
ET SVNT IN PAN[NON INFER SVB NONIO]
MACR[I]NO LEG [QVINIS ET VICENIS PLVR]
[STIP EMERITIS ...]

Reverse:
IMP CAES DIVI H[ADRIANI F DIVI TRAIANI]
PARTH N DIV[I NERVAE PRONEP T AELI-]
VS HADRIAN ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P M]
TR POT XIV I[MP II COS IV P P]
EQ ET PED Q M IN A[LIS IV ET COH XI Q APP ...]

Like lot 2432, this is a constitution. Although the veteran's name is likewise lost, our fragment does mention another very interesting individual, namely the provincial legate, Nonius Macrinus, whose impressive marble tomb was discovered in Rome in 2008. This Nonius Macrinus, a native of Brescia, had a brilliant military and political career under the Antonines, serving as legate of Pannonia Inferior and Superior in the 150’s-early 160’s, consul suffectus in 154 and as proconsul of Asia in 170/1. Eventually, Nonius became part of Marcus Aurelius’ inner circle and accompanied the emperor during the Marcomannic Wars. The various details about his life even inspired Ridley Scott’s Gladiator (2000), as the life of the film’s protagonist, Maximus Decimus Meridius (played by Russel Crowe), is loosely based on the career of Nonius Macrinus. An important difference is that there is no evidence of a falling out between Nonius and Commodus. Instead, Nonius probably retired to his splendid villa in modern-day Toscolano Maderno, the ruins of which still stand to this day.