The Welfare Program that Fed a Million Romans [11:09]

--> YouTube-Generated Transcript <--
· Introduction
0:11 · At a time when the average city held only a few thousand people, Rome had a million inhabitants.
0:17 · The entire empire at its height may have had 70 million, which likely represented about a third
0:22 · of the global total. For centuries, in other words, something like one in seventy Romans,
0:28 · and one in two hundred human beings, lived in the city of Rome.
0:34 · Rome was far too large to be fed by its hinterland, or even by Italy. From
0:39 · the middle Republic to the final years of the Western Roman Empire, produce from every part
0:44 · of the Mediterranean Basin poured into the imperial city: olive oil, wine, fish sauce,
0:51 · and luxuries ranging from Indian pepper to hibernating land snails. By one estimate,
0:57 · annual imports of staple foods alone may have exceeded 400,000 metric tons. Of that figure,
1:04 · around half came in the form of the one indispensable part of every Roman's diet: grain.
· Grain, glorious grain
1:12 · The Ancient Greeks had divided food into two categories: bread, and things eaten with it. For
1:19 · the Romans, likewise, bread was part of virtually every meal. It has been estimated that the average
1:25 · Roman received three-quarters of his calories in the form of bread, and consumed something
1:31 · like 200 kilograms of grain each year. Ancient doctors noted that Roman children often developed
1:38 · bowed legs – a symptom of rickets, brought on by a diet that consisted of little but bread.
1:45 · Whenever possible, the Romans ate bread made from wheat. Although wheat was grown widely,
1:51 · only a few regions around the Mediterranean consistently produced surpluses large enough
1:56 · for export. Sicily, Sardinia, and North Africa – especially what are now Tunisia
2:03 · and eastern Algeria – all provided Rome with grain. But the great breadbasket,
2:09 · responsible for the majority of the wheat that fed the capital, was Egypt.
· Taxes and transport
2:14 · Most of the provincial grain shipped to Rome was collected as a tax. In Cicero's time, for example,
2:21 · a fifth of the Sicilian grain harvest was claimed by the government each year. Under the emperors,
2:27 · likewise, wheat farmers in Egypt and North Africa paid their rents in kind,
2:33 · as did the tenants of many imperial estates. Those who paid their taxes in
2:38 · wheat were responsible not only for threshing and winnowing it, but also for delivering it
2:43 · to a state-owned granary. From there, it was forwarded to the coast for transport to Italy.
2:50 · The barges that carried grain to Rome were the supertankers of the ancient world. At a time
2:56 · when the average freighter held about 100 tons of cargo, a large grain barge could carry 1,000
3:02 · tons or more. During the second century, the author Lucian saw one of these behemoths docked
3:07 · at Athens; it was, he says, 180 feet long and more than 45 feet at the beam – about the size,
3:16 · in other words, of a large ship of the line during the Napoleonic Wars.
· The voyage to Rome
3:22 · Although their cargoes were government property, grain barges were privately
3:26 · owned. To ensure a steady stream of deliveries, the emperors offered captains generous terms,
3:33 · especially if they were willing to sail in winter. St. Paul was on an
3:38 · Egyptian grain barge bound for Rome when an early winter gale shipwrecked him on Malta.
3:45 · Most of the Egyptian grain transports traveled together in a massive flotilla. The appearance
3:51 · of the fast mail ships in its vanguard was an annual cause for celebration at Puteoli,
3:57 · where the fleet docked through the first century.
4:00 · Later, after the emperors developed the vast artificial harbor at Portus,
4:04 · wheat from Egypt and the other grain-exporting provinces was landed at the mouth of the Tiber.
4:11 · When the grain arrived in Rome, it was stored in colossal warehouses.
4:15 · One of these, the imperially-owned Horrea Galbana,
4:19 · covered nearly 21,000 square meters. The Colosseum was only slightly larger.
4:25 · We'll discuss how this grain was distributed and the famous grain
4:28 · dole after a few words... [ad text redacted]
5:39 · Much of the wheat stored in Rome's warehouses would be dispensed through the famous grain
· The grain dole
5:44 · dole. The dole had been introduced in the last years of the Republic,
5:48 · when the radical tribune Clodius made grain – already subsidized by the government – free
5:53 · for many members of the Roman plebs. This policy was systematized and refined by
5:59 · Augustus and his successors. Eventually, olive oil, pork, and wine were added.
6:06 · Under the emperors, about 200,000 people – roughly a fifth of Rome's population – received free grain
6:13 · every month. Each recipient was given five modii (about 33 kg), enough to feed one adult. Far
6:21 · from being a sign of poverty, enrollment in the dole was seen as a status symbol,
6:26 · since only Roman citizens who were longtime residents of the capital were eligible. Some
6:31 · were so proud of being dole recipients that they inscribed the fact on their tombstones.
6:37 · An official list was kept of those on the dole. Everyone on the list received a token – the
6:43 · tessera frumentaria – which they had to present in order to receive their allotment of grain.
6:49 · Distribution took place at the Porticus Minucia on the Campus Martius. Dole recipients presented
6:55 · their token at one of 44 windows on a designated day of the month. The epitaph of one Roman boy,
7:03 · for example, records that he received grain on the tenth day at Window 39.
7:10 · Until the third century, those on the dole brought their grain to bakers to be milled
· Millers and bakers
7:15 · and baked. The tomb of Eurysaces, who grew rich turning state-supplied wheat into bread,
7:21 · can still be seen just outside the Porta Maggiore. Under Septimius Severus, the state assumed the
7:28 · tasks of milling and baking. Water-power grain mills were set up at strategic points in the
7:34 · aqueduct system, and daily distributions of bread replaced monthly handouts of grain.
· State subsidies
7:40 · Although only a minority of Rome's inhabitants were enrolled in the dole,
7:44 · all benefitted from government measures intended to keep grain cheap. In times of crisis,
7:50 · the emperors set maximum prices, limited the quantities that individuals could buy,
7:55 · and increased the amount dispensed by the dole. More generally,
7:59 · imperial officials tried to keep bread abundant and affordable by supervising the activities
8:04 · of shippers and bakers. They also released state grain onto the free market at subsidized prices.
8:12 · The government controlled the grain market so closely because it had to. Any increase in the
8:17 · price of grain threatened the hundreds of thousands who were not on the dole
8:21 · with deprivation, or even starvation. Bread riots were a chronic problem. In
8:27 · 75 BC, a hungry mob threatened to lynch the consuls. More than a century later,
8:33 · another mob pelted Claudius with stale crusts.
8:37 · Besides preventing unrest in their capital, the government subsidized the grain market as a way of
· Imperial ideology
8:42 · confirming Rome's status. Directing the surpluses of the whole Mediterranean world to feed a single
8:48 · city was a way of performing imperial power. It was also a way of demonstrating the special status
8:55 · of the Roman people. Under the Republic, and for three centuries after Augustus, Rome was the only
9:01 · conceivable center of the empire. Its inhabitants had a privileged place, and tradition obligated
9:08 · the emperors to show them special favor. Making bread cheap or free was the best way to do this.
9:15 · The goddess Annona, who personified the grain supply,
9:18 · appeared on imperial coins. Frequently, she was pictured with the prow of a ship,
9:23 · signifying the emperors' role in importing grain from distant provinces.
9:28 · Despite the massive expense of maintaining it, the grain dole survived well into late antiquity.
· Legacies
9:34 · At Constantinople – where a system modeled on Rome's was established by Constantine – the dole
9:40 · persisted until the Persians conquered Egypt. Rome's own dole, ended by the Vandal occupation
9:46 · of North Africa, was revived after the fall of the Western Empire by the Gothic king Theoderic,
9:52 · who understood that being a successor of the emperors meant feeding Rome.
9:59 · You can join me in Rome this June, when I'm leading a tour... [ad text redacted]
10:33 · ...Thanks for watching.
·

Discover the incredible story of Apion, a Roman marine of Egyptian descent, through a letter he wrote over 1800 years ago. Preserved by the dry Egyptian desert, this ancient Roman letter gives us a rare and personal glimpse into daily life, military service, and family relationships in the Roman Empire.

Apion, later known by his Roman name Antonius Maximus, served in Misenum, an Italian naval base. In this letter, he writes to his father Epimachus, expressing gratitude, discussing his survival at sea, and even mentioning a military sign-on bonus of three gold coins! His devotion to his patron god Serapis, his reflections on his career, and his later letters to his sister Sabina paint a vivid picture of life in the Roman military.
A Roman Marine's Letter from 1800 Years Ago | 6:28
TopRomanFacts | 18.1K subscribers | 28,901 views | February 3, 2025

--> YouTube-Generated Transcript <--
0:00 · this is a letter written by a Roman
0:01 · Marine over 1,800 years ago it was
0:04 · preserved by the dry heat of the
0:06 · Egyptian desert and is perfectly legible
0:08 · today it was written by apion a Roman of
0:11 · Egyptian descent he was a Marine in myum
0:14 · which was an Italian Naval base and he
0:16 · sent this letter back to Egypt via the
0:18 · military Postal Service It Was Written
0:20 · in Greek which was the linga Franco of
0:22 · the Eastern Mediterranean at the time
0:24 · now you're about to hear what appion
0:26 · wrote over 18800 years ago to his father
0:29 · appion to epimachus his father and Lord
0:32 · very many greetings before all else I
0:35 · pray for your health and that you may
0:37 · always be well and prosperous together
0:39 · with my sister her daughter and my
0:41 · brother thank the Lord carpus that when
0:43 · I was in danger at Sea he straight away
0:45 · saved me on arriving at my scum I
0:47 · received from the emperor three gold
0:49 · pieces for traveling expenses and it was
0:51 · well with me now I ask you my lord and
0:53 · father write me a letter telling me
0:55 · first of your welfare second of how my
0:57 · brother and sister are doing and third
0:59 · that am I devoutly greet your hand
1:01 · because you educated me well and I hope
1:03 · thereby to have quick advancement if the
1:06 · gods so will give my salutations to
1:08 · capiton my brother my sister sanilla and
1:12 · my friends I have sent you a portrait of
1:14 · Myself by the way of UK teon my new
1:17 · Roman name is Antonius Maximus and my
1:20 · ship is called the athenon I pray for
1:23 · your health one of the most striking
1:25 · elements about this letter is just how
1:27 · much gratitude Aon shows towards his
1:29 · father maos and how devot religious he
1:32 · is especially towards his Patron God
1:35 · carapus I mean Aion seems so grateful at
1:37 · the prospect of receiving a letter from
1:39 · his father carapus is a really
1:41 · interesting deity he was worshiped
1:43 · primarily by Greeks who lived in
1:45 · Northern Egypt and he was a sort of
1:47 · mixture of the Egyptian gods Osiris and
1:49 · AIS he talks about receiving three gold
1:52 · pieces from the Emperor as a traveling
1:54 · expense and this can sort of be seen as
1:56 · a signing on bonus it's really hard to
1:58 · put into words just how much money these
2:00 · three gold pieces would have been worth
2:03 · but I'm going to give it a go if Aon
2:04 · took one of these gold pieces known as
2:06 · an alas down to the Local Tavern he
2:09 · could get about 300 pints of beer he
2:12 · could live it quite large indeed but as
2:14 · we're going to find out from one of his
2:16 · later letters he decides instead to
2:19 · build a family with this money instead
2:20 · of going down the tavern good for appion
2:23 · so appion is a marine based at myum now
2:25 · we might think that being a marine is
2:27 · quite glamorous but in Roman times it
2:29 · really wasn't it was the Bottom Rung of
2:31 · the Roman military you really didn't
2:33 · want to be a marine and yet appion seems
2:36 · really grateful for the opportunity he
2:38 · received instead of gloriously fighting
2:40 · from boats Marines were responsible for
2:42 · things like building boats uh cleaning
2:45 · roadways doing some real grubby manual
2:48 · labor not the Glorious fighting that you
2:50 · might expect so appon did include a
2:52 · portrait with his letter sent via the
2:54 · military post service but unfortunately
2:56 · we don't have this preserved the example
2:58 · I showed you was from something called
3:00 · The fiam Mummy portraits these portraits
3:02 · were placed on sarcophagy of Egyptian
3:05 · mummies I say Egyptian but actually
3:07 · they're more like Greco Egyptians
3:09 · because the region where these were
3:10 · found was primarily inhabited by Greeks
3:13 · who had conquered Egypt many centuries
3:15 · prior at the end of the letter appion
3:18 · says that he has a new Roman name which
3:20 · suggests that he was made a citizen
3:22 · Antonius Maximus or big Tony as we'd
3:25 · probably call him today in New York was
3:27 · his new Roman name and this shows one
3:29 · really interesting point the appion
3:31 · although he is from Egypt and he's of
3:33 · Greek descent he really is proud of his
3:36 · new Roman identity he's proud of it so
3:38 · much so even though he was at the Bottom
3:41 · Rung of the Roman military as a marine
3:43 · that's quite something if we look at the
3:45 · back of the letter we can actually see
3:46 · who this is addressed to so it says two
3:48 · epim makas from his son appion and the
3:51 · address is Philadelphia which isn't just
3:54 · a city in the United States it was
3:56 · originally a Greek city in Egypt but
3:58 · there's something really interesting the
4:00 · second line here it says deliver at the
4:02 · camp of the first cohort of the appaman
4:04 · to julianis Vice secretary this letter
4:07 · from appion to be forwarded to his
4:09 · father epimachus the reason this is
4:12 · interesting is because you were not
4:14 · allowed to use the military postal
4:16 · service for personal correspondence that
4:18 · was considered a nogo so many historians
4:21 · have debated what this line actually
4:22 · means some people think that julianus
4:24 · was a friend of epimachus and that he
4:26 · could Grease the wheels of the military
4:28 · Postal Service but no one will ever know
4:30 · for certain how appon was able to send a
4:33 · personal letter via the military Postal
4:35 · Service luckily we have quite a few of
4:37 · these Papyrus letters that do survive
4:39 · but amazingly we have two from appion
4:43 · this time he doesn't use his Greek name
4:44 · appion he uses exclusively his Roman
4:47 · name so here is a second letter from
4:50 · apion the Roman Marine over 18800 years
4:54 · ago Antonius Maximus to his sister
4:57 · Sabina many greetings
4:59 · or else I pray that you are healthy for
5:01 · I myself are well making mention of you
5:04 · before the gods here I received a little
5:06 · letter from antoninus our fellow Citizen
5:10 · and when I learned that you were well I
5:11 · rejoiced much and I do not hesitate to
5:14 · write to you about my welfare and that
5:16 · of my family at every opportunity greet
5:19 · Maximus and copre my Lord my spouse
5:21 · alidia greets you and so does Maximus my
5:25 · son whose birthday is on the 13th of 5
5:28 · according to Greek Reckoning
5:30 · as well as elpis and Fortuna greet my
5:32 · Lord I pray that you may be well this
5:35 · letter is addressed to his sister Sabina
5:38 · from her brother Antonius Maximus it's
5:41 · simply amazing how we have this family
5:42 · correspondence from appion to his family
5:45 · all the way in Egypt he has a wife now
5:47 · and a son and he regularly updates his
5:49 · sister about them if you're curious
5:51 · about maximus's birthday a p is probably
5:54 · around July so I hope you enjoyed
5:56 · hearing the words of apion 18800 years
5:59 · after he wrote wrote them this is really
6:01 · interesting because we know that people
6:02 · in the past were just like us but
6:04 · letters like this prove that they
6:06 · thought about things like their family
6:08 · their gods and their job and career
6:11 · prospects just like we do today

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

--> YouTube-Generated Transcript <--
	·	Introduction
0:11	·	At a time when the average city held only a few thousand people, Rome had a million inhabitants.
0:17	·	The entire empire at its height may have had 70 million, which likely represented about a third
0:22	·	of the global total. For centuries, in other words, something like one in seventy Romans,
0:28	·	and one in two hundred human beings, lived in the city of Rome.
0:34	·	Rome was far too large to be fed by its hinterland, or even by Italy. From
0:39	·	the middle Republic to the final years of the Western Roman Empire, produce from every part
0:44	·	of the Mediterranean Basin poured into the imperial city: olive oil, wine, fish sauce,
0:51	·	and luxuries ranging from Indian pepper to hibernating land snails. By one estimate,
0:57	·	annual imports of staple foods alone may have exceeded 400,000 metric tons. Of that figure,
1:04	·	around half came in the form of the one indispensable part of every Roman's diet: grain.
	·	Grain, glorious grain
1:12	·	The Ancient Greeks had divided food into two categories: bread, and things eaten with it. For
1:19	·	the Romans, likewise, bread was part of virtually every meal. It has been estimated that the average
1:25	·	Roman received three-quarters of his calories in the form of bread, and consumed something
1:31	·	like 200 kilograms of grain each year. Ancient doctors noted that Roman children often developed
1:38	·	bowed legs – a symptom of rickets, brought on by a diet that consisted of little but bread.
1:45	·	Whenever possible, the Romans ate bread made from wheat. Although wheat was grown widely,
1:51	·	only a few regions around the Mediterranean consistently produced surpluses large enough
1:56	·	for export. Sicily, Sardinia, and North Africa – especially what are now Tunisia
2:03	·	and eastern Algeria – all provided Rome with grain. But the great breadbasket,
2:09	·	responsible for the majority of the wheat that fed the capital, was Egypt.
	·	Taxes and transport
2:14	·	Most of the provincial grain shipped to Rome was collected as a tax. In Cicero's time, for example,
2:21	·	a fifth of the Sicilian grain harvest was claimed by the government each year. Under the emperors,
2:27	·	likewise, wheat farmers in Egypt and North Africa paid their rents in kind,
2:33	·	as did the tenants of many imperial estates. Those who paid their taxes in
2:38	·	wheat were responsible not only for threshing and winnowing it, but also for delivering it
2:43	·	to a state-owned granary. From there, it was forwarded to the coast for transport to Italy.
2:50	·	The barges that carried grain to Rome were the supertankers of the ancient world. At a time
2:56	·	when the average freighter held about 100 tons of cargo, a large grain barge could carry 1,000
3:02	·	tons or more. During the second century, the author Lucian saw one of these behemoths docked
3:07	·	at Athens; it was, he says, 180 feet long and more than 45 feet at the beam – about the size,
3:16	·	in other words, of a large ship of the line during the Napoleonic Wars.
	·	The voyage to Rome
3:22	·	Although their cargoes were government property, grain barges were privately
3:26	·	owned. To ensure a steady stream of deliveries, the emperors offered captains generous terms,
3:33	·	especially if they were willing to sail in winter. St. Paul was on an
3:38	·	Egyptian grain barge bound for Rome when an early winter gale shipwrecked him on Malta.
3:45	·	Most of the Egyptian grain transports traveled together in a massive flotilla. The appearance
3:51	·	of the fast mail ships in its vanguard was an annual cause for celebration at Puteoli,
3:57	·	where the fleet docked through the first century.
4:00	·	Later, after the emperors developed the vast artificial harbor at Portus,
4:04	·	wheat from Egypt and the other grain-exporting provinces was landed at the mouth of the Tiber.
4:11	·	When the grain arrived in Rome, it was stored in colossal warehouses.
4:15	·	One of these, the imperially-owned Horrea Galbana,
4:19	·	covered nearly 21,000 square meters. The Colosseum was only slightly larger.
4:25	·	We'll discuss how this grain was distributed and the famous grain
4:28	·	dole after a few words... [ad text redacted]
5:39	·	Much of the wheat stored in Rome's warehouses would be dispensed through the famous grain
	·	The grain dole
5:44	·	dole. The dole had been introduced in the last years of the Republic,
5:48	·	when the radical tribune Clodius made grain – already subsidized by the government – free
5:53	·	for many members of the Roman plebs. This policy was systematized and refined by
5:59	·	Augustus and his successors. Eventually, olive oil, pork, and wine were added.
6:06	·	Under the emperors, about 200,000 people – roughly a fifth of Rome's population – received free grain
6:13	·	every month. Each recipient was given five modii (about 33 kg), enough to feed one adult. Far
6:21	·	from being a sign of poverty, enrollment in the dole was seen as a status symbol,
6:26	·	since only Roman citizens who were longtime residents of the capital were eligible. Some
6:31	·	were so proud of being dole recipients that they inscribed the fact on their tombstones.
6:37	·	An official list was kept of those on the dole. Everyone on the list received a token – the
6:43	·	tessera frumentaria – which they had to present in order to receive their allotment of grain.
6:49	·	Distribution took place at the Porticus Minucia on the Campus Martius. Dole recipients presented
6:55	·	their token at one of 44 windows on a designated day of the month. The epitaph of one Roman boy,
7:03	·	for example, records that he received grain on the tenth day at Window 39.
7:10	·	Until the third century, those on the dole brought their grain to bakers to be milled
	·	Millers and bakers
7:15	·	and baked. The tomb of Eurysaces, who grew rich turning state-supplied wheat into bread,
7:21	·	can still be seen just outside the Porta Maggiore. Under Septimius Severus, the state assumed the
7:28	·	tasks of milling and baking. Water-power grain mills were set up at strategic points in the
7:34	·	aqueduct system, and daily distributions of bread replaced monthly handouts of grain.
	·	State subsidies
7:40	·	Although only a minority of Rome's inhabitants were enrolled in the dole,
7:44	·	all benefitted from government measures intended to keep grain cheap. In times of crisis,
7:50	·	the emperors set maximum prices, limited the quantities that individuals could buy,
7:55	·	and increased the amount dispensed by the dole. More generally,
7:59	·	imperial officials tried to keep bread abundant and affordable by supervising the activities
8:04	·	of shippers and bakers. They also released state grain onto the free market at subsidized prices.
8:12	·	The government controlled the grain market so closely because it had to. Any increase in the
8:17	·	price of grain threatened the hundreds of thousands who were not on the dole
8:21	·	with deprivation, or even starvation. Bread riots were a chronic problem. In
8:27	·	75 BC, a hungry mob threatened to lynch the consuls. More than a century later,
8:33	·	another mob pelted Claudius with stale crusts.
8:37	·	Besides preventing unrest in their capital, the government subsidized the grain market as a way of
	·	Imperial ideology
8:42	·	confirming Rome's status. Directing the surpluses of the whole Mediterranean world to feed a single
8:48	·	city was a way of performing imperial power. It was also a way of demonstrating the special status
8:55	·	of the Roman people. Under the Republic, and for three centuries after Augustus, Rome was the only
9:01	·	conceivable center of the empire. Its inhabitants had a privileged place, and tradition obligated
9:08	·	the emperors to show them special favor. Making bread cheap or free was the best way to do this.
9:15	·	The goddess Annona, who personified the grain supply,
9:18	·	appeared on imperial coins. Frequently, she was pictured with the prow of a ship,
9:23	·	signifying the emperors' role in importing grain from distant provinces.
9:28	·	Despite the massive expense of maintaining it, the grain dole survived well into late antiquity.
	·	Legacies
9:34	·	At Constantinople – where a system modeled on Rome's was established by Constantine – the dole
9:40	·	persisted until the Persians conquered Egypt. Rome's own dole, ended by the Vandal occupation
9:46	·	of North Africa, was revived after the fall of the Western Empire by the Gothic king Theoderic,
9:52	·	who understood that being a successor of the emperors meant feeding Rome.
9:59	·	You can join me in Rome this June, when I'm leading a tour... [ad text redacted]
10:33	·	...Thanks for watching.
	·

--> YouTube-Generated Transcript <--
0:00	·	this is a letter written by a Roman
0:01	·	Marine over 1,800 years ago it was
0:04	·	preserved by the dry heat of the
0:06	·	Egyptian desert and is perfectly legible
0:08	·	today it was written by apion a Roman of
0:11	·	Egyptian descent he was a Marine in myum
0:14	·	which was an Italian Naval base and he
0:16	·	sent this letter back to Egypt via the
0:18	·	military Postal Service It Was Written
0:20	·	in Greek which was the linga Franco of
0:22	·	the Eastern Mediterranean at the time
0:24	·	now you're about to hear what appion
0:26	·	wrote over 18800 years ago to his father
0:29	·	appion to epimachus his father and Lord
0:32	·	very many greetings before all else I
0:35	·	pray for your health and that you may
0:37	·	always be well and prosperous together
0:39	·	with my sister her daughter and my
0:41	·	brother thank the Lord carpus that when
0:43	·	I was in danger at Sea he straight away
0:45	·	saved me on arriving at my scum I
0:47	·	received from the emperor three gold
0:49	·	pieces for traveling expenses and it was
0:51	·	well with me now I ask you my lord and
0:53	·	father write me a letter telling me
0:55	·	first of your welfare second of how my
0:57	·	brother and sister are doing and third
0:59	·	that am I devoutly greet your hand
1:01	·	because you educated me well and I hope
1:03	·	thereby to have quick advancement if the
1:06	·	gods so will give my salutations to
1:08	·	capiton my brother my sister sanilla and
1:12	·	my friends I have sent you a portrait of
1:14	·	Myself by the way of UK teon my new
1:17	·	Roman name is Antonius Maximus and my
1:20	·	ship is called the athenon I pray for
1:23	·	your health one of the most striking
1:25	·	elements about this letter is just how
1:27	·	much gratitude Aon shows towards his
1:29	·	father maos and how devot religious he
1:32	·	is especially towards his Patron God
1:35	·	carapus I mean Aion seems so grateful at
1:37	·	the prospect of receiving a letter from
1:39	·	his father carapus is a really
1:41	·	interesting deity he was worshiped
1:43	·	primarily by Greeks who lived in
1:45	·	Northern Egypt and he was a sort of
1:47	·	mixture of the Egyptian gods Osiris and
1:49	·	AIS he talks about receiving three gold
1:52	·	pieces from the Emperor as a traveling
1:54	·	expense and this can sort of be seen as
1:56	·	a signing on bonus it's really hard to
1:58	·	put into words just how much money these
2:00	·	three gold pieces would have been worth
2:03	·	but I'm going to give it a go if Aon
2:04	·	took one of these gold pieces known as
2:06	·	an alas down to the Local Tavern he
2:09	·	could get about 300 pints of beer he
2:12	·	could live it quite large indeed but as
2:14	·	we're going to find out from one of his
2:16	·	later letters he decides instead to
2:19	·	build a family with this money instead
2:20	·	of going down the tavern good for appion
2:23	·	so appion is a marine based at myum now
2:25	·	we might think that being a marine is
2:27	·	quite glamorous but in Roman times it
2:29	·	really wasn't it was the Bottom Rung of
2:31	·	the Roman military you really didn't
2:33	·	want to be a marine and yet appion seems
2:36	·	really grateful for the opportunity he
2:38	·	received instead of gloriously fighting
2:40	·	from boats Marines were responsible for
2:42	·	things like building boats uh cleaning
2:45	·	roadways doing some real grubby manual
2:48	·	labor not the Glorious fighting that you
2:50	·	might expect so appon did include a
2:52	·	portrait with his letter sent via the
2:54	·	military post service but unfortunately
2:56	·	we don't have this preserved the example
2:58	·	I showed you was from something called
3:00	·	The fiam Mummy portraits these portraits
3:02	·	were placed on sarcophagy of Egyptian
3:05	·	mummies I say Egyptian but actually
3:07	·	they're more like Greco Egyptians
3:09	·	because the region where these were
3:10	·	found was primarily inhabited by Greeks
3:13	·	who had conquered Egypt many centuries
3:15	·	prior at the end of the letter appion
3:18	·	says that he has a new Roman name which
3:20	·	suggests that he was made a citizen
3:22	·	Antonius Maximus or big Tony as we'd
3:25	·	probably call him today in New York was
3:27	·	his new Roman name and this shows one
3:29	·	really interesting point the appion
3:31	·	although he is from Egypt and he's of
3:33	·	Greek descent he really is proud of his
3:36	·	new Roman identity he's proud of it so
3:38	·	much so even though he was at the Bottom
3:41	·	Rung of the Roman military as a marine
3:43	·	that's quite something if we look at the
3:45	·	back of the letter we can actually see
3:46	·	who this is addressed to so it says two
3:48	·	epim makas from his son appion and the
3:51	·	address is Philadelphia which isn't just
3:54	·	a city in the United States it was
3:56	·	originally a Greek city in Egypt but
3:58	·	there's something really interesting the
4:00	·	second line here it says deliver at the
4:02	·	camp of the first cohort of the appaman
4:04	·	to julianis Vice secretary this letter
4:07	·	from appion to be forwarded to his
4:09	·	father epimachus the reason this is
4:12	·	interesting is because you were not
4:14	·	allowed to use the military postal
4:16	·	service for personal correspondence that
4:18	·	was considered a nogo so many historians
4:21	·	have debated what this line actually
4:22	·	means some people think that julianus
4:24	·	was a friend of epimachus and that he
4:26	·	could Grease the wheels of the military
4:28	·	Postal Service but no one will ever know
4:30	·	for certain how appon was able to send a
4:33	·	personal letter via the military Postal
4:35	·	Service luckily we have quite a few of
4:37	·	these Papyrus letters that do survive
4:39	·	but amazingly we have two from appion
4:43	·	this time he doesn't use his Greek name
4:44	·	appion he uses exclusively his Roman
4:47	·	name so here is a second letter from
4:50	·	apion the Roman Marine over 18800 years
4:54	·	ago Antonius Maximus to his sister
4:57	·	Sabina many greetings
4:59	·	or else I pray that you are healthy for
5:01	·	I myself are well making mention of you
5:04	·	before the gods here I received a little
5:06	·	letter from antoninus our fellow Citizen
5:10	·	and when I learned that you were well I
5:11	·	rejoiced much and I do not hesitate to
5:14	·	write to you about my welfare and that
5:16	·	of my family at every opportunity greet
5:19	·	Maximus and copre my Lord my spouse
5:21	·	alidia greets you and so does Maximus my
5:25	·	son whose birthday is on the 13th of 5
5:28	·	according to Greek Reckoning
5:30	·	as well as elpis and Fortuna greet my
5:32	·	Lord I pray that you may be well this
5:35	·	letter is addressed to his sister Sabina
5:38	·	from her brother Antonius Maximus it's
5:41	·	simply amazing how we have this family
5:42	·	correspondence from appion to his family
5:45	·	all the way in Egypt he has a wife now
5:47	·	and a son and he regularly updates his
5:49	·	sister about them if you're curious
5:51	·	about maximus's birthday a p is probably
5:54	·	around July so I hope you enjoyed
5:56	·	hearing the words of apion 18800 years
5:59	·	after he wrote wrote them this is really
6:01	·	interesting because we know that people
6:02	·	in the past were just like us but
6:04	·	letters like this prove that they
6:06	·	thought about things like their family
6:08	·	their gods and their job and career
6:11	·	prospects just like we do today