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<p>[QUOTE="Gavin Richardson, post: 2719363, member: 83956"]Thanks for the comments about signaling towers. My thinking was that the campgate and signaling tower were not mutually exclusive interpretations, and that signalling towers would be incorporated into larger defensive structures like a city wall / campgate fortification. This is what I have in the draft on the matter: "Indeed, the campgate dominates the Constantinian coinage of the 320s A.D., though 'Providentiae Avgg,' the 'foresight of the augusti' would replace <i>virtus militum</i> as the reverse legend of choice. The precise meaning of this legend is debatable today, but some classical numismatists believe that the 'turrets' that appear at the top of these numismatic campgates are actually signal fires that would quite literally give emperors the foresight they need to protect Roman citizens from barbarians on the move."</p><p><br /></p><p>I've just skimmed that very rich <i>Celator </i>article by Murray Dahm; thank you for the link [USER=56859]@TIF[/USER] . Dahm's suggestion is that <i>Providentiae Avgg </i>and the reverse image constitute a celebration of a new and improved signalling system for the security of the empire. He also discerns an element of competition between Licinius and Constantine here. It's a great article that answers several questions while prompting others.</p><p><br /></p><p>I <i>do </i>want to go where the research takes me; perhaps the general sociological parallel I have in mind is untenable. It works better if that reverse motif is part of a larger border fortification rather than a freestanding structure, but the latter may indeed be the case. I welcome further opinions on the matter.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="Gavin Richardson, post: 2719363, member: 83956"]Thanks for the comments about signaling towers. My thinking was that the campgate and signaling tower were not mutually exclusive interpretations, and that signalling towers would be incorporated into larger defensive structures like a city wall / campgate fortification. This is what I have in the draft on the matter: "Indeed, the campgate dominates the Constantinian coinage of the 320s A.D., though 'Providentiae Avgg,' the 'foresight of the augusti' would replace [I]virtus militum[/I] as the reverse legend of choice. The precise meaning of this legend is debatable today, but some classical numismatists believe that the 'turrets' that appear at the top of these numismatic campgates are actually signal fires that would quite literally give emperors the foresight they need to protect Roman citizens from barbarians on the move." I've just skimmed that very rich [I]Celator [/I]article by Murray Dahm; thank you for the link [USER=56859]@TIF[/USER] . Dahm's suggestion is that [I]Providentiae Avgg [/I]and the reverse image constitute a celebration of a new and improved signalling system for the security of the empire. He also discerns an element of competition between Licinius and Constantine here. It's a great article that answers several questions while prompting others. I [I]do [/I]want to go where the research takes me; perhaps the general sociological parallel I have in mind is untenable. It works better if that reverse motif is part of a larger border fortification rather than a freestanding structure, but the latter may indeed be the case. I welcome further opinions on the matter.[/QUOTE]
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