Description:
Panel (w: 1.04 x h: 0.57 x d: 0.19) of grey-brown limestone 
Text:
Inscribed within a moulded border (die, w: 0.90 x h: 0.44).  
Letters:
Capitals: ll. 1-3 (lapidary), 0.055; ll. 4-9 (simple capitals), 0.035.  
Date:
222-235 A.D. (reign) 
Findspot:
Wadi Zemzem: Gheriat el-Garbia (map ref. A 579) 
Original Location:
Unknown 
Last recorded location:
Tripoli Castle. 
Bibliography:
Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum, VIII:3. This edition taken from J. M. Reynolds and J. B. Ward-Perkins, The Inscriptions of Roman Tripolitania, Rome: British School at Rome, 1952.  
Text constituted from:
Transcription (Reynolds, Ward-Perkins) 
Imp(eratori) Caes(ari) M(arco) Aurel(io)
Seue[r]o 〚[Alexandr]o〛
Piọ F̣e[l]ịc[i] Aug(usto) 〚[et Iuliae]
[Mamaeae Augustae matri Aug(usti)]〛 et cas-
5ṭṛọṛum M(arcus) A[·· c. 20··]
〚[c(enturio) leg(ionis) III Aug(ustae) p(iae) u(indicis)]〛 〚Ṣ[e]u〛erian(a)e p̣r(a)epo-
situs uex[ill]ationis leg(ionis) eius-
dem burgum [a] solo per eandem
uexillationem instituit
IMPCAESMAVREL
SEVE[··]O〚[·········]O〛
PI··E[··]·C[··]AVG〚[··········]
[·······················]〛ETCAS
5····VMMA[·· c. 20··]
〚[··]〛〚·[··]V〛ERIANE·REPO
SITVSVEX[····]ATIONISLEGEIVS
DEMBVRGVM[··]SOLOPEREANDEM
VEXILLATIONEMINSTITVIT
<ab>
<lb n="1" />
<expan>
<abbr>
Imp
</abbr>
<ex>
eratori
</ex>
</expan>
<expan>
<abbr>
Caes
</abbr>
<ex>
ari
</ex>
</expan>
<expan>
<abbr>
M
</abbr>
<ex>
arco
</ex>
</expan>
<expan>
<abbr>
Aurel
</abbr>
<ex>
io
</ex>
</expan>
<lb n="2" />
Seue
<supplied reason="lost" >
r
</supplied>
o
<del>
<supplied reason="lost" >
Alexandr
</supplied>
o
</del>
<lb n="3" />
Pi
<unclear reason="" >
o
</unclear>
<unclear reason="" >
F
</unclear>
e
<supplied reason="lost" >
l
</supplied>
<unclear reason="" >
i
</unclear>
c
<supplied reason="lost" >
i
</supplied>
<expan>
<abbr>
Aug
</abbr>
<ex>
usto
</ex>
</expan>
<del>
<supplied reason="lost" >
et
</supplied>
<supplied reason="lost" >
Iuliae
</supplied>
<lb n="4" />
<supplied reason="lost" >
Mamaeae
Augustae
</supplied>
<supplied reason="lost" >
matri
<expan>
<abbr>
Aug
</abbr>
<ex>
usti
</ex>
</expan>
</supplied>
</del>
et
cas
<lb n="5" type="worddiv" />
<unclear reason="" >
tror
</unclear>
um
<expan>
<abbr>
M
</abbr>
<ex>
arcus
</ex>
</expan>
A
<gap reason="lost" extent="20" unit="character" precision="circa" />
<lb n="6" />
<del>
<supplied reason="lost" >
<expan>
<abbr>
c
</abbr>
<ex>
enturio
</ex>
</expan>
<expan>
<abbr>
leg
</abbr>
<ex>
ionis
</ex>
</expan>
<num value="3" >
III
</num>
<expan>
<abbr>
Aug
</abbr>
<ex>
ustae
</ex>
</expan>
<expan>
<abbr>
p
</abbr>
<ex>
iae
</ex>
</expan>
<expan>
<abbr>
u
</abbr>
<ex>
indicis
</ex>
</expan>
</supplied>
</del>
<expan>
<abbr>
<del>
<unclear reason="" >
S
</unclear>
<supplied reason="lost" >
e
</supplied>
u
</del>
erian
</abbr>
<ex>
a
</ex>
<abbr>
e
</abbr>
</expan>
<expan>
<abbr>
<unclear reason="" >
p
</unclear>
r
</abbr>
<ex>
a
</ex>
<abbr>
epo
<lb n="7" type="worddiv" />
situs
</abbr>
</expan>
uex
<supplied reason="lost" >
ill
</supplied>
ationis
<expan>
<abbr>
leg
</abbr>
<ex>
ionis
</ex>
</expan>
eius
<lb n="8" type="worddiv" />
dem
burgum
<supplied reason="lost" >
a
</supplied>
solo
per
eandem
<lb n="9" />
uexillationem
instituit
</ab>

Translation:

To emperor Caesar Marcus Aurelius Severus [Alexander] (erased) Pius Felis Augustus [and Julia Mamaea Augusta, mother of Augustus] (erased) and of the camps. Marcus A[·· ? ·· centurion of Legion III Augusta pia vindex (erased) Sev]eriana, placed in command of the detachment of the same legion, built the fort from its foundations, using the same detachment.

Commentary:

ll. 1, 3-4. Erased after Alexander's damnatio in 235.

l.6. It is not certain whether the erasure of the name of the legion is deliberate and is to be attributed to its damnatio in 238.

Photographs:

Ward-Perkins Archive, BSR (Sopr. DTV 679 Leica)
 Ward-Perkins Archive, BSR (Sopr. DTV 679 Leica)
Ward-Perkins Archive, BSR (BSR 48.II.23)
 Ward-Perkins Archive, BSR (BSR 48.II.23)
Ward-Perkins Archive, BSR (BSR 48.II.24)
 Ward-Perkins Archive, BSR (BSR 48.II.24)

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