This article is part of the series on: Military of ancient Rome (portal) 753 BC – AD 476 |
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Sarcina is a Latin word meaning a marching pack as carried by Roman Legionaries, the heavy infantry of the Roman legions.
Most of a legionary's equipment other than his arms and armour would, in early times, have been consigned to a baggage train and borne by mules and carts. Image of pack donkey on a Greek wine cup circa 480 BC, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
However, following the reforms of the Roman General Gaius Marius, the soldiers were expected to carry much of their rations and equipment themselves. This was done to reduce the size of the baggage train and increase the mobility of the army by allowing the soldiers to move strategically (i.e. quickly) independently of the train. Such was the load of the soldiers that they became known as Marius' Mules.
The appearance of the marching pack is known from illustrations on Trajan's Column. Here it can be seen that a legionary's sarcina was carried on a pole called a furca and would have included:
However, this was certainly not the limit of the soldiers load. Time and again, Roman writers emphasise the importance of soldiers being self-sufficient and not tied to the baggage train.
The 2nd century historian Appian of Alexandria records the actions of Scipio Aemilianus Africanus in late 3rd century BC. This was mainly with the objective of improving the morale of the soldiers, but it is also clear that the army is expected to be mobile:
The 1st century historian Josephus, recorded the items carried in his own time:
The 4th century writer Vegetius advises that:
Vegetius was not clear that the soldiers were required to carry these items personally, but we know that soldiers were required to carry entrenching tools (such as the dolabra) and turf cutters for the construction of a temporary camp at the end of each day's march. Probably a variety of tools and equipment was carried distributed among the members of a contubernium. They may also have carried baskets and one or more sudes (stakes).
There have been many attempts to reconstruct the sarcina and its component parts for historical reenactment.