Military diploma

Roman Military Diploma is a kind document written on 2 ca. 10 x 15 cm bronze tablets, wired and sealed together through 2 central holes, so that the two inner sides cannot be read without breaking the seals. For examples see

It was a notarized copy of the original bronze constitution issued by the emperor in Rome, granting Roman citizenship to foreign veterans who had served for 25 years or more in the Roman auxiliary forces (Legionaries in contrast had to be Roman citizens as pre-requisite to joining military service). In addition to the veteran, his children also received citizenship, but not his wife. His marriage with her was however legalized under Roman law by granting him the conubium with one foreign wife, either the one he lived with when receiving the diploma, or a later one. From ca. 50 - 140 AD this included children born during the military service when the soldier was not formally allowed to have a female companion, after ca. 140 only children born after his military service were elegible.

The full text of the diploma is listed on the outer side of the so called tabula 1, the outer side of tabula 2 shows the names of 7 notaries and their seals covered and protected by metal strips. The same text as tabula 1 was repeated over the two inner sides. The idea was that if the outer text had possibly been manipulated, a provincial official far from the original in Rome, could break the seals, and compare the outer text with the presumably untouched inner text, that was actually considered as the primary copy.