Numonius Vala
Encyclopedia
Numonius Vala was an Ancient Roman
family name (nomen and cognomen
). Several notable bearers of that name are known.
C. Numonius Vala is known only from coins, from which it appears that he had obtained renown by storming a vallum
, and had hence obtained the surname of Vala, which, according to the usual custom, became hereditary in his family. The coins were struck by one of his descendants in commemoration of the exploit. The one pictured here has on the obverse the head of Numonius, with the inscription C. NVMONIVS VAALA, and on the reverse a man storming the vallum of a camp, which is defended by two others, with the inscription VAALA. Vaala is an ancient form of Vala, just as on the coins of Sulla we find Feelix instead of Felix.
addresses one of his Epistles (i. 15), appears to have had estates in the neighbourhood of Velia
and Salernum, since the poet makes inquiries of Vala about the climate of those places, as he intended to pass the winter in one of them. As this poem was probably written about 22 BC
, the friend of Horace was most likely the father of the Numonius Vala below, if not the same person.
of Publius Quinctilius Varus
in 9 AD. He left the infantry when they were attacked by the enemy in the fatal Battle of the Teutoburg Forest
and fled with the cavalry to the Rhine, but was overtaken in his flight and slain.
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
family name (nomen and cognomen
Roman naming conventions
By the Republican era and throughout the Imperial era, a name in ancient Rome for a male citizen consisted of three parts : praenomen , nomen and cognomen...
). Several notable bearers of that name are known.
C. Numonius Vala
Vallum
Vallum is a term applied either to the whole or a portion of the fortifications of a Roman camp. The vallum usually comprised an earthen or turf rampart with a wooden palisade on top, with a deep outer ditch...
, and had hence obtained the surname of Vala, which, according to the usual custom, became hereditary in his family. The coins were struck by one of his descendants in commemoration of the exploit. The one pictured here has on the obverse the head of Numonius, with the inscription C. NVMONIVS VAALA, and on the reverse a man storming the vallum of a camp, which is defended by two others, with the inscription VAALA. Vaala is an ancient form of Vala, just as on the coins of Sulla we find Feelix instead of Felix.
Numonius Vala of the Epistles
Numonius Vala, to whom HoraceHorace
Quintus Horatius Flaccus , known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus.-Life:...
addresses one of his Epistles (i. 15), appears to have had estates in the neighbourhood of Velia
Velia
Velia is the Italian name of the ancient town of Elea located on the territory of the comune of Ascea, Salerno, Campania, Italy in a geographical sub-area named Cilento...
and Salernum, since the poet makes inquiries of Vala about the climate of those places, as he intended to pass the winter in one of them. As this poem was probably written about 22 BC
22 BC
Year 22 BC was either a common year starting on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday or a leap year starting on Sunday or Saturday of the Julian calendar and a common year starting on Saturday of the Proleptic Julian calendar...
, the friend of Horace was most likely the father of the Numonius Vala below, if not the same person.
Numonius Vala, legate
Numonius Vala was a legateLegatus
A legatus was a general in the Roman army, equivalent to a modern general officer. Being of senatorial rank, his immediate superior was the dux, and he outranked all military tribunes...
of Publius Quinctilius Varus
Publius Quinctilius Varus
Publius Quinctilius Varus was a Roman politician and general under Emperor Augustus, mainly remembered for having lost three Roman legions and his own life when attacked by Germanic leader Arminius in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest.-Life:His paternal grandfather was senator Sextus Quinctilius...
in 9 AD. He left the infantry when they were attacked by the enemy in the fatal Battle of the Teutoburg Forest
Battle of the Teutoburg Forest
The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest took place in 9 CE, when an alliance of Germanic tribes led by Arminius of the Cherusci ambushed and decisively destroyed three Roman legions, along with their auxiliaries, led by Publius Quinctilius Varus.Despite numerous successful campaigns and raids by the...
and fled with the cavalry to the Rhine, but was overtaken in his flight and slain.