Sisenna
(0026) Text: Ɔ Sis(ennae)
Translation: Century of Sisenna
Commentary: Object of obscure function. Tacitus (Hist. 2.8) mentions a centurion in Syria named Sisenna in the province of Syria shortly before the Jewish War: “The centurion Sisenna, who was the bearer of the clasped right hands, the usual emblems of friendship, from the armies of Syria to the praetorians, was assailed by him with various artifices, till he left the island secretly, and, fearing actual violence, made his escape with all haste.” The name is not an especially common one, but another Sisenna (Aulus Gabinius Sisenna) was also active in Palestine under Gabinius’ governorship in 57 BCE (Josephus A.J. 14.92; J.W. 1.171), but Josephus does not give a sense of his rank. The former of the two seems a more likely identification, as it is easy to imagine he was in legio X Fretensis and remained in Jerusalem after the Jewish War.
Provenience: Jerusalem, Judaea 66-100 CE
Bibliography: CIIP 1.1114