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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §1.8.11.pr

Capital Punishment for Breaching Walls and Prohibition of Exiting Beyond Gates

Passage 159 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Heavy penalties and prohibitions against violating walls or exiting through places other than the gates are discussed, with the myth of Remus cited as an example.

[POMPONIUS libro secundo ex uariis lectionibus. ] §1.8.11.prSi quis uiolauerit muros, capite punitur, sicuti si quis transcendet scalis admotis uel alia qualibet ratione.
[POMPONIUS, From Various Readings, book 2] If anyone violates the walls, he is punished capitally, just as if someone should climb over them by applying ladders or by any other means.
nam ciues Romanos alia quam per portas egredi non licet, cum illud hostile et abominandum sit: nam et Romuli frater Remus occisus traditur ob id, quod murum transcendere uoluerit.
For Roman citizens are not allowed to go out other than through the gates, since that is hostile and abominable; indeed, even Remus, the brother of Romulus, is said to have been killed for the reason that he wished to climb over the wall.

Notes

  1. 1.8.11.prcapite punitur — The ablative capite is used with puniri to denote being punished by death or loss of civil status (capital punishment).
  2. 1.8.11.prscalis admotis — An ablative absolute construction consisting of the noun scalae (ladders, plural only) and the participle admotis, expressing means or attendant circumstance "by applying ladders."
  3. 1.8.11.prciues Romanos... egredi non licet — The infinitive egredi with its accusative subject ciues Romanos serves as the subject of the impersonal verb licet (it is permitted).
  4. 1.8.11.proccisus traditur — The verb traditur (is reported) takes a nominative with infinitive-like construction (with esse omitted from occisus esse), qualifying the subject Remus.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §1.8.11.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:1.8.11.pr

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