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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §33.8.15.pr

Conflict Between Female Slave in Peculium and Bequest to Wife

Passage 5104 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

In a case where a female slave was included in the peculium bequeathed to a manumitted slave, while all female slaves were also bequeathed to the wife in another clause, it is determined that she belongs to the manumitted slave, regardless of which bequest was written first.

[Idem libro secundo digestorum a Paulo epitomatorum. ] §33.8.15.prSeruo manumisso peculium legatum erat: alio capite omnes ancillas suas uxori legauerat: in peculio serui ancilla fuit.
[The same, from the second book of his Digest epitomized by Paulus.] The peculium had been bequeathed to a manumitted slave; in another clause, the testator had bequeathed all his female slaves to his wife; in the slave's peculium, there was a female slave.
serui eam esse respondit neque referre, utri prius legatum esset.
He answered that she belonged to the slave, and that it made no difference to which of the two the bequest had been made first.

Notes

  1. 33.8.15.prserui eam esse — serui is a genitive of possession ("belonged to the slave"). eam is the accusative subject of the infinitive esse, referring to the ancilla (female slave) mentioned in the preceding sentence. The clause forms an accusative and infinitive construction (AcI) dependent on respondit.
  2. 33.8.15.prutri prius legatum esset — utri is the dative singular of the pronoun uter ("which of the two"), referring to the slave and the wife. It introduces an indirect question depending on referre, and the verb is in the pluperfect subjunctive legatum esset.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §33.8.15.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:33.8.15.pr

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