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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §40.2.17.pr

Manumission Before a Proconsul and His Legate

Passage 6337 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Paulus explains that a manumission by the rod can be performed before a proconsul after he has left Rome, as well as before his legate.

[PAULUS libro quinquagensimo ad edictum. ] §40.2.17.prApud proconsulem, postquam urbem egressus est, uindicta manumittere possumus: sed et apud legatum eius manumittere possumus.
[PAULUS, in the fiftieth book on the Edict.] can manumit by the rod before a proconsul after he has left the City; but we can also manumit before his legate.

Notes

  1. §40.2.17.prurbem egressus est — The subject of the verb 'egressus est' is 'proconsul'. A proconsul's command (imperium) becomes active the moment he steps outside the boundary (pomerium) of the City of Rome, which allows a valid manumission to be performed in his presence even while he is still on the journey to his assigned province.
  2. §40.2.17.pruindicta — Ablative of instrument. It originally refers to the 'rod' (uindicta) used in the mock trial of manumission, here designating the formal procedure under civil law known as 'manumission by the rod' (manumissio vindicta).

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §40.2.17.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:40.2.17.pr

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