Roman sailor's grave marker found in New Orleans yard

"The inscription reads: D(is) M(anibus)/S(e)x(to) Congenio Vero/mi(liti) cl(assis) p(raetoriae) Mi(senensis) natio(ne) Bes(so)/vixit an(nis) XLII mi(litavit) an(nis)/XXII, Tutela ((triere)) Asc(l)epio/fece(runt) Atilius Carus/et Vettius Longi/nus heredes/b(ene) m(erenti) (To the spirits of the dead for Sextus Congenius Verus, soldier of the praetorian fleet Misenensis, from the tribe (natio) of the Bessi, (who) lived 42 years (and) served 22 in the military, on the trireme Asclepius. Atilius Carus and Vettius Longinus, his heirs, made (this) for him well deserving.)"

"In fact, a stone matching the description was listed as missing from the National Archaeological Museum of Civitavecchia, an ancient port on the Tyrrhenian sea 35 miles northwest of Rome. Trajan's favorite architect, Apollodorus of Damascus, built the rectangular port in 106-108 A.D. as a secure and convenient resupply station for the ships of the imperial fleet. It became known as Centumcellae and was an important strategic base for the Roman navy."

Daniella Santoro and her husband Aaron Lorenz uncovered a stone slab with a Latin inscription while clearing underbrush at their historic shotgun house in New Orleans' Carrolton neighborhood. They consulted University of New Orleans archaeologist Dr. D. Ryan Gray, who excluded a local historic burial. Latin experts translated the inscription identifying Sextus Congenius Verus, a soldier of the praetorian fleet Misenensis, aged 42 with 22 years of service aboard the trireme Asclepius. The slab was confirmed as a deracinated artifact and matched a missing piece from the National Archaeological Museum of Civitavecchia, the Roman naval port Centumcellae.

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