La jupiterización de los signa militaria: cambios simbólicos en la estructura socio-militar romana

Abstract

This article presents a new interpretation regarding political-religious symbolism in Roman military insignias at the end of 2nd century BC whose removing four of five insignias would be closely related to the reforms to institute professional army accomplished by Gaius Marius. In this case the survival of the eagle insignia is related to supremacy of god Jupiter above god Mars, who symbolically in its origin was also an agricultural god whose religious appearance still incarnates the ideal of duality peasant-soldier eliminated by the new professional soldier.