Itinerarium

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
An itinerarium, as seen on one of the 1st century Vicarello Cups

An itinerarium (plural: itineraria) was an

vici) and other stops on the way, including the distances between each stop and the next. Surviving examples include the Antonine Itinerary and the Bordeaux Itinerary
.

Ancient practice

The Romans and ancient travelers in general did not use

schematic diagram
for the user.

The Roman government from time to time undertook to produce a master itinerary of all Roman roads. Julius Caesar and Mark Antony commissioned the first known such effort in 44 BC. Zenodoxus, Theodotus, and Polyclitus, three Greek geographers, were hired to survey the system and compile a master itinerary. This task required over 25 years. The result was a stone engraved master itinerarium set up near the Pantheon, from which travelers and itinerary sellers could make copies.

Vicarello cups

Archaeology has turned up some itinerary material in unexpected places. The

Itinerarium Gaditanum. Similarly, the Itinerarium Burdigalense (Bordeaux Itinerary) is a description of a route taken by a pilgrim from Bordeaux in France to the Holy Land in AD 333
.

Other meanings

The term changed meaning over the centuries. For example, the Itinerarium Alexandri is a list of the conquests of Alexander the Great. In the medieval period, the term was applied to guide-books written by travelers, most of which were accounts of pilgrimages to the Holy Land.[2]

See also

References

  1. Jaś Elsner, "The Itinerarium Burdigalense
    : politics and salvation in the geography of Constantine's Empire" The Journal of Roman Studies (2000), pp. 181–195, p. 184.
  2. ^ Bechtel, Florentine Stanislaus (1910). "Itineraria" . Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 8.