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[The Roman Soldier in a New Orleans Backyard: A Journey of Repatriation]-[Sextus Congenius Verus]

This is Love · B1 · 2026-07-15

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📋 Summary

The Roman Soldier in a New Orleans Backyard

In a remarkable story of cultural heritage and serendipity, a homeowner in New Orleans uncovered a piece of ancient history buried beneath her backyard. What began as a routine chore of "clearing the jungle" of overgrown banana trees and vines turned into a discovery that bridged two millennia and two continents.

The Discovery

Daniela Santoro and her husband, while renovating their backyard, unearthed a "flat stone about the size of a laptop." Initially, they suspected it might be a grave marker for a pet, but upon closer inspection, they noticed it was carved with Latin text. The stone bore the inscription "D.M.," which they soon learned stood for Dis Manibus—"to the spirits of the departed." This discovery set off a chain of academic inquiry, eventually leading to Suzanne Lusnia, a professor of classical studies at Tulane University.

Identifying the Inscription

Upon viewing a photo of the stone, Professor Lusnia immediately identified it as an authentic funerary inscription from the second century of the Roman Empire. The inscription was dedicated to a soldier named Sextus Congenius Verus, who served in the Praetorian fleet (Misanensis) stationed at Mycenaeum. The text detailed his life: he was from the "tribe of the Bessie," served 22 years in the military on the trireme Asclepius, and died at the age of 42. It concluded with the phrase bene morenti, meaning "well-deserving."

The Soldier’s Life

Historian Carolina Rangel de Lima explains that soldiers like Sextus were non-citizens serving as auxiliary troops, a path often taken to eventually earn Roman citizenship. His life would have involved protecting grain supplies and maintaining order in the port of Mycenaeum. Unlike the "nepo baby" soldier Claudius Terentianus, whose letters home reveal a life of constant complaint and bullying, Sextus appears to have been part of a tight-knit community, possibly a burial club, whose heirs ensured his memory was honored with this stone.

The Mystery of the Migration

Research revealed that the stone originated from a cemetery discovered in the 1860s near Civitavecchia, Italy. It was displayed in a museum until the site was heavily bombed by the Allies in 1943 during World War II. The stone disappeared during the chaos of the war, only to resurface in the possession of Erin Scott O'Brien’s grandparents in New Orleans. Erin, who lived in the same house years prior, revealed that her grandfather, a singer who served in Italy during the war, had brought the stone back as a souvenir, likely unaware of its immense historical significance. It served as a garden decoration for decades, forgotten by time.

Repatriation and Legacy

In April 2026, the gravestone was officially returned to Italy in a grand repatriation ceremony, accompanied by hundreds of other looted or displaced cultural artifacts. For the people of New Orleans, who know the pain of losing items to disasters like Hurricane Katrina, the return of this stone was a poignant reminder of the importance of recovering what was thought to be lost forever. As Professor Lusnia noted, the journey of Sextus Congenius Verus—from a Roman naval base to a New Orleans garden, and finally back to his homeland—is a testament to the enduring power of history to find its way home.

🎯Key Sentences

1
It's sort of tucked away in the back.
2
It's going to grow if you take your attention away from it for a minute.
3
I bet you didn't think you'd be dealing with the FBI in your life.
4
I wasn't sure exactly how we would go about that.
5
I just don't think that he knew of what he had.
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📝Key Phrases

1
tucked away
2
clear the jungle
3
heavy lifting
4
hacked away
5
gave us pause
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📖 Transcript

Seven years ago, Daniela Santoro and her husband bought a house.
It was an old house.
It's over 100 years old.
Very well protected from winds and hurricane damage.
So it stood through a lot, this house.
And because it's an old house, it's a shotgun.

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