Constitutio Antoniniana
Introduction
The introduction looks at some basic questions posed by the Constitutio Antoniniana. What is the edict? How can it be classified historically and with respect to the language used? What did historians write about the Constitutio Antoniniana when it was promulgated, and what did researchers say much later, especially after the papyrus was discovered? How did it become part of the University of Giessen’s collection?
The Text of the Edict
Due to the fragmentary state of the papyrus, a reconstruction of the content of the Greek text was only possible by referring to other sources.
Caracalla and His Motives
This page sheds more light on Caracalla’s character and addresses the murder of his brother Geta and possible motives for proclaiming the Constitutio Antoniniana.
Further Reading
This section lists references used to create this website, literature for further reading, and links to other material.