The Ritual of Centuriation: Frontinus, Hyginus Gromaticus, and Centuriation

This chapter explicates how surveying is regarded as a rite. It considers the surveying techniques of Frontinus and Hyginus Gromatics from their collection Corpus Agrimensorum Romanorum. Frontinus and Hyginus Gromaticus started with the description of centuriation’s origins and virtues. Centuriation had been primarily developed and deployed in the colonies and viritane assignments that accompanied Roman expansion. The chapter elucidates the process of surveyors in centuriating a field, while also acknowledging that other scholars correlated centuriation and Roman augury. It then looks into the correlation between antiquarianism and administration that has been found within Roman works on public and sacred law.