Economy AI 26: Arnona and Acsania - the Roman taxes

In order to maintain the army stationed in Judea, and to enrich the emperors, the Roman government levied various types of taxes, some of them general and others that particularly oppressed the Jews - after the revolts

Property tax and hostel

Annona - during the first Roman imperial period we find the annona as a payment "in kind" that the residents of the provinces, the landowners, raised from their grain and fruits for the needs of the Roman military units that served in the area, and from this the tax was called annona militaris and this was a fixed cost by the Roman authorities which were usually lower than the prices in the markets. This tax symbolized, among other things, the provincial subordination to the Roman center. Sometimes the tax was paid as a procedure of confiscating agricultural products without payment at all, or for the annual supply of food needs to the city of Rome - annona civita - and from this the payment should not be seen as a land tax in the usual sense, and we will also understand why the arnona was more oppressive than the end of Ben Kusaba's rebellion (135 AD) ), when the Roman military units multiplied in the province of Judea, and later on from the end of the second century AD onwards when the wars and border disputes prevailed throughout the Roman Empire, even from this we will define the tax in question as a payment that deviates from the usual.

Primary proof of this is found in the fact that the term "Arnona" does not appear at all in the Mishna literature, but in that of the Tosefta, which is of course later, as well as in the Talmudic and Midrashic literature. One of the midrashim on the verse - "And you served your enemies, whom the Lord will make of you with hunger and thirst and nakedness and lack of everything" (Deuteronomy 2), demands that "Hungry, how? When a person craves to eat a barley pea and cannot find it, the nations of the world ask him for a clean pea and fatty meat. Thirsty how? At the time you want to drink a drop of vinegar, a drop of wine and he doesn't find it. The nations of the world ask him for fine wine in all countries. And naked how? While a person longs to wear a robe of wool or linen and cannot find one, the nations of the world ask him for the song and the voice of all countries. And in the absence of everything - without a candle and without a knife and without a table" (Avot Darbi Nathan XNUMX:XNUMX p. XNUMX). This section is attributed to the end of the second century CE, when the situation became acute into the third century CE, what is known in history as the period of anarchy in the Roman Empire, and in this context Rabbi Barachia and Rabbi Halvo announced in the name of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and Rabbi Meir as follows: Atidin your sons who shall be enslaved by four kings XNUMX) Being in this world - in taxes, and in taxes, and in idolatry, and in calvary" (Leviticus Rabbah XNUMX:XNUMX) in terms of an imaginary paraphrase of Daniel's prophecy regarding the four beasts, four kingdoms, and the verb "future" in the tense of the future takes on a great significance as if it were in the near future or even in the present.

The dead Hagar animal has no heirs

Also from the papyri and other documents we learn about the supply of these necessities such as wine, grain, trees, animals and more to the Roman Empire in the aforementioned period, and Sage sources are abundant in their talk about the "Arnouna" of an animal, such as "the beast of the desert and the beast of the sanctuary and the beast of the Hagar that died And he has no heirs, the firstborn is exempt from (redemption of the sacrifice), and in the case of death, arnona must be paid to the firstborn" (Tosefta Firstborn 2:XNUMX). Which, by the way, teaches about complacency, somewhat forcibly, with the taxes to Rome and recognition of their legality, or about "the arnona of Eisa" (Talmud Babili Pesachim p. XNUMX).   

The arnuna, as we have seen, became more and more difficult whenever the Roman military forces multiplied in the region, as well as in other provinces, and as the Tosefta instructs us - "and weighs for the treasury (the regular Roman administration) weighs for the kitron (disruption of the phrase "centurion" - centurio. That is, commanding one in six The centaurs - units of 100 warriors, in the Roman legion) from ten..." We were separate from the tax to the "treasury", and it is clear that this unusual taxation was more oppressive than the usual payments (Damai V. 3). Or from the mouth of Rabbi Hanina bar Hama, born at the beginning of the third century AD - "You have not every foot and leg that has not come to Tiberias the Hagmon and Kamton (even here as a subversion of a centurion) and Ba'al Zamora (a nickname for an army officer in general and especially those who accompanied the Roman commissioner on his travels and visits), the" Celebrating" at the expense of the local residents.

The first term above - "and weighs for the treasury" brings up an interesting reality in light of Sage sources such as: "Let not Israel say to a Gentile and a Hittite and to one who is not faithful (obliged) to the tithe: Go (here you go) two hundred, move and weigh under me (in my place) from the treasury! Rather, he says to him: Protect me from the treasure" (Tosefta Damai 6:8). And the Jerusalem Talmud says - "Let a man not say to his friend: Go two hundred dinars, and weigh my hand into the treasure!" Rather, he says to him: Separate me from the treasure" (Talmud Yerushalmi Damai, chapter 19, XNUMX, p. XNUMX). What is confirmed according to the Midrash: "Rabbi (Yehuda the President who was a well-known landowner) and Rabbi Yossi Barbi Yehuda were walking on the road. Rao Akum (a local, a Roman government official) was coming towards them. Amerin, three milin (three words, questions) he asked Len (us): What will I say? (who are you)? And what is your livelihood? And where will I go (where are you headed)? (and the interpretation:) What is Athens? - Yehudain. What are you doing? Pragmatotin (dealing in trade - Pragmatia), and where will I get Azelin? To Mizban (buy) wheat from Otzaria (warehouse, a large store of wheat) Dibna (of the city of Yavneh)..." (Beresheet Rabbah XNUMX:XNUMX) This incident can be understood and traced through an ancient Roman source from Tacitus (Agricola XNUMX), which means: in order to relieve the burden of taxes and the supply of grain, the above-mentioned carried out a reform that involved forcing the villagers to go to warehouses and grain stores and buy wheat in order to return it. In other words, they paid for the wheat and the wheat immediately in that warehouse, which was used/became a tax for Rome, and in this way they fulfilled their obligations to Rome as required. This passage, which Prof. Appelbaum kindly referred me to at the time, can certainly be attributed, paralleled to the source of the above-mentioned Midrash, and this with the clear knowledge that Yavneh was mostly populated by foreigners at this time and that a Roman supervisory center operated there.

Hence, the "treasure" quoted above is nothing more than a Roman taxation center, in particular for agricultural produce, which we witness and his like throughout the Roman Empire and the same person they meet on their way is nothing more than a Roman government official interrogating them and as if guiding them to approach the repository/warehouse.

see also:

• AI Economy in Antiquity 24: The Jewish Tax
• Economy AI 23: How did the Jews in the land in the Roman period monitor fairness in trade?
• AI economy in the Roman period 22: The tables - money changers

The treasury - the center of Roman taxation

This is evidenced, so it seems, by the following source - "And those who transmigrate with it (with the "city" that is, with the rural villa, which we dealt with in one of the previous chapters) - a soul that is four cubits (56 cm) by four cubits. Rabbi Yehuda says: Ketalia and zizia (windows) are transfixed (included) with it. The tomb and the bridge which have a dwelling house and a house of idolatry, which has a dwelling house for the priests (storehouses), and the Uriahs (treasure houses for grain) and the treasures in the field which have a dwelling house..." (Tosefta Erivin 4:XNUMX). These are treasure houses in the framework of the Roman settlements, and the above sources probably refer to this type of warehouses and grain stores, the ones about which I deduced the aforementioned in Tacitus.

In the Jerusalem Talmud there is a testimony already mentioned above regarding the ruling of Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi: "The leader of Rabbi Barnona and Golgolah and Anferot Kahda Davan Nance" (Kithuvat Chapter XNUMX, XNUMX, p. XNUMX). It is nothing more than that Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi organized the distribution of the property tax in the estates he leased from the Roman Empire. But, essentially, the responsibility for the property tax issue was assigned to the city council, which divided it among the villages that were subordinate to it. And if we have shown above that the city forms together with its rural territory as an important socio-economic economic unit, it will be easier for us to understand the aforementioned responsibility.

Inflationary tax

The property tax, as we have seen, became from the end of the second century CE more and more a stable and fixed tax. This is when the first buds of the Roman world inflation began to appear on the horizon of the Roman economy, along with the increasing depletion of the Roman treasury as a result of the waste of many financial expenses for the benefit of the Roman army among other things. From this it was convenient for the Roman government to place the responsibility for the maintenance of the army and the inflated Roman bureaucracy in matters of living necessities and equipment on the shoulders of the inhabitants of the provinces. And since this complicated problem began to arise in all its seriousness during the days of the Severus emperors (the end of the second century AD and onward), we will understand why Rabbi Yehuda the Hanasi, as someone who served in the honorable function of a conductor, was required to lead and organize the arrangements that involved him in his time. And it goes without saying that the demand for these needs by the Roman government (and also by the merchant unions) naturally led to the vigorous production of those products in order on the one hand to satisfy the demands and on the other hand to feed the local and international market.

to share the tithe with the Roman army

Chazal sources explicitly testify to the "treasure", which both Jews and foreigners "throw (put) into it" (Tosefta Demai 12:XNUMX) and Rabbi Yossi is misleading in the above-mentioned Tosefta as follows - "In what are things said? In the treasure (storehouse) of an individual, but in the treasury of kings (storehouses belonging to the Roman government) the preparation follows the majority (following the ruling authority)... They said to him: After it was ordered (in the original) for us to build a treasury." That is, treasure houses in the possession of the Roman Empire after the revolt of Ben Khosva. By the way, such treasure houses were found in Egypt for the storage of grain that was paid as a tax "in kind" (in produce), and over which an official was entrusted who performed his duty as part of a liturgy (obligation of personal service), and we will deal with it in one of the following chapters.

Evidence of this appears in the Mishnah as follows: "They feed the poor with a damai and the homeless with a damai" (Damai 1:21). "Damai" is a term for grain and fruits taken from the peoples of the land who are suspected of not setting aside their tithes, and the one who takes/buys fruits from them is obliged to tithe (to set aside tithes for priests and mourners). It is forbidden to sell, but it is allowed to feed, a kind of charity for the poor on the one hand and a provision for the army, which is incumbent on the townspeople to support them on the other. Before us is an interesting socio-economic reference in times of need. And the Jerusalem Talmud adds - "They lived with you - including the hostel" (Damai chapter XNUMX XNUMX p. XNUMX). And in the Tosefta it is said that "there is no Makhilin Akhsinin fruits of Shabbat" (Shabbayat XNUMX:XNUMX). That is, before us is a change in the light of historical development. This is because if "housing" is likened to a debt, then it follows that one should not feed from blood and a seventh year.

Due to the large number of testimonies about the "hostel" in the third century CE, the members of the Sanhedrin carried and gave on the subject of how to regulate the "hostel"? According to the times they imposed on a settlement that the leadership of it would house the army, and in this matter the Babylonian Talmud asked as follows: "Acnesiya, is it divided according to people, or is it divided according to openings (houses/apartments)?" (Bava Batra XNUMX, p. XNUMX), and such a learned witness was tormented by the hostel until the Jerusalem Talmud asked: Is it permissible to bribe the officer in charge of distributing the soldiers to the houses of the city in order for him to pass over a certain house. And his sly answer was - until they are not suspected of publicizing the move. And the use of the expression "Roman", which is relatively rare in Sage sources, which means nothing other than a Roman soldier, is interesting, and I learned this from my teacher and rabbi, the late Prof. Shmuel Safrai. Incidentally, it can be said that in the sources of the Sages, a striking difference can be found in the relationship between the population and the Roman army. In other words, whenever it was an army that was in an organized, disciplined framework, the attitude was positive. However, it changed to the negative when deviations from the order and discipline that prevailed among one or another military unit became known. And it should be noted in general in light of Roman sources that the Roman soldier was usually disciplined and there may be a reason for this.

When cases became known of Jews fleeing out of their cities, even on the Sabbath, it turned out that the source of the escape was the fear of the oppression of the hostels. And so the Mishnah testifies - "A man gives a gift to his Erubin and says: If foreigners come from the east, I will turn to the west, and from the west - Iroot to the east" (Irovin 5:XNUMX). And it should be noted that the mixing is intended to "cheat" the prohibition of the "Sabbath domain" in a sophisticated way. And if you wonder, the Jerusalem Talmud comes and claims that "Bailin is Roman". Because this is an escape from the duty of accommodation due to the approach of the Roman army that may demand his needs. This instruction will be imposed mainly against the background of the "hostel" distress.

In the same context, the Mishnah testifies that "a spy of strangers (referring to the army searching the houses) that entered the city, in peacetime, open barrels (of wine) are forbidden, closed ones are forbidden. In times of war, these and those are permitted, according to the fact that there is no leisure to drink (due to the panic of the event, there is no leisure to touch the wine that has been stored in the barrels and drink it to a foreign work)" (Avoda Zerah 6:XNUMX), and the Jerusalem Talmud adds - "During the time of destruction, everything is forbidden" (Avoda Zerah Chapter XNUMX) MH p. a) and it is said elsewhere that the Roman army also had the right of way to take over inns.

The duty of accommodation also applies to civil government officials on their travels. And since from Merid ben Kusava onwards these multiplied in the province of Judaea, in light of the testimonies of the Sages, we will mention the difficulties that were piled up before those liable for this forced service. Well, a certificate from Egypt, from the middle of the second century AD testifies to the many preparations for these journeys and visits which were manifested and revealed in the supply of bread, wood, coals, lanterns, oil lamps, saltpetre and fish for the needs of the Roman commissioner and his entourage. These innkeepers are also mentioned in Sage sources such as the Tosefta and the Jerusalem Talmud, and for example: "The kostor (senior Roman official) forbids (obligates) immediately, and innkeepers after thirty (days). With it I give (and some say): the kostor is prohibited after thirty and the hostel is never prohibited (and the reasoning is (... (the kostor) is with permission and the hostel is never... with permission" (Talmud Yerushalmi Irovin chapter XNUMX, XNUMX p. XNUMX). That is, the narrowness of the hostel, as belonging to a hundred The third AD is much more oppressive than a casual instruction of the Roman clerks.This situation is documented, for example, in the collection of Egyptian papyri from this period.

From the midrash: "Rabbi Yehuda bar Shalom said: The best of them will be in your house. In the practice of the world - a king of flesh and blood (an image of a senior official or a Roman soldier) enters the country (provincia). Each one is given a measure (payment, accommodation) according to his honor (according to his position in the hierarchy for him and all his entourage and the honor with him)". (Exodus XNUMX:XNUMX).

And it is concluded with the required secondary testimony on the book of Deuteronomy 16:16, which refers to the rights of the king and his duties, as a paraphrase of the Roman authorities, regarding the glaring criticism of the Roman bureaucracy: He will not give (Deuteronomy 4:XNUMX), but in order to give aspania (in another wording: "apsania". That is - from the Greek - the expenses of the army's finances)" (Mishnah, Sanhedrin chapter XNUMX XNUMX).

As mentioned, the hostel began to become more oppressive and burdensome after the rebellion of Ben Kusava and became very acute during the anarchy period of the third century CE, when the presence of the Roman army units in the country increased and in general the economic needs of the Roman Empire increased. In any case, both with regard to the arnona and the hostel and the opsenia, as well as with regard to the Roman taxes in general, the issue of their collection largely reflected the attitude of the population to the Roman rule, in particular and in general the degree of the attitude of the population to the very legality of taxes and charges of this nature.

"Acnesia", perhaps in a confusion from the Hebrew and Aramaic - Knesset, Knishta, or from the Greek (Kesnos, Kesnia) which means a stranger and in its symbolism - a guest house, and in Latin hospitalarium, in any case the appearance of the term in Sage literature means - the obligation to provide for the army and to house the strategists (army commanders from Greek ) in the houses of the residents for all that is involved, and it is clear that from the time of the outbreak of Ben Khosva's rebellion, and especially after it, and while Judah was the scene of fierce battles between the two claimants to the Roman crown - Septimius Severus and Pascanius Niger, when the oppressive presence of the Roman army units in the region increased, the shortage of accommodation intensified When it makes it very difficult for the normal life of the residents of the province of Judea.

More of the topic in Hayadan:

• AI Economy in Antiquity 24: The Jewish Tax
• Economy AI 23: How did the Jews in the land in the Roman period monitor fairness in trade?
• AI economy in the Roman period 22: The tables - money changers