Aquila (Roman)

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An aquila (Classical Latin: [ˈakᶣɪla]; lit. 'eagle') was a prominent symbol used in ancient Rome, especially as the standard of a Roman legion. A legionary known as an aquilifer, the "eagle-bearer", carried this standard. Each legion carried one eagle.

The eagle had quasi-religious importance to the Roman soldier, far beyond being merely a symbol of his legion. To lose a standard was seen as extremely grave, shameful and dishonorable, and the Roman military went to great lengths both to protect a standard and to recover one had it been lost; after the annihilation of three legions in the Teutoburg Forest, the Romans spent decades retaliating for the defeat while also attempting to recover the three lost eagles.

No legionary eagle standards are known to have survived. However, other Roman eagles, either symbolizing imperial rule or used as funerary emblems, have been discovered.^[1]