[1] =
Synagoge delta313,
Photius delta650; cf. (for the first gloss)
Hesychius delta1903. Nouns in the accusative singular. The material stems from
Homer,
Iliad 10.562:
to/n r(a diopth=ra stratou= e)/mmenai h(mete/roio, "(a scout sent forth) to spy upon our army"; cf.
scholia to that passage and the gloss
to\n skopo\n in
Etymologicum Magnum 278.10. The rare, poetic word recurs in later Greek prose: see
Agathias 2.2; and
delta 1193.
diopth\r is also considered as an equivalent of the Latin word
tesserarius, denoting a messenger who distributed the watchword from the commander to the soldiers. This is the meaning implied by
Plutarch,
Galba 24:
*ou)etou/rios kai\ *ba/rbios, o( me\n o)pti/wn, o( de\ tessera/rios: ou(/tw ga\r kalou=ntai oi( diagge/lwn kai\ diopth/rwn u(peresi/as telou=ntes ("Veturius and Barbius, the former "optio", the latter "tesserarius": so are called the soldiers in charge of the task of messengers,
dia/ggeloi, and inspectors,
diopth/res). However, a closer analysis of the occurrences of these terms suggest that we rather see "optio" as corresponding to the Greek
diopth\r, while
tesserarius is closest in meaning to
dia/ggelos. The meaning of "secret intermediary or messenger" is attested for
dia/ggelos (see
Thucydides 7.73.3); moreover, one does not find for "tesserarius" any reference to the supervision or control tasks which seem to be required from
diopth\r and its subsequent explanation
oi)kono/mos. Conversely, this is a meaning frequently attested for "optio": a term indicating an assistant of the centurion, but explained in Latin glossaries as "dispensator, qui dispensat stipendia militum; praepositus eorum". Cf. also
Procopius,
History of the Wars of Justinian 3.17
o(s oi( e)pemelei=to th=s peri\ th\n oi)ki/as dapa/nhs: o)pti/wna tou=ton kalou=si *(rwmai=oi, "the supervisor to the household expenses: the Romans call him optio".
2For the use of diopth/r as a synonym of dio/ptra (see next note) see Aetius 16.105 (cited by LSJ s.v.). ↩3Better known as dio/ptra (cited at the end of the entry, and see delta 1195) and thoroughly described by Heron of Alexandria, this instrument was intended to determine lengths from a distance and extensively used on aqueduct building projects and by astronomers. The Suda apparently refers to a military use, to assess the height of fortifications: for similar instances cf. Polybius 8.37.2 and 10.45.6.