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Inancient Rome, anapparitor[1] (also spelledapparator in English, or shortened toparitor[2]) was acivil servant whose salary was paid from thepublic treasury.[3] Theapparitores assisted themagistrates. There were four occupational grades (decuriae) among them.[4] The highest-ranked were thescribae, the clerks or public notaries, followed by thelictores,lictors;viatores, messengers orsummoners, that is, agents on official errands; andpraecones, announcers or heralds.[5]
The term has hence referred to abeadle in a university, apursuivant orherald;[6] particularly, in Roman Catholiccanon law, which was largely inspired byRoman law.
Apparitors (sometimes calledsummoners) continued to serve as officers inecclesiastical courts. They were designated to serve thesummons, toarrest a person accused,[7] and in ecclesiastico-civil procedure, to take possession, physically or formally, of property in dispute, in order to secure the execution of the judge's sentence. This was done in countries where the ecclesiastical forum, in its substantial integrity, is recognized.[8] Anapparitor thus acted asconstable andsheriff. His guarantee of his delivery of the summons provided evidence of a party's knowledge of his obligation to appear, either to stand trial, to give testimony, or to do whatever else might be legally enjoined by the judge; theapparitor's statement becomes the basis of a charge ofcontumacy against anyone refusing to obey a summons. Offenses dealt with by such courts included "sins ofimmorality,witchcraft,usury,simony, neglect of thesacraments, and withholdingtithes oroffering".[9][10][11]
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Apparitor".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 2 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 210. This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Apparitor".Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.