Salvete,
So far from what I have seen of the praetorian guard it seems that mustaches were a type of fashion statement. Is it true that mustaches were common among guardsmen? It seems that they thought it might have been a mark of prestige, similar to the beards worn by operators such as green berets, navy seals, marsoc marines etc. http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/vi...&fr=iphone
I believe the mustaches are anachronistic mistakes left by those who repaired this frieze in the 19th century. Could be wrong, but I can recall no other image depicting Romans as anything but clean-shaven or bearded in the Greek style.
A lot of people seem to think the central character has a moustache. However as Phil say's he does in fact have a beard on his chin.
I do have a photo which shows this clearly but it is only a tiff image and very large.
Daniel Peterson's old book 'The Roman Legions recreated in Colour Photographs' does have a bust of a Romanised local presumably in a German museum (anyone?) which has sideburns and a moustache!
Graham.
"Is all that we see or seem but a dream within a dream" Edgar Allan Poe.
"Every brush-stroke is torn from my body" The Rebel, Tony Hancock.
"..I sweated in that damn dirty armor....TWENTY YEARS!', Charlton Heston, The Warlord.
But I believe, as Alex says, that the heads of the three foreground figures are 19th century reconstructions... The standard bearer in the background does appear to have a beard though.
More about Romans and beardage here, meanwhile: Facial Hair
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Here is another interesting situation of a moustache on a cavalry sports helmet face mask in a museum in Belgrade, and we have to ask if the soldier who owned it had indeed similar facial hair.
There is another aspect of those Praetorian soldiers on that frieze in the Louvre where I have often wondered if indeed the sculptor made all those holes in the helmets where in fact they might have been domed studs and he did it for ease of work and expression.
When of course I did this type of helmet for the late Doug' Arnold I did use domed studs on the edge decoration.
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Not only does that prominent Praetorian in the relief have a tiny beard to go along with his moustache, but it is the type known at the time of the restoration as an "imperial." It got this name because it was the type affected by Napoleon III. It was much imitated at the time. One of its best known adherents was Union Gen. George B. McClellan, who had ambitions commensurate with his facial hair. The Civil War era in America was a golden age of facial hair. Other types were the "Prophet" (Jackson, Longstreet), the "Cavalier" (Custer, Pickett) and others. The Cavalier required long hair as well.
Quote:it might have been a mark of prestige, similar to the beards worn by operators such as green berets, navy seals, marsoc marines etc.
Salvete
just to clarify, the beards worn by SEALS and SF Types are more in response to blending in with the indigenous personnel in their area of operations. There are plenty of SF/SEAL types who are as prestigious as their other brothers and they dont sport a beard. Perhaps this roman in the relieft was sporting a beard because he picked up on a local custom or fashion of some sort.
just to clarify, the beards worn by SEALS and SF Types are more in response to blending in with the indigenous personnel in their area of operations. There are plenty of SF/SEAL types who are as prestigious as their other brothers and they dont sport a beard.
This has nothing to do with the topic at hand, but Arabs and Pashtuns generally do not trust men without facial hair, as they are considered feminine. It helps when trying to gain the trust of locals to have facial hair. But the US military has a pretty deep cultural love of clean shaven soldiers. The conventional military mindset hates the idea of facial hair, which ranks up there with un-bloused boots and rolling sleeves up, as a mark of an undisciplined solider. When it comes to mustaches they have ridiculous regulations limiting their size, ensuring a Hitler like mustache for most people. Special operations units have more freedom, thus they have awesome beards, at least when deployed.
It's not a moustach, it's clearly connected to the beard.
I thought that moustaches were unknown during the Roman period, there's even a theory that it was later referred to as a 'Gothic beard'. But last Saturday in Antwerp I came across a Fayum portrait of a man with a clear moustache and not even a hint of a beard.
Robert Vermaat MODERATOR FECTIO Late Romans
THE CAUSE OF WAR MUST BE JUST
(Maurikios-Strategikon, book VIII.2: Maxim 12)
Lots of interesting facial hair in Roman Egypt, it seems, from full beards to chin beards and goatees to tufty taches. Even one with what looks like a moustache and sideburns...
Sorry for not fiting this topic directly but I think this might be nice to see for you too.Some nuch later Roman guardsmen in Imperial presense,likely Candidati and Spatharii as shown in 9th century Homilies of Gregory of Nazianzus and completely beard less because they were suposed to imitate angels of "the court of Heaven".
