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Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - Caballo - 02-07-2014
Could someone point me in the direction of sources for 5th / 6th century male Merovingian dress , belt fittings and brooches ( if they wore them??) or just as good post pictures of originals or impressions / reconstructions?
Thanks!
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - Flavivs Aetivs - 02-07-2014
Hold on, I got some stuff for you Caballo. What's your email? I have some pdf's and whatnot you would like, as well as some images of Gold-Hilt Spathas.
As for dress, honestly it was the same as Late Roman dress in the 5th century. Brooches were crossbow (or those wiered Alemannic/Gothic ones) and belt fittings were similar to earlier 5th century ones.
I'll post some images here once I get them organized.
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - AMELIANVS - 02-07-2014
You can also watch this wonderfull page full of informations of photos of the armyes of this period: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Francia-orientalis/163657917158184?fref=ts
Groups who dealt directly with this early francs exist but I dont remember their names.
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - Flavivs Aetivs - 02-07-2014
Here's an image of a 6th or 7th century Merovingian:
![[Image: 6th-c-frank.jpg]](http://minimumwagehistorian.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/6th-c-frank.jpg)
Battle of Casilinium:
![[Image: Byzantine-battle-of-casilinum-ad-554.jpg]](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-X7IT9dUubCg/T3zK7X19GoI/AAAAAAAAEUY/GD_FQ2rufAM/s1600/Byzantine-battle-of-casilinum-ad-554.jpg)
8th Century Frank:
![[Image: 1209299956_w961.gif]](http://mirageswar.com/uploads/posts/1209299956_w961.gif)
5th Century Frank:
![[Image: germanicwarrior236568ad014hc.jpg]](http://img33.imageshack.us/img33/9919/germanicwarrior236568ad014hc.jpg)
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - damianlz - 02-08-2014
sometimes RAT just delivers on the spot. I went looking for this an hour ago for insoiration on saga figures
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - XorX - 02-08-2014
A new book, just read and found good. Contains much better drawings than the Osprey-Angus Mc Bride Stuff and long list of literature. It`s in german: http://www.amazon.de/Das-fr%C3%A4nkische-Heer-Merowingerzeit-Trachtzubeh%C3%B6r/dp/3938447672/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1391849056&sr=1-1&keywords=das+fr%C3%A4nkische+heer+der+merowingerzeit
Also helpful: "Die Alamannen", Theiss Verlag 1997
"Die Franken", Verlag Philipp von Zabern 1996
both are catalogues for exhibitions in german with many pics and long literature lists
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - XorX - 02-08-2014
http://www.amazon.de/Die-Alamannen-Karlheinz-Fuchs/dp/380621302X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1391849372&sr=1-1&keywords=die+alamannen
http://www.amazon.de/Die-Franken-Wegbereiter-Europas-Chlodwig/dp/3927774103/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1391849354&sr=1-2&keywords=die+franken+wegbereiter+europas
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - Legeron - 02-08-2014
Caballo, if you're looking at info about Merovingians, take a look at our data base :
http://241-752.forumgratuit.fr/
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - Caballo - 02-08-2014
Thanks all- great stuff. And I've also just found that Guy Halsall has very kindly put some of his books on free download here. http://600transformer.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books-and-other-academic-publications.html. Lots of other good stuff on his blog, Historian on the Edge.
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - Flavivs Aetivs - 02-08-2014
http://600transformer.blogspot.co.uk/p/hote-rules.html
I like how he offers his books for free but charges like 75 dollars an hour to send him an email
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - AlexV - 02-08-2014
Honestly, avoid the osspreys picts, they are truely wrong. And same for "francia orientalis", even i don't like this man's methods of sharing infos, i think is work is fine wometimes, but there's not connections between his items, taking here and there items from different centuries just because they "could be frankish".
If you wish to reenact a merovingian frank, you have to (without beeing directive
) first you need to see in burial sites to see the metallic parts for the selected period, and the ancient texts speaking of the clothes (Apollinaris, Agathias..).
edit:
The additional link for the one posted by Legeron: http://litus.creer-forums.fr/
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - Flavivs Aetivs - 02-08-2014
I'd have to say the one I posted of a "5th century frank" (the poster says 3rd or 4th century ,which is incorrect) could be accurate for several reasons:
1. Gold Hilt Blade - these first come about approximately 410 AD, after the introduction of Sassanian Gold Hilts and Cloisonne by the Huns.
2. The Brooches - again Cloisonne, indicating this man is 5th century.
However, I agree that osprey is not the best source (especially considering the belts they show, and in the 6th century image the D-shaped lamellar).
Can't say much about their later images. However, I agree that you should read the links on the forum he posted. I could probably draw a good depiction of a 5th century Frank of Chlodio or Merovaeus, but frankly (pun not intended) I don't have the time.
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - AlexV - 02-08-2014
Here is the problem with the ospreys:
[attachment=8943]1545022_10202357723757964_1853599371_n.jpg[/attachment]
A timeframe and geographical discordance. The drower is one of the best in the world, but his advices are juste like most of the "gammers fans" as i like to call them: adding stuff and stuff to have a "nice kit", even if the items come from another people, or century..
To my mind (and i think there people who red more than I), basically you have to choose between middle, Vth, late Vth, early VIth or "VIth". Then to choose wich ethnical warrior you would to reenact, a galloromanic , wisigothic, burgundian or thuringian under the order of meovingians, if "VIth" ?
The roman clothes could be fine, but if you want to wear more "germanic" clothes, may the textes could advice you some hypothesis (i will not say "this must be like this", because the conclusions of our team are ours, and other guys could conclude differently, each could be fine i think.. ? ^^).
Concerning "cloisonné", it seem to be gaviable for 470 to 530, for HIGHT status. For feminine kits, up to 560 seems to be good.
I said "HIGHT" because there is a lot of reenactors i "ve seen wearing one spear, one shield and cloisonné. I don't think the cloisonné is weared in batte, even if you are a rich prince, and a personn like this have more than a spear, and offen not any francisca (cavalrymen for some of them i think, see more about javelins and "lanzenspitzen" + ango
)
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - Kimzor - 02-08-2014
The Osprey images, like so many other sources it seems, tend to combine material from various times and locations and call it good (as already mentioned by Axelvantland
), so I wouldn't give them much credibility (unless you are SCA, then what does it matter...). Asking for 5th through 6th c. is full of assumptions that don't really work if you are trying to be true to the impression (not to mention that 'Merovingian' is fraught with its own difficulties). I thought limiting my own research to 'just' the sixth century was drawing narrow boundaries, but now after some time on the subject I can see many fashion components change significantly even during 100 years. I've just been looking at info that suggests 5 phases for the Rheinland during the 6th c. for instance, each with different but overlapping material cultures (<< The Pace of Change: Studies in early medieval Chronology>> Par John Hines, Karen Höilund Nielsen, Frank Siegmund), which generally seems true for other related cultural areas as well.
To be able to be confident in your choices for your impression, if such a thing is important to you, you're going to have to do the research :twisted: . Antikmakler.de is a great source, provided German is not a problem. (If Deutsche is a problem then.....maybe Anglo-Saxon? :mrgreen: )
On a related note, I've seen several well known re-creators wearing bow brooches on male impressions. I can't say what went on in the 5th c., or with the Anglo-Saxons across the way, as I haven't studied those subjects nearly as much as continental Franks/Germans/etc., but I have yet to see one of these typically female dress ornaments listed within a male grave. Does anyone have an actual reference for this type of jewelry in male contexts? I would be most interested
Merovingians in the 5th/6th century - AlexV - 02-08-2014
The different phases in one century is entirly true!
Many archeologists/historians have spoken about this, two of the best examples are the Chonologie normalisée du mobilier funéraire mérovingien entre Manche et Loire" from P.Périn, F.Vallet and R.Legoux, concerning the merovingian-kingdoms between 450 - 750, and the "merovingien chronology of lower rhine", by E.Nieveler and F.Siegmund.
Be carrefull with them, because they mix feminine and masculine items both, this works are just a differentiation of phases for an period, withou regards on status and sexclasses.
Each item is different between the phases, even is this could be details (i think about the ango's heads for example, there is basically three phases for them between 480 and 530).
Here an exemple of the Chronology of the Lower Rhine: (ripuarian then "merovingian" kingdoms):
[attachment=8944]chronologierhein.png[/attachment]