segmentata

[Matthew Amt]

Martin, let me double check on the thicknesses and where they are on the cuirass. Or Matt, if you're out there..?

Yo! Girdle plates seem to run from about 1mm down to 0.7mm, call it 18 gauge to 20 or 22 gauge. Collar plates and shoulder guards average a little more, from 1mm up to at least 1.2mm, or (I think!) 1.6mm. So 18 up to I guess 14 guage. That thickest measurement is what I remember for the Newstead breastplate--hopefully I'm not misremembering.

One Upper Shoulder Guard is of Corbridge C type (pointed inwards), the other is a replacement/repair of Corbridge A type (flat on both sides). The fittings are also based on different finds and a real mix'n'match as seen on original segs, made of brass, bronze and steel.

OOOooo, a real kludge, neato! Mike Bishop will love it.

Magnus wrote:

I in no way said that the segmentata came about as a direct result of the Roman Gladius.

Oh, good! We were worried about you, hee hee!

Matt Amt, you said that there were other types of plate armour in use by other cultures...yet none resemble the segmentata, nor are they constructed quite the same (at least the examples you gave).

Right, the iron cuirass from Vergina (the sort of thing which may have been the basis for the Roman style of muscle cuirass--ask Travis Clark!), segmented arm and leg guards from Parthia and other eastern spots, and a few other bits and pieces. There are also tantalizing little things such as the lorica hamata on the guy on the Ahenobarbus relief with non-mail-looking shoulder flaps--we assume these are leather or fabric or covered mail, but what if they're iron plate? There could be more little "missing links" along the way. But it's possible that some guy was looking at a solid cuirass and a segmented manica, and a little light went on in his head. Bing! "Hey, what if..." Since we don't *know* of many missing links, that's as good a possibility as any.

But it still doesn't tell us WHY!

Matthew