06-11-2008, 07:45 PM
Avete!
We can't prove that there was a uniform tunic color! The Romans were very fashion-conscious and they may certainly have followed colored fashions at some times and under some circumstances. But even in any one legion the men were from a variety of cultural backgrounds, and we have nothing to suggest a *regulation* for colors or shapes of tunics. We DO know that the legionaries who entered Rome during the Year of Four Emperors were not recognizable as such to the local residents!
Likewise, it is entirely possible that shield size was determined by body size. In Legio XX, I recommend a height from shoulders to knees, so that it does not interfere with pack or legs when slung on the back on the march. The shields found at Dura Europas were different sizes.
It is generally believed that each legion had its own shield emblem, but even that is hard to prove. The exact shades of each color must have varied, and certainly the quality and details of the work had to vary. Plus there were different shapes in use at the same time, different styles of boss (and in iron or brass), and probably different materials used for the rim. Bottom line, no real uniformity even if the emblem was basically the same.
There are only 3 or 4 basic styles of gladius from which to choose, but also a variety of hilt materials, and a large number of surviving scabbards from which to choose. Plus different options in colors for the leather, plain brass or tinned, etc. So yes, everyone's sword can still be different.
There isn't quite as much choice for armor, overall, though you can still get variations in the length of a hamata, or the shape of the shoulder flaps, style of chest hooks, and such. For lorica segmentata you have Corbridge A or B, or some interpretation of the Kalkriese style, plus a few options for tinning, but the differences won't be all that dramatic at a distance. Might be neat to see more scale armor showing up!
Strictly speaking, there is evidence that not all legionaries wore body armor! So you could throw that in as another option.
The thing to remember is that even with all this potential variation, a large body of legionaries could very well appear pretty uniform from any distance, at least if the basic background color of the shield is more or less the same. My wife has said that when a line of us are marching around the field, she can't pick me out of the crowd--and I'm usually the guy in command!
http://www.larp.com/legioxx/march6.jpg
http://www.larp.com/legioxx/rd02i.jpg
While I don't really feel that "what the public expects to see" should be much of a factor, I do agree that showing as much variety as possible can be more educational. It simply shows the audience that there WAS variety. So I'm not averse to possibly over-emphasizing variety for that reason. But from the standpoint of laziness, it's vastly easier to let everyone to be different than it would be to try to get them to look the same!
Valete,
Matthew
We can't prove that there was a uniform tunic color! The Romans were very fashion-conscious and they may certainly have followed colored fashions at some times and under some circumstances. But even in any one legion the men were from a variety of cultural backgrounds, and we have nothing to suggest a *regulation* for colors or shapes of tunics. We DO know that the legionaries who entered Rome during the Year of Four Emperors were not recognizable as such to the local residents!
Likewise, it is entirely possible that shield size was determined by body size. In Legio XX, I recommend a height from shoulders to knees, so that it does not interfere with pack or legs when slung on the back on the march. The shields found at Dura Europas were different sizes.
It is generally believed that each legion had its own shield emblem, but even that is hard to prove. The exact shades of each color must have varied, and certainly the quality and details of the work had to vary. Plus there were different shapes in use at the same time, different styles of boss (and in iron or brass), and probably different materials used for the rim. Bottom line, no real uniformity even if the emblem was basically the same.
There are only 3 or 4 basic styles of gladius from which to choose, but also a variety of hilt materials, and a large number of surviving scabbards from which to choose. Plus different options in colors for the leather, plain brass or tinned, etc. So yes, everyone's sword can still be different.
There isn't quite as much choice for armor, overall, though you can still get variations in the length of a hamata, or the shape of the shoulder flaps, style of chest hooks, and such. For lorica segmentata you have Corbridge A or B, or some interpretation of the Kalkriese style, plus a few options for tinning, but the differences won't be all that dramatic at a distance. Might be neat to see more scale armor showing up!
Strictly speaking, there is evidence that not all legionaries wore body armor! So you could throw that in as another option.
The thing to remember is that even with all this potential variation, a large body of legionaries could very well appear pretty uniform from any distance, at least if the basic background color of the shield is more or less the same. My wife has said that when a line of us are marching around the field, she can't pick me out of the crowd--and I'm usually the guy in command!
http://www.larp.com/legioxx/march6.jpg
http://www.larp.com/legioxx/rd02i.jpg
While I don't really feel that "what the public expects to see" should be much of a factor, I do agree that showing as much variety as possible can be more educational. It simply shows the audience that there WAS variety. So I'm not averse to possibly over-emphasizing variety for that reason. But from the standpoint of laziness, it's vastly easier to let everyone to be different than it would be to try to get them to look the same!
Valete,
Matthew
Matthew Amt (Quintus)
Legio XX, USA
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.larp.com/legioxx/">http://www.larp.com/legioxx/
Legio XX, USA
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.larp.com/legioxx/">http://www.larp.com/legioxx/
