Late roman officer and Lorica Musculata!

[Nathan Ross]

Is their any archaelogical finds of Musculata in a late roman context?

There are none in any Roman context, as far as I know. We have Greek examples, as the Greeks customarily deposited armour in tombs. The Romans didn't, and as I say a musculata cuirass has less bits to get lost or discarded, and could possibly have lasted for many years of service. There are very few finds of complete Roman body armour anyway (only the South Shields mail shirt springs to mind, and that was lost in the debris after a fire), so it's perhaps not surprising that no musculata have survived.

Actually the fighting scenes of the arch of Constantine show most soldiers apparently wearing no armour at all. The individual figures at the front and end of formations who appear to wear muscle cuirasses with pteryges could be interpreted as officers.

Thanks for the comprehensive summary! You're quite right that it's not clear what sort of armour, if any, the soldiers with the large shields in this frieze are wearing. The smaller figure to the right of the 'general' might be a tribune, or a centurion, or he might be one of the troops (he seems otherwise to be dressed and equipped much like the other men). Interesting that the emperor/general figure also has a shield - but he's leaning on it, not carrying it. Perhaps this is a reference to a specific incident (like the collapsing bridge in the next frieze) in which Constantine himself took the field alongside his men?

As for those cuirasses that appear to cover the shoulder - this is still a mystery!