09-08-2011, 05:52 AM
Hi guys, I have another question about Roman hilts that I would love some help with, that is, if some of you more knowledgable folks around here willing to indulge me.
For quite some time I've been interested in the swords found at Illerup Adal, and it seems to me that there were two basic types. One with the "classic" style of globular pommel and semi-globular guard, and another with flattened pommel and guard, which are of roughly the same size and shape. Now we are not so lucky with every site as to have so many surviving hilts, but even when no hilt material has survived, the two types can be distinguished by the length of their tangs (long = "classic", short =flattened).
My questions are this;
Throughout the empire how did the flattened type compare in popularity to the classic type? Has anyone every made such a comparison?
AFAIK spathae from Illerup Adal date to the third century, is their any evidence for the flattened hilt type before then, and if so when does it date back to?
I've been looking for a bit now but I've not been able to find out much about Roman spathae from the 4th or 5th centuries, but did the "classic" hilt style continue on into these? If not, what style replaced it, the flattened style?
As always I'd be very grateful for any assistance with these questions, and thanks for looking.
For quite some time I've been interested in the swords found at Illerup Adal, and it seems to me that there were two basic types. One with the "classic" style of globular pommel and semi-globular guard, and another with flattened pommel and guard, which are of roughly the same size and shape. Now we are not so lucky with every site as to have so many surviving hilts, but even when no hilt material has survived, the two types can be distinguished by the length of their tangs (long = "classic", short =flattened).
My questions are this;
Throughout the empire how did the flattened type compare in popularity to the classic type? Has anyone every made such a comparison?
AFAIK spathae from Illerup Adal date to the third century, is their any evidence for the flattened hilt type before then, and if so when does it date back to?
I've been looking for a bit now but I've not been able to find out much about Roman spathae from the 4th or 5th centuries, but did the "classic" hilt style continue on into these? If not, what style replaced it, the flattened style?
As always I'd be very grateful for any assistance with these questions, and thanks for looking.
