11-29-2005, 04:55 PM
1st-2nd century mosaics that show the color of the gladiator belt uniformly show the same yellow used to represent the bronze of the helmets. I am sure that they were solid bronze, a survival of the old Samnite belt. After all, the earliest gladiators in Rome were called "Samnites." Later developments, especially in the Greek East, definitely show leather belts wrapped many times around the waist, rather like the harness worn by charioteers, often with ring-buckles. Terry Nix sells a very fine Samnite belt with a hippogriff relief. Problem is, to get it you have to buy a triple-disc cuirass as well. It's an ensemble. I am sorely tempted to buy the whole rig just to get the belt.
Pecunia non olet
