Orlat Battle Plaque\'s Importance

[Alanus]

Back to MeinPanzer,

Frankly it sounds a lot like Ripley's Believe it or Not. Kelenka also mentions Emeror Wen, who probably was of steppe origin, and Gao-zu, plus the first Han emperor, Guang-wudi. She then talks about shaving off supposedly Europoid beards as a Qin form of corporal punishment (which means nothing, since most men have beards, plus a few women I know). And the paragraph ends with a citation to Mair, 2005;70-73.

It might be noted that Kelenka also mentions Lucius Artorius Castus, using Malone as a reference and unaware that Castus was keeper of the castle, not a cavalry leader. Yet she doesn't push any of this stuff too hard, perhaps trying to appeal to a wider reading audience. Part of her book makes sense, and other statements verge on speculation. But it's an interesting companion piece to Dr. Anthony's dry (but well-thought-out) tome.

I'll check out the stuff on the multi-lobed akinakes sheaths, the earliest I think found in the Altai kurgans. A fairly handy item that founds it way into several other cultures, Phrygian, Sassanian, and even down to Arabia.