04-12-2004, 08:40 PM
From page 162-64:<br>
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"As the hoplites on each side began their final run in the last two hundred yards, they lowered the spear and carried it at the side in an underhand grip; this is clear from the literary evidence as well as scenes from vase paintings and sculpture. Momentum and power could be maximized through such an underhand thrust while on the move, and, of course, it was easier this way to maintain both speed and balance. [..]<br>
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Occasionally in these initial attacks there were successful thrusts to the chest - fatal blows that pierced right through the breastplate. Jabs of sufficient force to penetrate bronze or wood armour probably could only be delivered on the run during the final dash. In these cases, as the hoplite covered with the shield in the moments before the collision, the spear would be angled slightly upward and driven at great speed into the large target of the chest. [..]<br>
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That must be the point of Tyrtaois' reference to the soldier who 'sustains the beating wall of assault' and perishes 'with wounds to his chest, where the spear that he was facing has transfixed that massive guard of his shield, and gone through his breastplate as well'. The great Theban general Epamineondas perished thus in the initial phase of the battle of Mantineia; although his charge against the Spartan right wing had been successful, he fell with a spear shaft in his chest, leaving his men unable to capitalize on their victory. [The Spartan general] Aegesilaos, too, at Koroneia probably suffered a similar type of spear wound during the initial crash, since Xenophon says he was 'wounded right through his armour'."<br>
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Hanson points out though that the groin or the upper thighs were the usual targets for the initial thust. After the collision the hoplite, provided he still had his spear, changed to the overhand grip and tried to stab over the opponent's shield. <p></p><i></i>
<br>
"As the hoplites on each side began their final run in the last two hundred yards, they lowered the spear and carried it at the side in an underhand grip; this is clear from the literary evidence as well as scenes from vase paintings and sculpture. Momentum and power could be maximized through such an underhand thrust while on the move, and, of course, it was easier this way to maintain both speed and balance. [..]<br>
<br>
Occasionally in these initial attacks there were successful thrusts to the chest - fatal blows that pierced right through the breastplate. Jabs of sufficient force to penetrate bronze or wood armour probably could only be delivered on the run during the final dash. In these cases, as the hoplite covered with the shield in the moments before the collision, the spear would be angled slightly upward and driven at great speed into the large target of the chest. [..]<br>
<br>
That must be the point of Tyrtaois' reference to the soldier who 'sustains the beating wall of assault' and perishes 'with wounds to his chest, where the spear that he was facing has transfixed that massive guard of his shield, and gone through his breastplate as well'. The great Theban general Epamineondas perished thus in the initial phase of the battle of Mantineia; although his charge against the Spartan right wing had been successful, he fell with a spear shaft in his chest, leaving his men unable to capitalize on their victory. [The Spartan general] Aegesilaos, too, at Koroneia probably suffered a similar type of spear wound during the initial crash, since Xenophon says he was 'wounded right through his armour'."<br>
<br>
Hanson points out though that the groin or the upper thighs were the usual targets for the initial thust. After the collision the hoplite, provided he still had his spear, changed to the overhand grip and tried to stab over the opponent's shield. <p></p><i></i>
