03-27-2017, 09:48 AM
Hi again!
I've been busy with other things but saw this thread and couldn't resist.
I've come across this depiction years ago and put some thought into it. Several 1st century cavalrymen stelae show not a mail, but a scale shirt. Vonatorix is shown in a scale shirt with some kind of plate shoulder defence. He has pteruges on the shoulder. The duplicarius Longinus Sdapeze also has a scale armour.
Standard bearers rarely have detailed armour on stelae, but all show a line on the upper arm, suggesting pteruges. Assuming the the scales were painted in, they apparently also wore a similar armour.
Taking all this together I think that in the early empire a special armour for front rank cavalrymen was introduced, consisting of segmentata style shoulder defences attached to a scale shirt. The foundation of the scale shirt would then serve as a arming doublet for the shoulders, with pteruges against the chafing of the plate shoulder defences.
I'm convinced that this front rank armour was combined with a full face mask helmet. Marcus Junkerman has convincingly argued that these were originally combat helmets. Later these face mask helmets were relegated to sports use and the armour possibly dropped altogether.
I've been busy with other things but saw this thread and couldn't resist.
I've come across this depiction years ago and put some thought into it. Several 1st century cavalrymen stelae show not a mail, but a scale shirt. Vonatorix is shown in a scale shirt with some kind of plate shoulder defence. He has pteruges on the shoulder. The duplicarius Longinus Sdapeze also has a scale armour.
Standard bearers rarely have detailed armour on stelae, but all show a line on the upper arm, suggesting pteruges. Assuming the the scales were painted in, they apparently also wore a similar armour.
Taking all this together I think that in the early empire a special armour for front rank cavalrymen was introduced, consisting of segmentata style shoulder defences attached to a scale shirt. The foundation of the scale shirt would then serve as a arming doublet for the shoulders, with pteruges against the chafing of the plate shoulder defences.
I'm convinced that this front rank armour was combined with a full face mask helmet. Marcus Junkerman has convincingly argued that these were originally combat helmets. Later these face mask helmets were relegated to sports use and the armour possibly dropped altogether.
drsrob a.k.a. Rob Wolters
