Late Roman use of Bronze musculata

[Paulus Claudius Damianus]

What is this Milan late roman group?

[Robert Vermaat]

What is this Milan late roman group?

http://www.romanarmy.com/rat/viewtopic.php?t=20162

Not one group but at least elements from three groups as far as I heard, with no Late Roman experience and only 2 months preparation time.. Not bad for absolute beginners eh? But plenty of room for improvement apart from that! Maybe a nice event for all of us, next year?

[Paulus Claudius Damianus]

Right! not so bad to 2 month beginners. I wish they continue the late roman reenactment. Happy to see Heculiani Seniores reborn!

[Paullus Scipio]

If one takes the trouble to read Agraes/Benjamin's posted link, one sees supporting evidence for what the renaissance artist depicted in respect of "lost columns" - the sarcophagi and fragments of columns consistently show musculata.

It is clear therefore that in Art, the Musculata was depicted far more frequently than in earlier times.

The question remains however, as to whether this is the result of artistic fashion, or a reflection of actual usage. As Robert and I (and others!) agree, the problem is lack of evidence.........

The biggest factor 'against', to my mind, is the lack of any supporting evidence in the archaeological record.....but I have nagging doubts there.
The few 'musculata' that survive come from Etruscan or Hellenistic tombs where the equipment was deliberately buried with the deceased. Outside of these few examples, none survive from any period - though we know musculata were in use from Art. Perhaps such a large and expensive piece of metal was simply too valuable not to be recycled.

If we accept the widespread use of musculata from Art alone in earlier periods, what then of the Late Roman period when it is even more widely shown ?

P.S. This is my one thousandth post on RAT....so I shall reflect on this minor milestone!

[Theodosius the Great]

So, to our Late Romans out there, I know I have made a number of assumptions from a second-hand (well, third-hand actually) source but it certainly seems possible to me that our Renaissance Artist actually painted what he saw, and rank-and-file could be equipped with musculata..........or is this thought just too radical?

We may not have to stoop to using Renaissance reproductions to arrive at your conclusion. There is a sculpture from Housesteads depicting an Auxiliary (!) soldier wearing a musculata. I presume it is a funerary monument and that it dates to approximately the early to mid-third century (the author irritatingly doesn't give more details.) The double rows of pteruges on both shoulders and waist, the broad baldric, the scabbard, the circular concave shield, and the hasta all suggest to me a mid to late period timeframe.
[attachment=0:32bq9iqe]<!-- ia0 Housesteads Musculata.JPG<!-- ia0 [/attachment:32bq9iqe]
The soldier's goofy headdress may raise doubts about the truthful representation of his armor but the rest of his kit seems very period, non-anachronistic. I wonder what the musculata skeptics will have to say since they give much more credence to funerary monuments than to imperial art. hmm....

~Theo