Belt Research

[Andrew Magee]

So I've been working on Roman forts and come upon a lot of belt pieces in the archaeological record. None of these sources seemed to show any sort of particular military belt research out and about. Would anyone know any specific articles, thesis, dissertations, books, etc. dealing with Roman military belts in whatever fashion (art historical, archaeological, cultural, whatever)?

[Neuraleanus]

One very good article:

"The Early Imperial 'apron'"
Journal of Roman Military Equipment Studies, Vol 3 (1992), pp. 81-104.

[Magnus]

I think M. Bishop made that available online at some point....

[Praefectusclassis]

And I know of a PhD thesis coming up about Roman military belts (that'll be in German though). If you have a VERY specific question, I can try to ask the researcher.

[jvrjenivs]

Can you say a bit about dating. A good one is
The pre-Flavian military belt:Evidence from Britain" by Francis Grew and Nick Griffiths (Archaeologia volume CIX 1991)

But as the title suggest it's about pre-flavian belts, so If you suppose it's of a later date, it can't help you that much.

[mcbishop]

I think M. Bishop made that available online at some point....

He did - it has been on the JRMES website for quite some time but I've now also put it onto Scribd, along with all my other papers.

Mike Bishop

[Eleatic Guest]

And I know of a PhD thesis coming up about Roman military belts (that'll be in German though). If you have a VERY specific question, I can try to ask the researcher.

Please allow me, I have one: When and where did the belt buckle first appear?

[LUCIUS ALFENUS AVITIANUS]

I have another:

What are the actual evidence for belts be made of two layers of thin leather stitched? I mean in the first century.

Thanks.

[Magnus]

I have another:

What are the actual evidence for belts be made of two layers of thin leather stitched? I mean in the first century.

Thanks.

I didn't think there was any evidence...I thought it was reliant on a find from later periods of two pieces of stitched leather that wasn't actually a belt?

[jvrjenivs]

I have another:

What are the actual evidence for belts be made of two layers of thin leather stitched? I mean in the first century.

Thanks.

I didn't think there was any evidence...I thought it was reliant on a find from later periods of two pieces of stitched leather that wasn't actually a belt?

Matt is almost right. It's mostly based on later period belts. But, I think to remember also some Germanic belts with this feature from the 1st century. But I'm not totally sure with that. When I decided to make mine that way I also did that based on different sculptural finds, where we can see some thing that could be stitching along the edges. If it would be a thick leather belt, that stitching wouldn't be necessarily for the belt to be strong enough.

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

But for a thinner leather, it might be used as a stiffening technique?

[Magnus]

I'm not sure Byron...aside from the stitching being a nice aesthetic quality, I would think either thicker belt leather would be a better stiffener, or the belt plates themselves.

[caiusbeerquitius]

[url:3fd31xj3]http://www.romanarmy.com/cms/component/option,com_imagebase/task,view/cid,83/Itemid,94/[/url]

[Magnus]

Is that supposed to be stitching or a bad rendition of belt plates?

If it's stitching, it seems that belt plates aren't really shown on it....how normal was that I wonder.

[caiusbeerquitius]

Quite, I think, since we have no evidence for plated belts for this period.