02-07-2011, 06:20 PM
I have just completed a provisional version of my article "A suggested reconstruction of Vitruvius'Stone-thrower: de Architectura Book X, 11, 4-9". This offers a revised edition of Vitruvius' text, with all variant readings in the mss, and a description of the full-size 2 librae version constructed by Len Morgan. The article will be accessible in the next day or two as a PDF on the Roman Military Research Society's website. Because no parts of this type of stone-thrower have been identified to date we are no better off in that respect than Erwin Schramm in the early 20th century. So hopefully a better understanding of the Latin text (Schramm did not publish the ms variant readings) will bring some improvements in our understanding of this machine.