Armor in non-military/gladiatorial context

[john roberts]

The recent Imperial-Italic A thread caused me to speculate about something: We know that soldiers and gladiators wore helmets and armor, but who else might have? Vigiles have been speculated, and a helmet is certainly practical for fire fighters and those expected to break up brawls and apprehend lawbreakers. I've seen reliefs of men leading slaves (or prisoners) by ropes who seem to be wearing helmets and perhaps some sort of armor. Any ideas about others who might have worn helmets and/or armor? Perhaps paramilitary types like city guards, bodyguards, slave traffickers, and so forth? Here I exempt "sports equipment" helmets of the sort sometimes worn by charioteers and boxers. (Mods, if you think this belongs in Civ Talk or elsewhere, feel free to move).

[jho]

I believe that Graham Sumner published a relief of a Roman paramilitary civic militia/policeman (Diogmitas) from Ephesos(?) in one of his books on Roman clothing. But, if I recollect correctly, he was wearing some sort of body protection but no helmet.

I just note that one of these reliefs (Marcus Aurelius Diodorus from Hierapolis/Pammukkale) is actually in the imagebase.

Many Montefortino/Mannheim helmets were found in shipwrecks, and, unless we assume that all had a military guard, it may have been standard practice to carry a limited amount of armour for fighting pirates.

[Epictetus]

We have to be careful of this source, but in the Satyricon Trimalcho has a "vast armory." Also, during the feast there is a demonstration by "an armed band" which "clashed spears on shields."

The implication is that very rich men, like Trimalcho, have armoured body guards of some sort. This is fiction, but I don't think it would stretch the imagination to think the author got the idea from real life.

We know from Livy and others that very early in Rome's history these private armies or paramilitary organisations were quite common. The Claudii even conducted a private war.