Roman armour

[Palatine]

Hello, I just wanted to ask if most of the Roman legions wore the lorica segmenta, and if the Romans had uniformity in their dress, or was it anything goes. Because when I observe Roman historical reenactments they seem to be uniformly dressed, and I was wondering is this a sterotype of what we today think they dressed as or was it an actuality.I would appreciate any input. Thank You.

[Robert Vermaat]

Hi Oleg,

I'll move this post to the proper section (discussing Roman dress & armour is neither a rule nor an announcement).

This topic has seen much discussion already. Regardless which period you're discussing, uniformity has never been proven. The uniformity that we might see (such as on Trajan's column) is more likely to have been an artistic licence that a realistic representation of the actual situation.

You question about armour is depending on the period. Btween the first decade AD and the mid-3rd century, the answer is probably ýes'. before or after that period, 'no'.

[Natasha]

Hello, I was also wondering how much did their armor cost at that time?

I am trying to find a cost of a Roman Legionnaires FULL KIT in 64 BC.

Any info much appreciated!

Thanks

[A_Volpe]

I agree with Robert - Very little evidence suggests Romans held any [modern] concept of "uniform", and most likely looked as mis-matched with different types of gear as could be. How "popular" say the Lorica Segmentata could have been during its use through the 1-2nd centuries is anyone's guess. We just do not have a solid proof or source saying who wore what, when, and for how long, or even why.

We still do not have a solid chronology for all of the helmets that have been found. From what it appears, "new" gear starts to be phased it, while "old", "obsolete" gear eventually fades out of use as the new fashions take over.

The problem reenacting Romans today is that since we have so few archaeological pieces to base our reconstructions, we inevitably end up with a lot of people wearing nearly identical gear. It is a slight advantage to us where we can allow a little flexibility in how close/accurate the gear looks based on its actual surviving example, of course, how detailed you are allowed is going to depend on what you or your group's standards are going to be set for.

So, in a manner of speaking, what we see today in reconstruction, with a lot of soldiers wearing similar gear, but yet in a variety in type (between segmentata, maille, scale, no armor), as well as a wide variety of brass and iron helmets - I think feels fairly accurate, but keep in mind that's what -I- think, based on the research I've done and from what I have seen in other group's research and reconstruction. Your results may vary.

As for items like clothing, I recommend the work done by Graham Sumner ("Roman Military Clothing I, II, III from Osprey; and "Roman Military Dress" from The History Press), also look for D'Amato and Sumner's "Arms and Armour of the Imperial Roman Soldier" from Frontline Books.

[Forty-One]

There's also the notion that obsolescence of equipment as it is known today didn't really exist in ancient times. This might also encourage the retention of serviceable articles for long periods after they may have strictly gone out of fashion.

[Gaius Colletti]

What degree of uniformity are we talking about? While most will agree segmentata was the mainstream armor during the most prosperous times in the empire, it is safe to say that each soldiers kit varied. Baltus were often customized, and while the majority of legionnaires had segmentata and Imperial-style helmets, what style they had most likely varied, but then again all the Imperial Gallic and Italic helmets followed the same basic pattern and look. So was at one point everyone wearing a Corbridge segmentata A, and a Gallic G helmet? No, each kit varied to some extent. However to the casual public, the Roman legions I think did appear to be wearing the same thing, with maybe some hamata or squamata, even a coolus here or there.

All the Imperial-style helmets (minus Gallic A) have brass edging for the sole purpose of being fashionable, I cannot imagine there was not more or less uniformity in the legions

[Gaius Colletti]

Natasha- It is almost impossible to determine how much a full kit or armor cost in the Roman period. At one point, before the Marian Reforms, a historian (I want to say Polybius but I'm not sure) at the time said that any citizen with 10,000 denarii could get chainmail (hamata) armor. That is a great start, except for the fact that we cannott pinpoint how much 10,000 denarii was worth. The denarius was coined for nearly 500 years, so just as $100 was worth much more a century ago than it is today, you can imagine how much the value of the denarii changed over 500 years as the Empire prospered and fell into crisis, inflation played a major factor, that goes without saying.