I have been asked to make an armilla for someone but am having difficulty tracking down references or examples of originals. These are the wrist awards that I have seen a number of reenactors wearing during Roman shows.
Are they real, I am having trouble tracking anything down, but must admit that it is not an area of expertise at all, in fact I have only just learnt how to spell the word relatively correctly.
Can anyone help point me in the correct direction?
Thanks for sharing the Crummy's article! The french Instrumentum it's a very good series of books (and quite expensive !!).
If it can be useful, I attached photos of a glit-bronze armilla found in the roman legion camp of Vindonissa(Windisch, CH), established 9-13 AD.
Best
[attachment=4057]armillaVind0.jpg[/attachment]
[attachment=4058]armillaVind1.jpg[/attachment] (Vindonissa Museum - Brugg,CH; from roma-victrix)
Stefano
I do like the picture you have shown of the piece found at Vindonissa however do you have other views of this, for in the second picture down it shows to the left what might be the fixing point or indeed a hinge point of this armilla.
Why I ask is that in the past I have made many of these and I have used a hinge and at 180 degree from that point a locking point that carries a pin and this is what I would like to discover about this particular piece.
Graham.
As I have mentioned that in the past I have made many of these things and what I do is to make the wristband in two halves, but also at the ends they need to have hinge tubes that will fit the two halves together.
This is where each half has to have a double tube at one end and a single central tube at the other, this way the two halves can be put together with a long pin that is eventualy peened in as a long rivet and the hinge at the other end can take a long pin with a decorative ball on one end that simply closes the wristband when fitted.
What I have done with mine is to create a picture in fine repousse' with brass or silver sheet of around 7 thou' of an inch thickness this is then folded over the outer half of the wristband. Then when closed with it's pin the picture can be seen at the outside view, I often make a boarder for the picture and also cover the inner half with thin sheet but only the boarder to that piece no picture.
When creating the two halves I make them in 20 guage -9mm but make them about 3mm greater than the persons wrist measurement all round to allow for fitting leather to both halves when complete.
do you have other views of this, for in the second picture down it shows to the left what might be the fixing point or indeed a hinge point of this armilla.
Hello!
Unfortunately I don’t have pictures of other views of this piece, I am familiar with it but I just use the photos from the roma-victrix web site. However, after your post, I tried (without a lot of success :-? ) to find some more about this particular armilla… I checked some catalogs, also the book “Katalog der Militaria von Vindonissa, Brugg (1997)”, but no trace of the armilla in it. From my experience with the Vindonissa Museum I can suggest to contact directly the Musum or, maybe it’s better, the association Gesellschaft Pro Vindonissa. They are very kind and available, and I believe that they can e-mail you some photos of the fixing-hinge point or other specific documentation. By the way, If I find some images or something I will certainly contact you.
Now I am curious about this… Where can I see one of the exemplars you have made?
I do not have pictures of the many I have done but here is a quick picture taken of a part of one that has been in my workshop for some time not completed views of front and back.
This one was made from very thin silver sheet backed onto thin brass sheet, and is 42mm in width which I imagine is about the size of the one from Vindonissa.
The only other place where copies of my other ones can be seen are worn by some members of the 2nd Avgvsta Roman group in England, many of which were given out by the Commander the late Doug' Arnold as awards to members of the group and they had both the Capricorn and Pegasus that are the symbols of the group.
What I do find of interest is that the Vindonissa piece appears to have had a fine metal covering also on the inside of the under metal.
Indeed, the armilla from Vindonissa, besides the quality, seems to have 2 glit covering sheets. As far I can see from the photo, the inside sheet seems made also to lodge the external decorative sheet. Pity to not have the draw.
Joe.
It was just one of my ideas but based upon the 2nd Avgvsta groups symbols of Capricorn and Pegasus, and it has been in my workshop for some time incomplete for I have now retired from Roman armour making due to health reasons.
I only put up the picture of it when Stefano was wanting to see some of my work on these things, as I mentioned there the late Doug' Arnold who was Commander of the group at times liked to award them to guys in the group.
