08-17-2003, 10:23 AM
For a good story on vaseline, see the off topic board. I'll try and post it later..<br>
Absolutely right, vaseline is an excellent protector. The same can be said of all the modern lubricants specially designed for weapon maintenance and rust protection.<br>
But vaseline did not exist then. It's a mineral lubricant. The whole darn problem is that the ancients did not have the very specialized lubricants we have nowadays.<br>
And the theory of the segmentata being abandoned because of its frailty maybe be confirmed by the puzzling differences between Trajan's column where the legionaries are depicted wearing it, and the Admaklissi trophy, where they all wear mail.<br>
Trajan's column could represent the army at the start of the campaign, and the Adamklissi monument the army after several months of hard campaigning in the barbaricum, having switched to more easily maintained mail.<br>
However some scuptural evidence from the area of Trajan's campaigns points to the use of segmentatas as well and segmentatas are shown on the arch of Septimus in Rome.<br>
Mysteries.. Mysteries..<br>
I am not the only one to be puzzled by this. Others far more knowledgeable than I also expressed their surprise at the fact that the segementata, one of the earliest form of articulated plate armour, follows an logical evolution towards a simpler, sturdier protection until a point. Then this evolution, which could have continued, stops abruptly and the soldiers revert to armour types that were already very ancient then.<br>
It goes against logic somewhat. It certainly goes against the later medieval evidence, when plate armour reappeared first as two rough slabs of iron to protect the front an back and eventually turned into the masterpieces of the maximilian style after several centuries of constant evolution and improvement.<br>
The Romans could carry water over hundreds of miles. They could build huge structure that are still standing today for some, they were an iron rich, technologically advanced civlisation. They routinely built ships more than fifty meters in lenght, they had plumbing, sophisticated mechanical systems and so on and yet the evolution of a very promising type of cuirass ceased at some point.<br>
For lack of a better explanation, the practicality argument seems to be the most valid so far. The segmentata undertook an evolution during the relatively peaceful 1st/2nd centuries, then its evolution stopped and it was eventually discarded because the uyrgency of the situation did not allow that kind of luxury any longer.<br>
Actually an similar phenomenon can be observed during WWII when the British, desperately short of weapons, developed the Sten submachine gun, nicknamed "the plumbers delight", and which was ugly, dangerous to handle, uncomfortable to shoot and lacking any finish whatsosever. But it was there and it was cheap and quick to produce.<br>
Incidentally the method of fabrication, stamping instead of forging, was subsequently followed by everybody and is now the standard method. <p></p><i></i>
Absolutely right, vaseline is an excellent protector. The same can be said of all the modern lubricants specially designed for weapon maintenance and rust protection.<br>
But vaseline did not exist then. It's a mineral lubricant. The whole darn problem is that the ancients did not have the very specialized lubricants we have nowadays.<br>
And the theory of the segmentata being abandoned because of its frailty maybe be confirmed by the puzzling differences between Trajan's column where the legionaries are depicted wearing it, and the Admaklissi trophy, where they all wear mail.<br>
Trajan's column could represent the army at the start of the campaign, and the Adamklissi monument the army after several months of hard campaigning in the barbaricum, having switched to more easily maintained mail.<br>
However some scuptural evidence from the area of Trajan's campaigns points to the use of segmentatas as well and segmentatas are shown on the arch of Septimus in Rome.<br>
Mysteries.. Mysteries..<br>
I am not the only one to be puzzled by this. Others far more knowledgeable than I also expressed their surprise at the fact that the segementata, one of the earliest form of articulated plate armour, follows an logical evolution towards a simpler, sturdier protection until a point. Then this evolution, which could have continued, stops abruptly and the soldiers revert to armour types that were already very ancient then.<br>
It goes against logic somewhat. It certainly goes against the later medieval evidence, when plate armour reappeared first as two rough slabs of iron to protect the front an back and eventually turned into the masterpieces of the maximilian style after several centuries of constant evolution and improvement.<br>
The Romans could carry water over hundreds of miles. They could build huge structure that are still standing today for some, they were an iron rich, technologically advanced civlisation. They routinely built ships more than fifty meters in lenght, they had plumbing, sophisticated mechanical systems and so on and yet the evolution of a very promising type of cuirass ceased at some point.<br>
For lack of a better explanation, the practicality argument seems to be the most valid so far. The segmentata undertook an evolution during the relatively peaceful 1st/2nd centuries, then its evolution stopped and it was eventually discarded because the uyrgency of the situation did not allow that kind of luxury any longer.<br>
Actually an similar phenomenon can be observed during WWII when the British, desperately short of weapons, developed the Sten submachine gun, nicknamed "the plumbers delight", and which was ugly, dangerous to handle, uncomfortable to shoot and lacking any finish whatsosever. But it was there and it was cheap and quick to produce.<br>
Incidentally the method of fabrication, stamping instead of forging, was subsequently followed by everybody and is now the standard method. <p></p><i></i>
