Roman Legionary Child's Costume

[sindex]

My 9-year-old has been studying the Romans at school and recently had a 'dress like a Roman' day.  I went into nerd overdrive and created him (more-or-less from scratch) a legionary costume.  I think it's pretty close to how a legionary would have looked in the 1st century AD, but I'm in the right place to be told otherwise!  Feedback welcome.

Pics below - enjoy!

(Apologies for the size of the images - I wasn't sure how to shrink them down).

Creating the segmentata:



Picture hooks and a shoelace to create the lacing:



A good fit!:



Making the gladius and scabbard:





Letting the paint dry:



The helmet was the most difficult part:



Some help from Adrian Goldsworthy:



Cheek flaps attached:



Cingulum militare - mostly made from old belts scavenged from various charity shops:



The finished armour:



Posing in the garden:

[Robert Vermaat]

Wow.. I call that 'parenting done right'! I bet your son is proud of that outfit.

The only problem I foresee.. how to top that one next year?

[Longovicium]

That's a lovely kit and more accurate than 'some' commercially available out there. My dad made me a US cavalry fort once but I broke a corner tower and he gave up after that . . .

[brennivs - tony drake]

Just absolutely brillant 
Regards Brennivs 

[Crispvs]

Very nice indeed! When I was his age I had to make do with clanking around with brightly coloured steel cans (with tops and bottoms cut out) on my arms and legs and a sword made out of pieces of beading. You son is very lucky to have you for his dad.

You should bring him to an event in it before he grows out of it. It is always nice to see the efforts parents go to and yours is a particularly good effort. Often children feel a great sense of validation too when they see adults equipped similarly to them. What part of the country are you based in?

Crispvs

[sindex]

Hello chaps, thanks for the kind feedback and apologies for the late response.

We live about 6 miles out of Loughorough, so Nottingham and Leicester both not far away.  Are there any local groups I could take him to?

[Crispvs]

Events happen all over the country and groups go to where the events are, rather than the other way around. We (the RMRS) are nominally based at the Lunt Fort in Baginton, just outside Coventry, but realistically that is where we train rather than put on displays normally. We were in Peterborough over the weekend, which might have been convenient for you if you had known in time.

Our next event is at Ribchester on 8-9 July and then Chedworth Villa on 29-30 July. We were due to be doing a show at Jewry Wall Museum in Leicester in August, which would have been convenient for you, but sadly that was cancelled due to the museum being closed for restoration. Other groups will have their own programmes of events too and one of them might have something on in your neck of the woods.

If you click on the link at the bottom of my post and then go to our Links pages, you should be able to get to the websites of a number of other groups, where you should be able to see their programmes for the year.

Crispvs

[Scipio Severus]

Nice Job!

[Americus]

That is really great, Dad!
When I was a little kid, my chain mail armor was made from a burlap bag spray painted silver.
My gladius was carved from wood, but not very realistic looking, and without a scabbard.  My shield was of cardboard.
I didn't have a helmet.
Your son is very lucky to have such a great kit.
I hope his interest continues.

[Gunthamund Hasding]

Great job