Legionary Crests

[Caballo]

I'd like to question one of the seemingly accepted conventions- that is that most legionary helmets had crests looking like this rather splendid optio from the Ermine Street Guard- ie a raised crest holder supporting a fore and aft crest box.
http://www.esg.ndirect.co.uk/MegaArchiv ... pt_jpg.htm
Firstly, no representations in sculpture or pictorial art that I have seen show this. There are plenty of early sculptures showing a single horsehair plume, and even more of Attic helmets with a small crest box close to the head, like these ones with Marcus Aurelius below. I've never seen a small crest box like that on a re-enactor's head! Unlike Robinson, I am not convinced that all these scuptural representations can be discarded as artistic convention.

Secondly, were any of the "crest fittings" actually found with a helmet- or were they found separately and "fiited"? ( A genuine question- I don't know.)
If the latter, there appears to be a fairly weak case for the crest accepted as the norm in Roman re-enactment, and it may be largely conjecture.
Look forwards to your comments!
Paulus Britannicus

[Quintius Clavus]

I had to go to my "The Armour of Imperial Rome" by H. Russell Robinson to refresh my memory that the supports for the crest box have, indeed, been found on Roman military sites. They have!! - See pages 46 and 47. Along with the sheet metal plate riveted to the top of Imperial Gallic helmets or the circular slotted plate mounted on the top of Imperial Italic helmets, it is pretty clear how the crests were mounted. Robinson conjectured that the crest box, itself, was made of wood and at most may have been covered with a thin sheet of metal (copper alloy is assumed). The Romans regularly recycled copper alloy, which is one possible explanation why no one (as far as I know) has found any "crestbox shaped metal on military sites. Robinson went on to suggest that the horsehair or feathers would have been stuck in with pitch or some similar mastic/adhesive, just as most are done now, or as is done for brooms. In addition, some the helmets found in these same two classes, are fitted with the necessary hooks or loops to secure the ends of the crest box.
Robinson discusses crests in their own chapter, pages 140-143.
Helmets have also been found with side plume tubes (my Coolus E, based on one found in the Thames, has them). A photogragh in Robinson's book shows a legionary tombstone, of Caius Castricius of Legio II Adiutrix, Aquincum, who has what appears to be a central horsehair crest and feathers on both sides of his helmet. I don't unfortunately have at hand the text that goes with the tombstone. So,... I simply don't know if his rank was beyond that of ordinary legionary ranker soldier. He does NOT carry any staff, only a pair of pila in his right hand and an oval shield, with a possible Medusa face boss and thunderbolts supported by his left. Of course, in the interest of showing his face, the helmet around his face is very much scaled back. His tombstone is likely in the database of military tombstones on Roman Army.com.
'nough said, hope this sheds some light on the issue of crests.

Marcus Quintius Clavus/Quinton

[Dan Diffendale]

tombstone of C. Castricius Victor

[Caballo]

Absolutely agree that Victor of Leg II Adiutrix has a central crest as well as the two side plumes (strikingly similar to the Gallic I , which has been linked with this unit).
However, I do not see the central support that I would expect if the "conventional" crest holder was being used.
So, unless there are other examples out there, is it safe to say that the crest holder re-construction is based on archeological finds at military sites, and a putative re-construction, but that no epigraphic evidence exists?

Regards

Paulus

[Quintius Clavus]

The only example of epigraphical evidence of the thin central support on specifically Roman helmets that I am aware of is that on the tombstone of the centurion, T. Calidius Severus. His helmet, shown full frontally, has its transverse crest mounted on the thin support.

There are also Italian examples in artwork showing crests mounted on thin supports.

I might add, that when my arched horsehair crest is mounted on my Aguincum type Imperial Gallic I, it ties down at both ends touching the rings mounted on the helmet bowl, and full frontally, one cannot see the crest knob supporting it.

One always has to use a little judgment when looking at sculpture and artwork in Rome during the principate, because there is so much reliance on convention, and by this period far fewer of the men producing the art in Rome had seen the actual equipment. However, that said, the lack of archaeological finds may reflect more upon metal items being recycled, and thus simply not making it into the archaeological record. It is quite possible that the Praetorian Guard used "traditional" equipment, at least when in Rome. After all, one of the representations of socks being worn by a soldier under his caligae, is from a sculpture of Praetorians. If nothing else, once into the Medieval period, metal was scavenged from all sorts of places including taking all the metal weapons off Trajan's column (they were in metal on the column) to melt down or otherwise rework for other uses.

A final thought, as said in "Roman Military Equipment" by Bishop and Coulston, much of the equipment, etc., which has made it into the archaeological record represents a "snapshot in time". This means that the items reflect a unit's movement from a given site, and is the stuff left behind. Entire units moved fairly frequently in the first and early second centuries AD, but became more static later, or only parts moved, with the main units staying in place. The first century was characterized by entire forts/bases being shut down, abandoned, though occasionally units moved back into an area, but built the new unit base at a slightly different location (Corbridge is such a case). I am sure there are others (Vindolanda?).

It is not a question that there is necessarily only one answer to, as both sculpture and archaeology provide only a glimpse from this great distance in time.

Marcus Quintius Clavus/Quinton

[Praefectusclassis]

Classicus is another one: http://www.romanarmy.com/imb/imagebase-show.asp?ID=204

[mcbishop]

Is now a good time to mention Flavinus?

[url:3uadvs0m]http://www.romanarmy.com/imb/imagebase-show.asp?ID=22[/url]

(who was found in Hexham Abbey, where he still lives, Jasper may be interested to know; it is speculation that he comes from Corbridge, on the grounds that it is slightly closer to Hexham than Chesters).

Mike Bishop

[Praefectusclassis]

(who was found in Hexham Abbey, where he still lives, Jasper may be interested to know; it is speculation that he comes from Corbridge, on the grounds that it is slightly closer to Hexham than Chesters).

Thanks for the heads up Mike! * makes mental note to repair *

[Uwe Bahr]

Britannicus,

Firstly, no representations in sculpture or pictorial art that I have seen show this.

I have a book that shows a little (I hope ancient) figurine with an unarmed Roman legionary with a belted tunica (without armour), a scutum and a helmet. This helmet has a crest that is displayed in a way as the modern reenactors show their crests. And in my opinion this crest at the sculpture is likewise fitted to the soldier's helmet.

I will try to post a picture of the statuette.

Secondly, were any of the "crest fittings" actually found with a helmet- or were they found separately and "fiited"? ( A genuine question- I don't know.)

IIRC there was an Imperial Gallic helmet found in France (Besancon ?) that had still his thin crest fitting. Furtheron, the smaller crest boxes that You refer to on the book cover are all immediately on the helmet's surface while most crest holders have this tiny distance slab from the crest to the helmet.

But there is at least one crest holder that supported a box in such a manner that it also laid directly on the helmet's surface. It was shown on an exhibition at Rome, "Cittadino, soldato e colono", from May to June 2003 (supplied or supported by our two fellow-RAT'ers Dan Peterson and Titus Aquilius). You can find it here in the upper row on the very right side:




Greets - Uwe

[Caballo]

Thanks to all- great info. The likelihood of the crests on a crest holder looks high. I also went back to Robinson and he describes the historical context in the development of the helmet crest very informatively (as ever!).

Uwe- "I have a book that shows a little (I hope ancient) figurine with an unarmed Roman legionary with a belted tunica (without armour), a scutum and a helmet. This helmet has a crest that is displayed in a way as the modern reenactors show their crests. And in my opinion this crest at the sculpture is likewise fitted to the soldier's helmet.

I will try to post a picture of the statuette. " Look forward to this- I don't think I know this figure.

The top right crest holder in Uwe's post is also very interesting- returning to the Aquincum helmet, such a fitting would make huge sense as the crest knob is already in place to raise the crest higher and the horozontal toggle would then slide into the hole. I'll have to try and make one- unless Deepeeka decide to make one for their (I understand) best selling helmet!

Cheers,

Britannicus

[Uwe Bahr]

Ave Britannicus,

here is the photo. In my book it is described as a little contemporary bronze figurine showing a republican soldier, kept in the "Museo Civico Archeologico Bologna". IMHO the crest will have been supported by a thin crest holder as the designer of the sculpture might have seen no other way to represent it.

On the other hand, if the representation was absolutely exact, this would be an up to now unknown type of crest attachment. Also, for me it is unclear what type of helmet the soldier wears, it might be of the pseudo-attic type that Robinson classified as Imperial Italic A.



Greets - Uwe

[drsrob]

Absolutely agree that Victor of Leg II Adiutrix has a central crest as well as the two side plumes (strikingly similar to the Gallic I , which has been linked with this unit).
However, I do not see the central support that I would expect if the "conventional" crest holder was being used.
[...]
Regards

Paulus

The bronze Imperial Gallic I helmets have a ring of solder at the top. Robinson assumed that they therefore used the "Italian system" to mount the raised crest support. However, one surviving helmet of this type has a Coolus-type crest knob. I suspect that the other ones did so too.
This type of helmet I my opinion probably used a different kind of crest.

[Peroni]

A skull unearthed at Kalkriese had an iron crest supprt either in it or under it.

It can be seen here

http://photobucket.com/albums/b242/pero ... senau1.jpg

Regards,