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Caligae sources
#16
Martin, your caligae are very nice and close to the original. Where is possible to get the pattern? I'm thinking in made another pair of them.
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#17
Ave,Ummos(Martin).

Those are really great looking.

I also would like to see the pattern.
BTW-I couldn't see the photo until
I started to respond,then it appeared
with the response box.

If you decide to go into the Caligae business
please let me know.
Andy Booker

Gaivs Antonivs Satvrninvs

Andronikos of Athens
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#18
And while we talkin about, does someone knows a god adress to get good caligae and calcei? I know some young men with not really much money... Big Grin
real Name Tobias Gabrys

Flavii <a class="postlink" href="http://www.flavii.de">www.flavii.de
& Hetairoi <a class="postlink" href="http://www.hetairoi.de">www.hetairoi.de
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#19
Well, in fact my calligae have too narrow strips. it was the first pair i have made and then the rest have the most tipical pattern with "too much leather and too little skin".

[Image: imper1.jpg]
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#20
Hi,

here is the pattern I used. Not a very good picture, but I hope it will do...

As I said before, front 1/3rd is not according to the original. If you want to use my pattern, try and improve that. please. Cf. the Mainz caliga find, e.g. at

www.ledermuseum.de/DLM/vollbild/seiten/03.htm

or the sources I cited above.

I am using leather tanned in the old way ("vegetabil gegerbt" in German), i.e. w/o the use of crome or other modern ways of tanning. At least more healthy to wear directly on your skin and probably/hopefully better suited to the purpose. More expensive, too, unfortunately.

I always cut out the openings of the straps too short, then wear the shoes for a while, preferably also walking through high wet grass to get them really wet, as the leather tends to lenghten a bit then. Of course I oil the shoes before that - the tanner I buy my leather at advised me to use Rinderklauenoel (literally translated cattle hooves' oil).
After the leather has settled on the foot I recut the strap openings to the proper length.

Quote:If you decide to go into the Caligae business
please let me know.

Don't tempt me :-) )

Hope that helps some, if there's anything else, please feel free to ask.

Martin

PS: Cesar, I think those are pretty good in terms of leather thickness as far as I can make out, why do you say they are too narrow?
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#21
This is very similar to the Mainz caligae:
Valkenburg caligae cutting pattern
Titus Licinius Neuraleanus
aka Lee Holeva
Conscribe te militem in legionibus, vide mundum, inveni terras externas, cognosce miros peregrinos, eviscera eos.
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.legiotricesima.org">http://www.legiotricesima.org
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#22
Hi Titus,

yes, especially in terms of how delicate the straps are. Never saw anybody wearing a pair of those, wonder what they would look like on the feet with those decorations. (Actually I plan to make a pair of those over the next few weeks.)

cheers,

Martin
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#23
What's the function of the upper strap? The one wit a heart terminal.
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#24
Hi Cesar,

as you will have noticed, they are on both sides of the upper ending of the caliga and only have decorative value. Quite a few of the caligae finds have such decorative straps. It's a bit hard to see, but you can make at least one of them out on the pictures of the caligae I made, posted a couple of posts above. They are not in the pattern I posted, though, as they are not relevant there.

cheers,

Martin
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#25
Thanks a lot!
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#26
On my last pair of caligae I clinched over the ends of the hobnails. This keeps the hobnails in place, but you feel the chinched ends. Does everyone do this or simply stick the nails in and cut the ends, ot trim the ends and clinch a smaller amount?
Titus Licinius Neuraleanus
aka Lee Holeva
Conscribe te militem in legionibus, vide mundum, inveni terras externas, cognosce miros peregrinos, eviscera eos.
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.legiotricesima.org">http://www.legiotricesima.org
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#27
Quote:On my last pair of caligae I clinched over the ends of the hobnails. This keeps the hobnails in place, but you feel the chinched ends. Does everyone do this or simply stick the nails in and cut the ends, ot trim the ends and clinch a smaller amount?

I use a (shoemaker's) anvil when nailing the sole. This makes the nails bend and lay down even with the surface of the medium of the 3 layers that form the caliga. The last layer, i.e. the insole, only goes in after the nailing. I have never had problems with the nails so far, I hardly ever loose any nor do I feel them (except when I step on my own toes ... :-) ) ).

cheers,

Martin
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#28
So, the last layer is put before the nailing. Or not? It's glued or stitched?

And when you need to replace a hobnail, what's the method to do it?
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#29
Hi Cesar,

sorry I didn't make myself clear enough. The nails only go through the lowest (the sole) and the medium layer (the same piece of leather all the straps are cut out from). The upper, 3rd layer (the insole you actually place your foot on) comes in afterwards, covering the flattened nail ends. Normally I only glue it in.

Replacing a nail: the best obviously is to remove the insole, replace the nail and put the insole back in place. I have found, though, that when you replace a nail an hammer it in thoroughly using an anvil you can make it sink into the leather quite well, so that you do not necessarily need to remove the insole before. Depends on the location of the replacement as well, I think. If it were under the heel where most of your weight comes down when walking I would prefer to have it not going through the insole.

cheers,

Martin
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#30
Thanks, again.

We are very lucky to have an expert in roman shoemaking like you here in RAT.

I supose the sole and the insole are thicker than the medium layer, where the pattern is cuted.

I don't have leather publications, so...

What are the ticknesses of the real leather calligae publicated? All of them are make of cow leather or there are goat or another animals leather?
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