05-15-2010, 06:09 PM
Quote:Alanus..Did I ever ask you if you knew what tamgae were and if you had ever seen any with your Taefali. I have some nice ones here..probably Alannic
I have an image of Carthage mosaic with an Alan noble riding a horse with a tamga branded on its flank. But I've never found a depiction of an identified Taifalus, period, let alone any Taifali tamgae. In fact, to the present day many a historian other than Wolfram, who originally figured it out, believes the Taifali were "Germanic." (Duh! hock: ) I wouldn't be surprised if tamgae were incorporated into the Roman cavalry, a logical way of displaying ownership of a horse, since we know cavalrymen owned their own mounts.
Your question does bring up an interesting subject. The Taiflai Seniores had a mirror-imaged bear on their shield, and other cavalry units used the mirror image, which I think goes back to the steppes, then advances into Germanic and Roman culture, and then becomes all those heraldic mirrored eagles and lions we see on medieval coats-of-arms. One more little wrinkle to point out to the kids.
Alan J. Campbell
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb