12-19-2006, 02:49 PM
Sure, but the Gallic Sword was not the most common weapon on the battlefield, or so I am led to believe. Much more common would have been the Spear, which would have been similarly effective against Mail as the Gladius. Not to mention the fact that Segmenta was not in service for the 200 years or so following the initial introduction of the Spanish Sword, which we know Polybius considered good for both thrust and cut. A slow process of change indeed, hardly a race.
It's a good theory, but it's too neat and relies heavily on the assumption that there was an arms race and that troops were uniformly equipped with the best weapons and armour technologically available. Nor does it make much allowance for preference, assuming that everyone would use the best weapon by default.
Matthew James Stanham
It's a good theory, but it's too neat and relies heavily on the assumption that there was an arms race and that troops were uniformly equipped with the best weapons and armour technologically available. Nor does it make much allowance for preference, assuming that everyone would use the best weapon by default.
Matthew James Stanham
It is a joyful thing indeed to hold intimate converse with a man after one\'s own heart, chatting without reserve about things of interest or the fleeting topics of the world; but such, alas, are few and far between.
Yoshida Kenko (1283-1350), Tsurezure-Gusa (1340)
Yoshida Kenko (1283-1350), Tsurezure-Gusa (1340)
