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A short while back standards were unearthed on the Palatine: this image from Archaeology mag is the first of the spears I've seen:
Standard head
Quote:a silk- and linen-wrapped poplar wood case covering three bronze pikes, a scepter, five javelins, and four spheres, three of glass and another of blue chalcedony, a type of quartz.
I can't tell if that's dirt, corrosion or something else on the spear.
Are there any other photos out there?
Richard Campbell
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Quote:A short while back standards were unearthed on the Palatine: this image from Archaeology mag is the first of the spears I've seen:
Standard head
Quote:a silk- and linen-wrapped poplar wood case covering three bronze pikes, a scepter, five javelins, and four spheres, three of glass and another of blue chalcedony, a type of quartz.
I can't tell if that's dirt, corrosion or something else on the spear.
Are there any other photos out there?
Montin G Conde's Flickr site has lots about the recent excavations in Rome, including an image of one of the so-called signa.
Mike Bishop
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Quote:[...]Montin G Conde's Flickr site has lots about the recent excavations in Rome, including an image of one of the so-called signa.
Mike Bishop
You don't agree with the identification?
drsrob a.k.a. Rob Wolters
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Looking at the photo from Archaeology, it looks a lot like the spear head is stylized with some kind of filligree maybe.
Really interesting read. Thanks, Rich!
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I know the spheres are used by the Mithras cult. Specifically blue ones.
Those spears, could they have been Hasta Purae ?
They look silverish and are very embellished.
Anybody got any pics of the "sceptre"?
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Wim/Cordvs
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HAHAHAHAHAHA unbelievable people believe everything some Italians say.....
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Doing a little coin work today and remembered to share:
As mentioned in the full Archaeology Magazine article, rather than just the online abstract ( http://www.archaeology.org/0705/abstracts/rome.html ), if these remains really are standards, they probably looked like this, but with a spearhead on top (as is often seen with vexilla on coins) http://www.forumancientcoins.com/catalo ... 7&zpg=7382
link goes to a coin of Constantine the Great from a coin auction/info site, Forum Ancient Coins: "Bronze AE 3, RIC 86, VF, 2.45g, 18.0mm, 315o, Antioch mint, 330-335 A.D.; obverse CONSTANTI-NVS MAX AVG, rosette-diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right; reverse GLOR-IA EXERC-ITVS, two soldiers, each holding spear and shield on ground, flanking two standards, SMANA in ex"
Also discussed at:
http://www.romanarmy.com/rat/viewtopic.php?t=15986
L. M. Anderson
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It seems that these were deliberately buried with care.
Would this be an act of 'saving' them from a danger, say a raid or an act of 'finallity', an end of an era, putting them away for ever? Or is that a 'Who knows'?
Matt Harley from sunny Kidderminster in the UK.
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Quote:Anybody got any pics of the "sceptre"?
I saw one here antoninuspius.blogspot in the comments I think.[/quote]
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Is that a scepter? Looks like one of those spearheads with the pig-stopper on it! Done with impeccable taste, mind you!  ?
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Quote:Is that a scepter? Looks like one of those spearheads with the pig-stopper on it! Done with impeccable taste, mind you! ?
If you read the whole blog, the author admits he showed the wrong illustration. It's not a spear, it's an orb:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/imperial_f ... 418361040/
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