What was the pilum made of?

[Malleus]

I was looking at a book on the weapon finds in Illerup in Denmark, circa 200 AD. They recovered hundreds of spear shafts. Of the thirty found in the heap under discussion, ALL were Ash heartwood, split and planed down. They even found a shaft plane with a concave underside to make them. So, apparently no coppicing in a Scandinavian setting, despite a lively trade in Roman sword blades and baldric fittings.


`Steve P/ Malleus

[Nerva]

I'll dig it out over the week-end and scan it. It's about 5 pages or so. I'll put it up on our website as a download and anybody who wants it can get it there.

[Robert]

Don't forget to give the link! cry:

[Marcus Julius]

Peter Connally did a technocal treatises not so long ago on the development and construction of the Pilum. I have a copy at hope and I'll scan and give to (small enough file to email). It answers most of the questions you ask.

I, too, would like a copy of that.

When I started reading this thread, my first thought was that it would vary, based on the environment. What little information I have found on arrows has shown this to be the case. So, I would have expected all other "ammunition" to be similar.

[Robert]

Hi Marcus,

You are probably right on asuming a lot is indeed governed by environment. The ash however is a relative of the olive tree and occurs in much of Roman Europe, the main base on which we base re-enactment reconstructions. Arrows are much more a "fire and forget" weapon and of course governed by local tastes, a lot of their specialist archers came from the steppe provinces, as far as I know. Localy, the bow was in use long before the Romans showed up, and arrowmaking would have a local tradition based on localy available wood. Even in Medival times, in Europe a large range of arrow material were in use, mostly coppiced softwoods.

[Matt Lukes]

I was looking at a book on the weapon finds in Illerup in Denmark, circa 200 AD. They recovered hundreds of spear shafts. Of the thirty found in the heap under discussion, ALL were Ash heartwood, split and planed down. They even found a shaft plane with a concave underside to make them. So, apparently no coppicing in a Scandinavian setting, despite a lively trade in Roman sword blades and baldric fittings.


`Steve P/ Malleus

Excellent information Steve, thanks- wow ash was used quite widely. And I'm not surprised about the no coppicing- there's no evidence of it in ancient times so far as I've ever heard.

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

I just took it for granted this was a solved problem, as every book on ancient warfare I have read, fiction and non, mentioned ash.

[Hibernicus]

To All,

Here's one available online source about ancient coppicing. A PDF, an a abridged version of "Trees and Timber in the Ancient Mediterranean World" by Russell Meiggs.

Look him up.

The report quotes CATO in regard to coppicing.

http://www.odi.org.uk/fpeg/publications/rdfn/8/b.html

[M. Demetrius]

Ok, so in Europe, you use the tree commonly called ash. In the US, we have a variety of trees called ash, with different praenomenis. I guess, since there were no Romans here...??

Hickory is used quite a bit for tool handles here, so I think that might be good for short handles, anyway, but I also think it's a dead horse. Not many over here on this side of the Atlantic will import European ash, or English oak, to make their projects.

[Hibernicus]

But, Demetrius, there is very little difference, especially for our purposes, between White Ash in EU and White Ash in NAmerica... White ash is easy come by here in the States. Certainly if we can acquire European equivilants that would be better than using Hickory wouldn't it?

[M. Demetrius]

Of course.