Downloads

Here we have included some downloads of complete books (and some theses) on the theme of Roman military equipment that have been made freely available, a few out of copyright but most still copyrighted. As more appear, they will be publicised on our Twitter account and then listed here.

On the shoulders of giants • In the beginning • Recent reports • Older reports • Catalogues • Monographs • Festschrift volumes • ROMEC proceedings • Arma • Theses

On the shoulders of giants

There are a number of important texts on Roman military equipment that pre-date our study. In many ways they are now out-of-date, but in others they are timeless and well worth the time spent studying them.

Benndorf, O. 1878: Antike Gesichtshelme und Sepulcralmasken, Wien [public domain]

Couissin, P. 1926: Les armes romaines: essai sur les origines et l’évolution des armes individuelles du légionnaire romain, Paris: Librairie Ancienne [public domain]

Groller, M. von 1900: Römische Waffen aus dem Lager von Carnuntum, Wien: Rohrer [public domain]

Lindenschmit, L. 1882: Tracht und Bewaffnung des römischen Heeres während der Kaiserzeit, Braunschweig: Vieweg [public domain]

Lindenschmit, L. 1864; Die Alterthümer unserer heidnischen Vorzeit 1, Mainz: von Zabern [public domain]

Lindenschmit, L. 1870: Die Alterthümer unserer heidnischen Vorzeit 2, Mainz: von Zabern [public domain]

Lindenschmit, L. 1881: Die Alterthümer unserer heidnischen Vorzeit 3, Mainz: von Zabern [public domain]

Lindenschmit, L. 1900: Die Alterthümer unserer heidnischen Vorzeit 4, Mainz: von Zabern [public domain]

Lindenschmit, L. 1911: Die Alterthümer unserer heidnischen Vorzeit 5, Mainz: von Zabern [public domain]

Lips, I. 1602: De militia Romana libri qvinqve: commentarivs ad Polybivm, Antwerp: Plantin [public domain]

Schramm, E. 1910. Griechisch-römische Geschütze. Bemerkungen zu der Rekonstruktion, Metz: Scriba [public domain]

Schramm, E. 1918: Die antiken Geschütze der Saalburg: Bemerkungen zu ihrer Rekonstruktion, Berlin: Weidmannsche Buchhandlung [public domain]

In the beginning

Bishop, M. C. and Coulston, J. C. 1989: Roman Military Equipment [copyright download] (links are available in the Bookshop if you want a used copy of the dead-tree book)

Bishop, M. C. and Coulston, J. C. N. 1993: Roman Military Equipment from the Punic Wars to the Fall of Rome, ed.1 [copyright download to be made available on the day of publication of B&C3] (links are available in the Bookshop if you want a used copy of the dead-tree book)

Recent reports

The following are archaeological reports and catalogues that are still in copyright but have been made freely available for download (usually because they are no longer in print or are subject to an open-access policy).

Croatia

Radman-Livaja, I. 2005 Militaria Sisciensia, Musei Archaeologici Zagrabiensis Catalogi et Monographiae, vol. 1, Zagreb [copyright download]

Radman-Livaja, I. (ed.) 2010 Nalazi Rimske Vojne Opreme u Hrvatskoj / Finds of the Roman Military Equipment in Croatia, Zagreb [copyright download]

Šeparović, T. and Uroda, N. 2009: Antička zbirka Muzeja hrvatskih arheoloških spomenika (Izbor) / Ancient Roman Collection of the Museum of Croatian Archaeological Monuments (A Selection) [copyright download]

England

Allason-Jones, L. and Bishop, M. 1988 Excavations at Roman Corbridge: The Hoard. [copyright download]

Barrett, J., Woodward, A., Freeman, P. 2000: Cadbury Castle Somerset: The Later Prehistoric and Early Historic Archaeology [copyright download]

Bishop, M., and Dore, J. 1989 Corbridge: Excavations of the Roman fort and town, 1947-80. [copyright download]

Chadderton, J. and Webster, G. 2002 The Legionary Fortress at Wroxeter: Excavations by Graham Webster, 1955–85 [copyright download]

Eckardt, H. and Walton, P. 2021 Bridge over Troubled Water: The Roman Finds from the River Tees at Piercebridge in Context [copyright download]

Rushworth, A. 2009: Housesteads Roman Fort – The Grandest Station. Excavation and Survey at Housesteads, 1954–95, by Charles Daniels, John Gillam, James Crow and others, 2 vols, Swindon [copyright download]

Wilmott, T. 1991 Excavations in the Middle Walbrook Valley, City of London, 1927–1960 [copyright download]

Wilmott, T. 1999 Birdoswald: Excavations of a Roman Fort on Hadrian’s Wall and its Successor Settlements, 1987–1992 [copyright download]

Germany

Deschler-Erb, E. Römische Militärausrüstung aus Kastell und Vicus von Asciburgium [copyright download]

Keim, J. and Klumbach, H. Der Römische Schatzfund von Straubing, München: Beck [copyright download]

Kellner, H.-J. Der Römische Verwahrfund von Eining, München: Beck [copyright download]

Ulbert, G. Der Auerberg. Die Kleinfunde mit Ausnahme der Gefässkeramik sowie die Grabungen von 2001 und 2008 [copyright download]

Ulbert, G., Die römischen Donau-Kastelle Aislingen und Burghöfe, Limesforschungen Bd. 1: Berlin [copyright download]

Walke, N., Das römische Donaukastell Straubing-Sorviodurum, Limesforschungen, Band 3: Berlin, 1965 [copyright download]

Zanier, W., Der spätlatène- und frühkaiserzeitliche Opferplatz auf dem Döttenbichl südlich von Oberammergau, Münchner Beiträge zur Vor- und Frühgeschichte 62, München, 2016 vol.1 [copyright download] vol.2 [copyright download] vol.3 [copyright download]

Netherlands

Aarts, A. C. Scherven, schepen en schoeiingenvergroot afbeelding van rapport. Archeologisch onderzoek in een fossiele rivierbedding bij het castellum van De Meern [copyright download]

Lange, S. The Wooden Artefacts from the Early Roman Fort Velsen 1 [copyright download]

Roemburg, J. van. Unarmed Cananefates? Roman Military Equipment and Horse Gear from Non Military Context in the Civitas Cananefatium [copyright download]

Veen, V. van der. Roman Military Equipment and Horse Gear from the Hunerberg at Nijmegen. Finds from the Augustan Military Base and Flavio-Trajanic Castra and Canabae Legionis [copyright download]

Slovenia

Istenič, J. Roman Military Equipment from the River Ljubljanica. Typology, Chronology and Technology [copyright download]

Istenič, J., Laharnar, B., And Horvat, J. (eds), Evidence of the Roman Army in Slovenia [copyright download]

Switzerland

Deschler-Erb, E. Ad Arma! – Römisches Militär des 1. Jahrhunderts n.Chr. in Augusta Raurica [copyright download]

Deschler-Erb, E., Peter, M., and Deschler-Erb, S. Das frühkaiserzeitliche Militärlager in der Kaiseraugster Unterstadt [copyright download]

Unz, C. and Deschler-Erb, E., Katalog der Militaria aus Vindonissa: Militärische Funde, Pferdegeschirr und Jochteile bis 1976, Gesellschaft Pro Vindonissa, 1997 [copyright download]

Wales

Guest, P. & Gardner, A. Excavation in the Roman Legionary Fortress at Caerleon. The Priory Field Store, 2007-2010 [copyright download]

Older reports

Germany

Jacobi, L. Das Römerkastell Saalburg bei Homburg vor der Höhe Vol.1 (Text) [out-of-copyright download]

Jacobi, L. Das Römerkastell Saalburg bei Homburg vor der Höhe Vol.2 (Tafeln) [out-of-copyright download]

Catalogues

This category includes catalogues that derive material from more than one country, often originally published to accompany exhibitions.

Beck, F. and Chew, H., Masques de fer: un officier romain du temps de Caligula: [exposition], Musée des antiquités nationales de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, 6 novembre 1991-4 février 1992 [copyright download]

Brody, L. R. and Hoffman, G. L. (2011): Dura-Europos: Crossroads of Antiquity, McMullen Museum of Art: Chesnut Hill MA [copyright download]

Garbsch, J. Römische Paraderüstungen [copyright download]

Istenič, J. 2015: Roman Stories from the Crossroads, Ljubljana: Narodni muzej Slovenije [copyright download]

Klumbach, H. Spätrömische Gardehelme [copyright download]

Pešterac, T. S. 2019: Roman Gilded Helmets of the Museum of Vojvodina [copyright download]

Ruševljan, V. D. and Vujović, M. 2006: Rimska vojska u Sremu / Roman Army in Srem [copyright download]

Thomas, M.D., Lorica Segmentata vol.II. A Catalogue of Finds, JRMES Monograph 2, Chirnside 2003 [copyright download]

Monographs

Bishop, M.C. , Lorica Segmentata vol.I. A Handbook of Roman Plate Armour, JRMES Monograph 1, Chirnside 2002 [copyright download]

Böhme, H. W., Die spätantiken Gürtel mit kerbschnittverzierten Metallbeschlägen. Studien zu Militärgürteln des 4.–5. Jahrhunderts [copyright download]

Egg, M. Italische Helme , RGZM Monographien 11 [copyright download text plates]

Istenič, J. and Ragolič, A., Roman Military Decoration Torques: Literary, Epigraphic, Representational and Archaeological Evidence, Ljubljana 2023 [copyright download]

Nicolay, J., Armed Batavians: Use and Significance of Weaponry and Horse Gear from Non-military Contexts in the Rhine Delta (50 BC to AD 450), Amsterdam 2007 [copyright download]

Schalles, H.-J. (ed.), Die frühkaiserzeitliche Manuballista aus Xanten-Wardt, Xantener Berichte 18, 2010 [copyright download]

Schalles, H.-J. & Schreiter, Ch. (eds), Geschichte aus dem Kies. Neue Funde aus dem Alten Rhein bei Xanten, Xantener Berichte 3, Köln 1993 [copyright download]

Speidel, M. P., Emperor Hadrian’s Speeches to the African Army. A New Text, Monographien des RGZM 65, Mainz 2007 [copyright download]

Töpfer, K. M., Die römischen Feldzeichen in der Republik und im Prinzipat, Monographien des RGZM 91, Mainz 2011 [copyright download]

Festschrift volumes

Madyda-Legutko, R. and Rodzińska-Nowak, J., Honoratissimum assensus genus est armis laudare. Studia dedykowane Profesorowi Piotrowi Kaczanowskiemu z okazji siedemdziesiątej rocznicy urodzin, Kraków 2014 [copyright download]

ROMERS & ROMEC proceedings

ROMERS I (Sheffield), M.C. Bishop (ed.), Roman Military Equipment. Proceedings of a Seminar held in the Department of Ancient History and Classical Archaeology at the University of Sheffield, 21st March 1983, [copyright download]

ROMERS II (Sheffield) M. C. Bishop (ed.), The Production and Distribution of Roman Military Equipment, Proceedings of the Second Roman Military Equipment Research Seminar, BAR S275, Oxford [copyright download]

ROMERS III (Nottingham) Dawson, M. (ed.), Roman Military Equipment: the Accoutrements of War. Proceedings of the Third Roman Military Equipment Research Seminar, BAR S336, Oxford [copyright download]

ROMEC IV (Newcastle upon Tyne), Coulston, J. C. (ed.), Military Equipment and the Identity of Roman Soldiers. Proceedings of the Fourth Roman Military Equipment Conference, BAR S394, Oxford [copyright download]

ROMEC V (Nijmegen) C. van Driel-Murray (ed.), Roman Military Equipment: the Sources of Evidence. Proceedings of the Fifth Roman Military Equipment Conference, BAR S476, Oxford [copyright download]

ROMEC XVI (Xanten), Schalles, H.-J. and Busch, A. W. (eds), Waffen in Aktion, Xantener Berichte 16 [copyright download]

ROMEC XVII (Zagreb) Sanader, M. et al (eds), XVII ROMEC Zagreb 2010 [copyright download]

Arma

Founded before the web existed, Arma was the news bulletin of the Roman Military Equipment Conferences (ROMECs). All issues can now be downloaded from their respective online contents pages, or as one big zip file.

There was no Arma 13

Arma all issues as a 75Mb zip file [copyright download]

Theses

Bongartz, A. 2013: Studien zu römischen Helmen: Untersuchungen zu den Funden römischer Infanterie-und Kavalleriehelme vom Ende der Republik bis zum 3. Jahrhundert n. Chr. PhD thesis, Universität zu Köln [copyright download]

Burns, M. 2006: The cultural and military significance of the south Italic warrior’s panoply from the 5th to the 3rd centuries BC, PhD thesis, University of London [copyright download]

Coulston, J. C. N. 1988: Trajan’s column : the sculpting and relief content of a Roman propaganda monument, PhD thesis, University of Newcastle [copyright download]

Fernandez-Reyes, Pablo 2014: Metallurgical characterisation of 1st and 2nd century AD Roman copper-alloy military equipment from north-western Europe, PhD thesis, University of Liverpool [copyright download]

Hoss, S. 2014: Cingulum Militare: Studien zum römischen Soldatengürtel des 1. bis 3. Jh. n. Chr., PhD thesis, University of Leiden [copyright download]

Ivčević, Sanja 2016: Typology and chronology of Roman military equipment from the principate period in the area between the Krka and Cetina rivers, PhD Thesis, University of Zagreb [copyright download]

Lang, B. 2011: Die römischen Funde aus Stillfried an der March (NÖ), Mag. phil. thesis, Universität Wien [copyright download]

Marchant, David John 1991: Roman weaponry in the province of Britain from the second century to the fifth century AD, PhD thesis, Durham University [copyright download]

Paddock, J. M. 1993: The bronze Italian helmet: the development of the Cassis from the last quarter of the sixth century B.C. to the third quarter of the first century A.D., PhD thesis , University of London [copyright download]

Stiebel, G. D. 2007: Armis et litteris: The military equipment of early Roman Palestine, in light of the archaeological and historical sources, PhD thesis, University of London [copyright download]

Waebens, S. 2012: Picturing the Roman Army in Third-Century Egypt. Roman Tombstones from the Military Necropolis at Nicopolis, PhD thesis, KU Leuven [copyright download]