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Roman Military Equipment
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Roman Military Equipment

From Start to Finish

2D images of artefacts

2D images of artefacts

Weapons • Armour • Other Equipment

Weapons

Top portion (head and shank) of the iron of a pilum , bent just below the pyramidal head.
Pilum head and shank from Kempten, the shank being bent just below the head. Image: Xocolatl
Pilum
Two pilum irons, one with its pyramidal head, both bent slightly at the same point on the shank.
Two pila from Hod Hill with bent shanks. They have lost their tangs or sockets. Image: © The Trustees of the British Museum (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
Pila
Pilum head and shank, the shank being bent below the head.
Ferrous pilum head and shank from Little Linford. The square-sectioned shank is bent just below the pyramidal head (which also has a bent tip). Image: Buckinghamshire County Council/Ros Tyrrell
Pilum
Two ferrous socketed pila, broader at the socketed end, tapering to the pyramidal heads
Complete irons from square-socketed pila found at Harzhorn. Both have expansions where weights may have been attached. Image: Axel Hindemith
Pila
three pila laid out side-by-side on an orange background.
Ferrous pila in Saalburg museum, with a tanged example on the left and a socketed one in the middle. Image: MCB
Pila
A bent socketed pilum, complete from pyramidal head to socket.
Socketed pilum from Gunzenhausen bent in several places. Image: Wolfgang Sauber
Pilum
Four plumbatae laid out and left to right, from longest to shortest, with barbed heads and weights of varying lengths.
Four plumbatae from Enns (AUT) in the Museum Lauriacum. Image: Wolfgang Sauber (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Plumbatae
Four corroded ferrous spearheads, arranged from the largest on the left to the smallest on the right.
Four ferrous spearheads from the Bloomberg site in London. Image: MCB
Spearheads
Ferrous spearhead with a small blade with a socket.
Spearhead from Valkenburg. Image: National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden (CC0 1.0)
Spearhead
Corroded iron spearhead.
Iron spearhead from Valkenburg. Image: National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden
Spearhead
Socketed ferrous spearhead with a slightly shiny patina.
Ferrous socketed spearhead with a square-sectioned head. Image: Museum het Valkhof (Public Domain Mark 1.0)
Spearhead
Conical spear butt
Conical ferrous spear butt from Nijmegen. Image: Museum het Valkhof (Public Domain Mark 1.0):
Spear butt

Armour

Plywood shield with a spina and 'barleycorn' boss, all made of wood.
The Kasr el-Harit plywood shield, thought to be the only example of a curved Republican Roman legionary shield to survive (although it is often claimed as 'Celtic' or Hellenistic, despite the fact that only Roman shields seem to have been shaped to the body in this way). Now in the National Police Museum in Cairo (EGY). Image Ashashyou (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Shield
Monochrome image of the lower portion of the scutum taken after excavation, showing the lion in the lower field.
Large fragment of the painted, curved rectangular shield found in Tower 19 after excavation. Image: Yale University Art Gallery (PD)
Shield
A curved rectangular painted shield with a horizontal grip but lacking a boss. An elaborate paint scheme includes a lion in the lower register, victories with wreaths flanking an eagle in the top, and decorative bordering to where the the boss plate should be.
The curved rectangular shield from Tower 19 at Dura-Europos in its current state. Image: Yale Art Gallery
Dura shield
Top right corner of the face of the curved rectangular legionary shield showing rawhide strip stitched to the edge to protect it.
Detail of the rawhide edge binding of the Dura-Europos scutum. Image: MCB (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Shield binding
Dark brown overlapping laths with one edge of a rectangular shield at the top.
Fragment of rectangular plywood shield. Image: Yale University Art Gallery (PD)
Shield
Pale brown overlapping laths with one edge of a rectangular shield at the bottom.
Fragment of rectangular plywood shield. Image: Yale University Art Gallery (PD)
Shield
Curved rectangular shield umbo with a green patina and with a hemispherical boss in the centre for the hand grip.
Curved, rectangular copper-alloy shield boss with six of eight domed shield nails in situ. Image: P. Gross
Shield boss
Front view of a curved rectangular shield boss with a yellowy and silver patine and with a hemispherical boss.
Curved rectangular copper-alloy shield boss from the River Tyne at South Shields with a hemispherical boss, engraved and punctim decoration, and selective tinning. Image: © The Trustees of the British Museum (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
Shield boss
Top right corner and part of the dome of a shield boss from a legionary shield, decorated with incised lines and punched dots picked out in white.
Fragmentary curved, rectangular, copper-alloy shield boss similar to the example from the River Tyne. Found at Vindonissa. Image: DerHexer (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Shield boss
Oval ferrous shield boss with two rivets on the expanded flange on the narrow ends with a shiny patina.
Oval ferrous shield boss found (together with the remains of shield edging) on the Hunerberg at Nijmegen (NLD). Image: Museum het Valkhof (Public Domain Mark 1.0)
Shield boss
Fragmentary painted oval shield made up of planks laid out on a white sheet.
Painted oval plank shield found in Tower 19 at Dura-Europos. A figure of a military god is depicted. Image: Yale University Art Gallery (PD)
Shield
Fragmentary painted oval shield made up of planks laid out on a white sheet.
Painted oval plank shield found in Tower 19 at Dura-Europos. Images from the Iliad are depicted. Image: Yale University Art Gallery (PD)
Shield

Other Equipment

Brass-coloured belt plate.
Copper-alloy belt plate with chased and punctim decoration, the central boss being surrounded by a hunt scene. Image MCB
Belt plate
Rectngular copper-alloy belt (with tinning) with an embossed hunt scene around a central boss.
Hunt scene belt plate from Magdalensberg (AUT). The cut-out to the left suggests this was originally a buckle- or dagger-frog-plate. Image: MCB
Belt plate
Cast copper-alloy rectangular stamp with a green patina, depicting a hunt scene around a central boss.
Belt-plate stamp of copper alloy found at Sheepen, Colchester, matching examples of such plates from Chichester (amongst others). Image: MCB
Stamp
Belt plate with central roundel decorated with embossed lotus blooms, retaining a brassy patina in places
Copper-alloy belt plate with embossed lotus-flower motifs in a central roundel from Valkenburg. Image: National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden (CC0 1.0)
Belt plate
Square embossed belt plate depicting the wolf and twins with a rivet hole in each of the four corners. It retains a shiny green patination.
Copper-alloy lupercal-type embossed belt plate from Oberstimm (DEU).There are four rivets holes, one in each corner, for attaching it to the leather belt. Image: Archäologische Staatssammlung München (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
Belt plate
A buckle (left) and two belt plates (centre and right) with an embossed portrait over crossed cornucopiae.
Copper-alloy embossed belt plates and buckle from Chassenard (FRA). Image: Cangadoba (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Belt plates
Belt plate and buckle hinged to it. Originally inlaid.
Copper-alloy inlaid belt plate and buckle from Valkenburg. Image: National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden (CC0)
Belt plate and buckle
Belt plate with hinged buckle attached, the latter with partial damage to its internal volutes
Belt plate with attached buckle from Valkenburg. Image: National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden (CC0 1.0)
Belt plate and buckle
Patinated copper-alloy belt plate with tongued buckle hinged to it.
Hinged belt plate and buckle from Pompeii. Image: Metropolitan Museum of Art (PD)
Belt plate and buckle
Hinged buckle plate with tongue in situ
A copper-alloy buckle plate with hinge, but missing most of its belt plate. Image: National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden (CC0 1.0)
Buckle plate
Dagger with belt and circular frogs on either side.
Belt with dagger from Herculaneum (ITA) with circular frogs attached to the embossed belt plates on either side. Found with the Herculaeum soldier/marine. Image: MCB (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Belt
Circular embossed artefact with a central hole, surrounding which there is a hunt scene
Decorative roundel, possibly a sword suspension button from a belt, with an embossed hunt scene, from Valkenburg. Image: National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden (CC0 1.0)
Suspension button

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Gallery Samples

Curved rectangular shield umbo with a green patina and with a hemispherical boss in the centre for the hand grip.
Curved, rectangular copper-alloy shield boss with six of eight domed shield nails in situ. Image: P. Gross
Shield boss
Soldiers with oval, coloured shields (red, white, and blue) and similarly coloured leggings.
Crossing the Red Sea fresco from the synagogue at Dura-Europos depicting soldiers with multi-coloured shields lined up before standard-bearers with vexilla. Image: Wikimedia Commons
Fresco
Fragmentary ferrous back plate attached to scales, found in the Millennium excavations at Carlisle. The ferrous components are corroded brownish orange and the copper-alloy examples are mid-green.
Ferrous back plate and scales from lorica squamata from Carlisle (GBR). The mostly ferrous scales are interspersed with copper alloy scales. Image: scrappy annie (CC BY-NC 2.0)
Scale armour
A ferrous cavalry helmet with partially surviving bronze sheathing includes horizontal trilobate protrusions above the brow.
Ferrous cavalry helmet with copper-alloy (probably brass) embossed and incised sheathing (most of it missing over the bowl). The cheek piece may not be original (or may be a clumsy repair). A plume tube survives on the left-hand side just above the ear. Image: National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden (CC0 1.0)
Cavalry helmet
Brass-coloured belt plate with four empty rivet holes, one in each corner.
Copper-alloy belt plate from Chichester, hinged for a buckle or suspension frog. Image: MCB
Belt plate
Silvered phalera junction with three strap loops and a trifid pendant.
Three-way strap junction from harness found at Doorwerth. Three junction loops and a trefoil pendant are hinged to loops on the rear face of the phalera. Brass with silver foil soldered on the front face and with niello inlay depicting stylised vine leaves and grapes. Image: National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden (CC0 1.0)
Phalera junction
To the top is a heavily corroded ferrous Antonine dagger blade and tang with part of the handle adhering, whilst below it is the ferrous frame scabbard for the weapon, also corroded.
Dagger and scabbard of the Antonine form from Stillfried (AT). Part of the handle survives on the blade and tang. Image: Wolfgang Sauber
Dagger and scabbard
A ferrous helmet with broad neck guard, cheek pieces, and brow guard.
Ferrous Weisenau (Imperial-Gallic)-type helmet. Image: MCB
Helmet
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