Arms & Armour (2)
Weaponry of the Late Roman Army
						Lancea The spear (lancea) became (along with the spiculum) one of the primary weapons of the Late Roman legionary. There are various patterns of spearheads. This example is a high-quality pattern welded head which would have been for hand to hand combat. Anything thrown would be made of soft iron so it would be easier to repair after recovery. A composite head like this just could not be repaired if it broke, but then, it is much more unlikely to break! This example has bent to 90 degrees and not snapped!
						Spatha The Roman shortsword called the gladius was relaced in-service with the legions in the mid-second century by the metre-long spatha. The spatha is a long straight cavalry sword, with narrow point. It has a greater reach, but can still be used for cut and thrust. These pictures show a spatha hilt of bone (all are of bone, antler or wood), and the bronze 'furniture' of a sword scabbard: the chape, which protects the tip of the scabbard, and the slide, which is tied to the scabbard with thongs, and which allows the legionary's baldric to pass underneath it as a method of suspension. This slide is cast as a Roman dolphin - a popular artistic motif. Chapes and slides were also made of bone or horn.
						Spiculum The famous Roman pilum survived into the Late Roman era as the spiculum, a much lighter iron-shanked javelin with barbed-head. The spiculum is formidable; the point is hardened and can punch through a shield or a man. The iron shank is soft iron and bends easily (see illustration). In battle this prevents the shield being pulled out of the enemy's shield.
						Verutum A cheaper missile weapon, the 3' verutum (pl. veruta) is a short distance javelin, probably used in volleys or in repetition as a method to close up and demoralize an opposing force. The head is soft iron, simply made. Troops in the legion may have carried several of these, or key soldiers may have handed-them down the lines.
						Plumbata Another derivation of the Roman pilum, the plumbata is a distinctively Late Roman weapon. It is a heavy lead-weighted dart thrown by infantry. Only the iron heads and lead weights have survived. We do not know how long they were (though one reference mentions some troops carried them inside their shields). The middle photo illustrates a range of lengths, from 1m down to 30cm. Comitatus throw the plumbata by hand, often underhand, but also experiment with casting the dart from sling and staff-sling. The plumbata is a truly terrifying weapon, plummeting out of the sky vertically.
						Recurve Bow Roman bows used for war were a composite design using woods, horn and animal sinew. The ends (as here) were strengthened by bone plates (laths). The recurve bow is very powerful and it was introduced from the eastern provinces. Troops here may have had trouble keeping the bows dry, they perform badly otherwise.
						Roman troops used a range of arrows, as depicted here, both socketed and tanged. There are leaf heads, bodkins, a bone head and a host of other designs. To the left are four beautifully painted arrows.
						Cross Bow The man-portable crossbow is often thought of as a Medieval weapon, but the first evidence comes from this period. The Roman army knew the crossbow as the arcuballista (Vegetius). The power of the weapon comes from the arm under tension from a string. Like a bow, when released this propels the bolt forward. The trigger mechanism for the arcuballista is a rolling nut, of which several finds have been made.