Related Papers
Oxford Journal of Archaeology
Establishing the combat effectiveness of the Greek hoplite shield
2016 •
Kevin Rowan De Groote
In this paper, I explore the functional aspects of the hoplite shield to determine its effectiveness (and defensive qualities) in combat (hoplite warfare) through a set of controlled practical and simulated experiments.
Ancient Warfare
'All your strength is in your spears' - How hoplites wielded their spear (dory)
2018 •
Kevin Rowan De Groote
This paper explores the hoplite spear, the primary offensive weapon of the Greek hoplite, and how it was wielded in combat, examining textual, pictorial and new experimental evidence.
How easily can we identify the beginnings of hoplite fighting in the Greek World?
Robbie Pickering
Rezension: Die barbarischen Einflüsse in der griechischen Bewaffnung
Marianne Mödlinger
Rezension: Marek Verčík, Die barbarischen Einflüsse in der griechischen Bewaffnung. Internationale Archäologie 125. Verlag Marie Leidorf, Rahden/Westfalen 2014, 139 pages, 8 illustrations, 1 table, 12 b/w plates, hardcover, ISBN 978- 3-89646-500-9. In: Archaeologia Austriaca 99, 2015, 259-264. DOI: 10.1553/archaeologia99s259
Ancient Military Technology and Materiel: Continuity and Change in Ancient Close-Combat Warfare
Jason Freewalt
The technology and materiel of warfare changed from prehistoric times to the fall of the Roman Empire due to improvements in metallurgy and compounding ingenuity over the millennia. Despite the changes and improvements that spanned the ages from Hammurabi to Hadrian, the basic implements of warfare remained somewhat consistent. The thrusting spears used by Eanatum of Lagash in Mesopotamia c. 2500 BC and the dory used by the phalanx armies of Classical Greece at the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC served a similar purpose. The Bronze Age Naue Type II sword of c. 1200 BC and the Roman gladius of c. 200 BC were roughly the same size and had the same use. The circular or pendular way a particular type or style of weapon gained popularity in antiquity, was superseded by a new innovation, and then returned centuries or millennia later in a slightly modified form indicates that the evolution of ancient weaponry was sometimes an evolution of circ*mstances surrounding its use as much as the physical substance of the weapon. The evolution of ancient close-combat armaments shows both continuity and change, depending on the given set of military conditions.
Studies in Ancient Art and Civilisation 22 (January), 7-22
Several Remarks About the Near-Eastern Contribution to Early Archaic Greek Warfare
2019 •
Jakub Witowski
In recent years Archaic Greek warfare has become one of the issues most often raised among scholars focused on Ancient Greece in general. Questions about the emergence of the phalanx, evolution of fighting styles and types of weapons feature prominently in the mentioned discourse. The considerations of the provenance of these innovations certainly do not go beyond the frames of that debate. Taking the vast scope of interactions between the Near East and the widely understood Greek world into account, presuming the possible presence of the Near-Eastern influences in Archaic Greek warfare seems to be legitimate. The aim of this paper is an attempt to point out archaeologically traceable solutions in the terms of weapons and tactics in Greek warfare which may have been drawn from the Oriental area and assess their potential significance for the development of Greek warfare. https://journals.akademicka.pl/saac/article/view/602
Roman military equipment in the 4th Century BC: pilum, scutum and the introduction of manipular tactics, “Folia Archeologica” 29 (2013), s. 38-65
Juliusz Tomczak
Roman military equipment in the 4 th century BC: pilum, scutum and the introduction of manipular tactics Słowa kluczowe: wojskowość starożytnego Rzymu, pilum, scutum, taktyka manewrowa W eapons and tactics of the Roman army in the era of the great wars with Carthage, Macedonia and the Seleucid Empire, as well as in campaigns against the Celts and the tribes of Iberian Peninsula , waged in the years 264–133 BC, are the subject of many publications. Earlier periods in the development of Roman weapons and fighting techniques have been comparatively neglected. The main reason for this is the low reliability of literary sources (Small 2000, p. 230) and almost complete lack of archaeological finds, the context and dating of which can be linked with the army of Rome in the period of the Early Republic (Rawlings 2007, p. 54), as well as the scarcity of iconographic sources. However, this period was crucial for the emergence of a particular method of fighting of the army, which was to conquer the whole Mediterranean world. The aim of this text is to explain and interpret different types of sources and, as a result, to offer a reconstruction of major elements in the evolution of weapons and tactics of heavy infantry, which formed the backbone of the Roman army in the period when these changes occurred, with a special emphasis placed on the widespread use of oblong shield and heavy javelin in the 4 th century BC. Authors of principal publications concerning the subject of development of Roman arms and armour such as Michael C. Bishop and Jonathan Ch.N. Coulston (2006) as well as Michel Feugère (2002) begin their narrative from the First Punic War. There is no consensus among researchers as to the dating of the transformation of Roman weaponry and tactics in this period. Most of them do not agree with any date given by ancient authors, often emphasizing low reliability of written sources (e.g.
Roman military equipment in the 4th Cent
Alexander Tomashevich
Roman military equipment in the 4 th century BC: pilum, scutum and the introduction of manipular tactics Słowa kluczowe: wojskowość starożytnego Rzymu, pilum, scutum, taktyka manewrowa W eapons and tactics of the Roman army in the era of the great wars with Carthage, Macedonia and the Seleucid Empire, as well as in campaigns against the Celts and the tribes of Iberian Peninsula , waged in the years 264–133 BC, are the subject of many publications. Earlier periods in the development of Roman weapons and fighting techniques have been comparatively neglected. The main reason for this is the low reliability of literary sources (Small 2000, p. 230) and almost complete lack of archaeological finds, the context and dating of which can be linked with the army of Rome in the period of the Early Republic (Rawlings 2007, p. 54), as well as the scarcity of iconographic sources. However, this period was crucial for the emergence of a particular method of fighting of the army, which was to conquer the whole Mediterranean world. The aim of this text is to explain and interpret different types of sources and, as a result, to offer a reconstruction of major elements in the evolution of weapons and tactics of heavy infantry, which formed the backbone of the Roman army in the period when these changes occurred, with a special emphasis placed on the widespread use of oblong shield and heavy javelin in the 4 th century BC. Authors of principal publications concerning the subject of development of Roman arms and armour such as Michael C. Bishop and Jonathan Ch.N. Coulston (2006) as well as Michel Feugère (2002) begin their narrative from the First Punic War. There is no consensus among researchers as to the dating of the transformation of Roman weaponry and tactics in this period. Most of them do not agree with any date given by ancient authors, often emphasizing low reliability of written sources (e.g.
The use and development of Classical Greek Light infantry and an investigation into the cause of the lack of documentation during 490-404BCE.
William Murphy
Roman Military Development in the Fourth Century B.C.
Alastair Lumsden
