Contus
Contus or more precisely Contus sarmaticus is the Latin and Kontos the Greek name for an extremely long type of lance that was used by Roman and Byzantine cavalrymen . Contus lances were between three and five meters long and were wielded with both hands in combat on horseback .
The Contus lance was an invention of the Iranian Sarmatians and Parthians and was adopted in late antiquity together with the principle of the cataphract by the Romans (and later Byzantines), who made extensive use of this type of lance. Contus-carrying riders were called Contarii (or Greek Kontophoroi ).
The first special units of Contarii appeared in Trajan times around 100 AD. The Contarii can be heavily armored Cataphracti , Clibanarii or lightly armored riders.
The typical image of a (lightly armored) Contarius is shown in the depictions of Saint George , who is usually shown in a Roman uniform on horseback with a long Contus lance stabbing a dragon with both hands .
See also
literature
- Richard Brzezinski, Mariusz Mielczarek: The Sarmatians, 600 BC - AD 450 (= Men-at-arms Series. Vol. 373). Reprinted edition. Osprey Military, Oxford 2008, ISBN 978-1-84176-485-6 .
- Ortolf Harl: The Cataphractarians in the Roman Army - Panegyric and Reality. In: Yearbook of the Roman-Germanic Central Museum. Vol. 43, Part 2, 1996, ISSN 0076-2741 , pp. 601-627.
- Mariusz Mielczarek: Cataphracti and Clibanarii. Studies on the heavy armored cavalry of the ancient world (= Studies on the history of ancient and medieval art of warfare. Vol. 1). Oficyna Naukowa MS, Lodz 1993, ISBN 83-85874-00-3 .
- David Soria Molina: Cataphracti y clibanarii. La caballería pesada del ejército romano, de Severo Alejandro and Justiniano. In: Aqvila legionis. Cuadernos de estudios sobre el ejército romano. No. 15, 2012, ISSN 1578-1518 , pp. 117-163.