Manica (weapon)

Manica , a salvaged fragment of a rail arm protection from the Till-Steincheshof fort

Re-enactment of a legionnaire with manica

Re-enactment of a legionnaire with manica and greaves

Manica ( Latin for sleeve; Sg. ) In connection with Roman gladiators refers to arm protection from the shoulder up to and including the hand. Some pictures also show Roman soldiers wearing manicae . In addition, the remains of this armguard were recovered from various fort sites. The pieces obviously used for military purposes come from the Steincheshof fort , from the Eining and Newstead forts , from Carnuntum , Carlisle , Richborough , Corbridge , Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa and León . The find from a team barracks at Steincheshof dates from the last third of the first to the first third of the second century. It is unclear to what extent this piece of equipment was widespread in the Roman military and in what context it was used.

development

Early manicae only reached up to the wrist and resembled the Greco-Roman boxing glove ( caestus ) . In post-Augustan times they then reached up to the armpit. From the 4th century, metal manicae (scale, chain, possibly pushed rail armor) also appeared occasionally .

Inventory materials

There were probably two different types of manicae made from organic matter. Both species were reconstructed using illustrations by the historian and experimental archaeologist Marcus Junkelmann . One type consisted of linen filled with horsehair that was tied around the arm with a variety of leather cords. She weighed about 1 kg. The second type consisted of wide leather straps attached to a sleeve made of soft leather. Both ended at the lower end in a mitten with a thumb that left the palm of the hand free.

literature

Marcus Junkelmann : Playing with death - This is how Rome's gladiators fought . Zabern, Mainz 2000, ISBN 3-8053-2563-0 ( Antike Welt , special issue; Zabern's illustrated books on archeology ).

Web links

A Roman shin arm guard made of brass (PDF; 2.7 MB), in: Der Limes , Vol. 6, No. 1, 2012, pp. 8-10.

Remarks

↑ ^a ^b Marion Brüggler and Michael Drechsler: The new auxiliary camp Till-Steincheshof, Bedburg-Hau, Kleve district . In: Peter Henrich (Ed.): The Limes from the Lower Rhine to the Danube. 6th colloquium of the German Limes Commission . Theiss, Stuttgart 2012, ISBN 978-3-8062-2466-5 , pp. 28-37; here: p. 35.
^ Mike C. Bishop: Lorica Segmentata '. Vol. 1. A Handbook of Articulated Roman Plate Armor (= JRMES monograph Vol. 1), Armatura Press, 2002, ISBN 0-9539848-4-2 , p. 68.

[Brüggler_2012_35-1] Marion Brüggler and Michael Drechsler: The new auxiliary camp Till-Steincheshof, Bedburg-Hau, Kleve district . In: Peter Henrich (Ed.): The Limes from the Lower Rhine to the Danube. 6th colloquium of the German Limes Commission . Theiss, Stuttgart 2012, ISBN 978-3-8062-2466-5 , pp. 28-37; here: p. 35.

[2] Mike C. Bishop: Lorica Segmentata '. Vol. 1. A Handbook of Articulated Roman Plate Armor (= JRMES monograph Vol. 1), Armatura Press, 2002, ISBN 0-9539848-4-2 , p. 68.