Roman cross-bows

[Lucius Aurelius Metellus]

Uhmm,no. Actually there is quite a bit of difference...ballistas, particularly Roman, are usually torsion powered, meaning that their power comes from twisted rope or sinew skeins, and has two seperate arms, each powered by its own skein, unlike a crossbow, whose power comes from a single "prod", which is in effect a short bow mounted to a shoulder stock. The two look vaguely similar, but are actually totally different. A crossbow could more accurately be compared to a Gastrophetes or Oxybeles rather than a ballista, as both of these engines achieved their power through a prod or bow, and both of these engines were known by the ancients. <p>Lucius Aurelius Metellus, draconarius, Secunda Brittanica</p><i>Edited by: <A HREF=http://p200.ezboard.com/bromanarmytalk.showUserPublicProfile?gid=luciusaureliusmetellus@romanarmytalk>Lucius Aurelius Metellus</A> <IMG HEIGHT=10 WIDTH=10 SRC="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v384/Lucius68/Lucius.jpg" BORDER=0> at: 1/16/05 4:15 am<br></i>