09-28-2008, 11:49 PM
Hello! I'm Bill, and I just registered. I have been interested in Roman history since I started collecting Roman coins as a young boy, and I have particular interests in the "military anarchy" period of the Empire, the Illyrian "Hero Emperors" (especially Probus), and Late Antiquity. Roughly half of my evening reading touches upon these topics...I recently finished Heather's "The Fall of the Roman Empire", and will soon start "Justinian's Flea".
If my attempt at uploading a photo worked, you'll see my hand over one of the swords in the Porphyry Tetrarchs column in Piazza San Marco, Venezia. I have long been fascinated by the spathae with narrow blades and thick cross sections, especially those with very long tangs. The essay "Roman Inlaid Swords" by Horbacz and Oledzki in JRMES 9 thrilled me by revealing that serious researchers also questioned whether these weapons might have been wielded with two hands. While in Italy, I had to make a special trip to examine this statue closely myself...given that the Tetrarchs were less than lifesize, I think that their swords could have been used with two hands. Doesn't mean that they WERE, and the dimensions could easily have been messed up by the artisans...maybe the Romans just thought that the eagle head pommels looked cooler when they were of exaggerated length, I don't know.
I suspect that this topic may have come up earlier here, but haven't found it in my searches yet. Anyway, this looks like a fantastic forum, and I hope to learn a lot here. Maybe I can even contribute some new things in my amateur and inexpert fashion...
If my attempt at uploading a photo worked, you'll see my hand over one of the swords in the Porphyry Tetrarchs column in Piazza San Marco, Venezia. I have long been fascinated by the spathae with narrow blades and thick cross sections, especially those with very long tangs. The essay "Roman Inlaid Swords" by Horbacz and Oledzki in JRMES 9 thrilled me by revealing that serious researchers also questioned whether these weapons might have been wielded with two hands. While in Italy, I had to make a special trip to examine this statue closely myself...given that the Tetrarchs were less than lifesize, I think that their swords could have been used with two hands. Doesn't mean that they WERE, and the dimensions could easily have been messed up by the artisans...maybe the Romans just thought that the eagle head pommels looked cooler when they were of exaggerated length, I don't know.
I suspect that this topic may have come up earlier here, but haven't found it in my searches yet. Anyway, this looks like a fantastic forum, and I hope to learn a lot here. Maybe I can even contribute some new things in my amateur and inexpert fashion...
I compensate for my ignorance by being obtuse.
- Bill M. (me)
- Bill M. (me)