Filming Varus in Judea

[pvblivs cordvs]

I’ve been ask by a director to set up several scenes concerning the battle in which Varus crushes the uprising in Judea.
And for once this is a director very much concerned with historical accuracy.

So the questions we’re facing are, amongst other things, what can we use.
Only Coolus helmets or possibly already some Imp. Gallics or Italics. And which types.
Only hamata’s or could there already be a Corbridge A involved.
Which legions would be involved (which three out of the four Varus had at his disposal)
What were their signa.
How would the enemy look and be armed.
I think you can imagine the dilemmas.

It is not a major film production by the big studios and it won’t be a big battle scene either but as directors who are actually interested in historical accuracy are few and far between I want to help this man to the best of my abilities.
So all help, info, comments and suggestions from fellow RAT -ters is much appreciated.
This time we’ve got the chance to make a difference. Please help me to make it a good one.

Greetings,
Cordvs / Wim van Broekhoven

[FAVENTIANVS]

The Kalkriese segmentata would be proper than the Corbridge one. Both Hamatae and segmentatae usefull, as well as some squamatae.
Coolus until the E and imperial gallics A, B, C...? Mainz gladii and what about Pompei ones? Double cingulum... both square and semi oval scuta...

[Quintius Clavus]

Sounds like an interesting project, a time and event very rarely touched upon.
Varus was Proconsul of Syria at the time and would have had whatever legions were in his province. The tough part is knowing which ones were there. The Augustan period was characterized by mobility. Few, if any, legions had fixed bases yet.
The VI Ferrata was in the east for a long period of time, as was XII Fulminata. Other legions were also in the eastern end of the Mediterranean as well. But the "east" was composed of more than one province. For example, I am reasonably certain that XII Fulminata was in Cappadocia (part of what is now Turkey) for an extensive period of time in the first century AD.
Varus, presumably did use only his own legion(s) and auxiliary/allied troops. Speaking of auxiliaries/allies, for much of the first century AD in the east, the Romans continued to hire troops from the local client rulers. This was certainly the most common practice during the Augustan period, even Arminius (the Cheruscan) in the west, before 9 AD was leading allied troops, not what is later recognized as regular auxiliary troops.
As for armor, you might still see freguently the Montefortino helmets of the late Republic, as well as the newer Coolus types. Hamata/mail is most likely the armor for the legionary troops. Unknown about the early segmented armors, presumably in use by 1 AD, but how wide their use is a question to which we have no good answer, yet. Scale (or mail) is probable on the armored allied troops. Weapons for the allied troops would include bows and arrows, slingers, as well as the more usual spears and swords (of Greek or other eastern type).
On the other hand, the Galilean (and Judean) rebels very likely wore little if any armor or wore variations on what the allies of the Romans were wearing, and, of course, anything they could plunder off a dead Roman or allied soldier. They were not regular troops. Weapons among the rebels would have included swords (of Greek or eastern types), spears, perhaps lighter javelins and archery, slingers, etc. Again, the same remark about what might be plundered from the dead applies to weapons, too.
The rebellion Varus dealt with was not even close to the scale of the First Jewish War. The much ado that Varus made of his actions in putting down this minor rebellion inflated his self image, and of course was likely a major factor in his later contempt for the Germans, who, unlike the Jews, were a true warrior culture.

Marcus Quintius Clavus/Quinton Johansen

[FAVENTIANVS]

You're right, my mind was more fixed in AD 9 than AD 1! :?

[Vincula]

Perhaps film producers should do some elementary research.
Yes, there were four legions in Syria under Tiberius, but at the time of Varus, there were only three.
Varus had left one in Jerusalem (Jos. BJ 2,40), but was obliged to bring the other two down (BJ 2,67) to quell the unrest.
For the outfits, theres a fantastic picture of a legionary in Peter Connolly's Jews in the Time of Jesus.

[Robert Vermaat]

The much ado that Varus made of his actions in putting down this minor rebellion inflated his self image, and of course was likely a major factor in his later contempt for the Germans, who, unlike the Jews, were a true warrior culture.

Ah, but don't make light of the Jews either. In the 2ndC BC, they had driven out Antiochus IV Epiphanes and secured independence. The Jewish wars cost hundreds of thousands of lives, and it took the Romans years to subdue these warlike peasants. The environmental circumstances were totally different - Germania being wet and wooded, and Judaea neither, germania not having many towns and settlements, and Judaea many. But neither jews nor Germans met the Romans in a pitched battle, and that gave the latter much trouble and hard fighting overcome them.

[Crispvs]

"Unknown about the early segmented armors, presumably in use by 1 AD, but how wide their use is a question to which we have no good answer, yet."

The earliest Kalkriese type segmentata fittings I know of come from Dangstetten in Germany and date to around 9BC (Bishop 2002). That doesn't give any idea of a geographical spread but does show that by AD1 it had been around, somewhere at least, for at least ten years.

Crispvs

[pvblivs cordvs]

Thanks for the help guys.
I can work with this.
It will take a while before the actual filming takes place but when it does I'll make some pics so you can see for yourselves how it looks.
Cheers,
Cordvs / Wim.

[claudia crisis]

Definately no Corbridge A's.
No evidence for Kalkriese before 9AD. Possible in use for some time before but no proof.
Easiest & safest option would be to use hamata.
If you want to see reconstructed Kalkriese try
http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/kalkriese

but as far as I know it is still the only one.
Would have a job to make him look like a legion-full.

regards
Hilary

[Crispvs]

Hilary,

Good to hear from you again. Did you mean 9BC or had you missed the Dangstetten evidence?

Crispvs

[claudia crisis]

Ave Paul
(not your wife, brother or other family member, but you have intorduced yourself by that alias on other occasions)
Good to hear from you again also.
I hadnt forgotten Dangstetten, but was erring on the side of caution.
Although from what is shown in Mike Thomas's book appears to be segmentata stuff, it is all very indeterminate bits of plate + buckles which may/maynot be from seggies. Sometimes these scraps turn out to be from something else on closer look - like manicae (thinking of the bits on show at Vindolanda here).
So, although seggies probably about pre-Kalkriese (unlikely that the one and only got trashed on its first ever day out, & as armour has always been used for long periods at a time before binning), the "Kalkriese" chest plate & collar plate are the only ones easily recognised as being segmentata (& we could not know how widespread they were even then).

If wanting to kit out a group of men for a film shoot with any certainty I would tend to lean more towards mail - not only for the reason that its the easiest for them to get hold of (without running the risk of one of us anoraks coming along and saying "You didnt want to do it like that./They didnt have one of those"

bye
Hilary
(at home waiting to collect pussy cats from vet)