11-19-2002, 06:34 PM
A further thought occurs to me. In this mosaic the hoplo's opponent is a Thracian. Usually, the hoplo was matched with a murmillo, in which case his armament was round shield, spear and straight backup sword. When fighting another small-shield fighter like a Thracian, he usualy fights with the sword alone. Maybe, in this hoplomachus-Thracian match, the hoplo's shield was eliminated instead to even the odds. Fascinating stuff. <p></p><i></i>