Face mask or face guard in late roman period

[Robert Vermaat]

There were, and the Romans did not bother training Gauls or Romans to become archers, they simply imported them from Syria. As the Romans believed, archers are born, not made.

No doubt you can prove that? And explain why bows were made in fabricae in the West? I agree that we see specialists such as the Balearic slingers and Syrian archers during earlier centuries, but archers are such a large proportion of the forces in the West, there is no evidence that all these were 'imported' from Syria. After all Vegetius wrote about the common training of archers in general, not 'just' in Syria.

The Romans did not bother turning Syrians into legionaries either, they came from the west.

I agree with nathan, there's no evidence for your claim, to the contrary.

Not double strength, because it seeems these eastern alae could in fact be even larger. But Alae milliariae are only documented in Syria and Egypt, not in the west.

An ala miliaria is a 'common' ala at double strength. Please show where they were even larger? Also, Nathan has already shown you that alae miliaria also occurred in the West.

Of course you know what I am referring to, the statues of armoured deities form Hatra and, most of all, from Palmyra, show lamellar armour in the old Assyrian construction. You must have seem them.

Obviously I did not know what you were referring to, because we were discussion the armour of the Roman army, not that of Hatra or other non-Roman deities. If that's all you have on Roman soldiers using lamellar armour?

I also don’t really see what point you are trying to make by claiming differences in equipment based on differences in civilization levels between Gaul and Syria).

Compare the masked helmets from the west, especially the earlier ones, with the oldest "Roman" masked helmet from Emesa, Syria. If you do, I am sure you understand what I am talking about.

I would greatly appreciate it if you could provide me with an answer to a direct question, rather than to send me another riddle. What do cavalry facemasks from the West have to do with civilization levels? These are practical items, not proof of civilization accomplishments. Please elaborate how Roman equipment in the East differed from that in the West, based on your presude 'differences in civilization level' between these parts. I mean, I'm sure you have more than one (presumed) early facemask from Homs? :whistle: