06-06-2005, 05:42 PM
I would agree with John, so much is lost to us these days, gestures and symbolism of the arena we can only guess at now.
Many images show the victor lifting his shield instead of his sword as a sign of his dominance, and frequently the dropped shield seems to imply the loss of the fight. However it is interesting that in both cases the dropped shield does not appear to have been discarded as the fighter clings/rests on some part of it.
I had not spotted the possibility of a second sword being in the secutors hand until John mentioned it here, it does look as though the man has two weapons in his hand. Perhaps the pair have reached a stand off somethng worthy of note to make the mosaic interesting.
I haven't done much practical work with the shield resting on the floor as a form of defence at all, but perhaps with a wounded left shoulder (a common place for injuries it would seem looking at the imagery we have been left) that rather than discard a shield too heavy to fight behind it could be used as a natural barrier at least? This would make for a pivotal moment in a fight and possibly one worthy enough to capture on a mosaic when it happened?
All the best
Graham
Many images show the victor lifting his shield instead of his sword as a sign of his dominance, and frequently the dropped shield seems to imply the loss of the fight. However it is interesting that in both cases the dropped shield does not appear to have been discarded as the fighter clings/rests on some part of it.
I had not spotted the possibility of a second sword being in the secutors hand until John mentioned it here, it does look as though the man has two weapons in his hand. Perhaps the pair have reached a stand off somethng worthy of note to make the mosaic interesting.
I haven't done much practical work with the shield resting on the floor as a form of defence at all, but perhaps with a wounded left shoulder (a common place for injuries it would seem looking at the imagery we have been left) that rather than discard a shield too heavy to fight behind it could be used as a natural barrier at least? This would make for a pivotal moment in a fight and possibly one worthy enough to capture on a mosaic when it happened?
All the best
Graham
