Did Roman cavalry wear face-masks in battle?

[Caballo]

"An important – and I believe crucial – consideration that tends to get overlooked is that of peripheral vision. Helmets with some form of face-mask, such as Viking or Saxon examples, or even Corinthian helmets from the Classical Greek period, typically incorporate eye apertures that allowed for the largest possible field of view for the wearer. Cavalry sports helmets, on the other hand, by seeking to imitate the human eye, deliberately limited the field of view."

Interesting comparison with later and earlier periods- but I would respectfully disagree as it omits the numerous examples from the Middle Ages where the slit for vision is far more restricted.

Here, one of my favourites from the Wallace Collection ( I was very impressed by this one when my father first took me round as an 8 year old)


There is pictorial evidence that restricted vision helmets were used in combat, e.g.


Secondly, peripheral vision on a face mask can be radically improved by a tailored mask that fits flush on the face- as per the Arrian quote mentioned earlier "Arrian, Techne taktika 34.3 ('Unlike battle helmets, these defend not only the head and cheeks but, conforming to the faces of the riders, have openings for the eyes which do not hinder the vision and yet offer protection.') . If there is a better translation, it would be great to read it , btw.

Thirdly, sculptural evidence ( with all the imperfections of this evidence) of face masks being used in battle exists- notably the Genialis stele from Cirencester.


Finally, Mike's argument that Amminanus would not have described the face masks of Persian cavalry had the Romans possessed them doesn't really stack up as Ammianus describes other items of equipment used by foreigners also used by Romans. ( Separately, can I check the reference given by Urselius - Ammianus 25.1- not sure which edition you are using ?).

Finally, the sheer quantity of "sports helmets" is odd when contrasted to the " combat helmets".

So overall, is the evidence in favour of face masks not being worn in battle? My view ( for what it's worth) is that the overall evidence points towards face masks perhaps being worn in battle. But certainly no overwhelming case either way.

Cheers

Paul ( feeling rather testy with gout at the moment)