Hoplite spacing and formation

[Giannis K. Hoplite]

Paul B,you draw conclusions and you are so "sure" about them that I'm surprised!How do you know you cant't push or that you're terribly harmed if your fellow hoplite's shield is a bit to the right of your chest? You say that right over left and body parallel to the shield are inseperable. How do you know? You base your whole theory on only these two points, that you have not experienced yourself and that other re-enactors disagree with(they may not have expirienced othismos,but they-if nothing else-have been side by side with shields with other hoplites. I posted so many pictures,many of them showing locked shields in battle, but you insist this is incapability to depict the real phalanx(while there are indeed some few depictions of right over left shield) You also don't offer an explanation of how they would deploy,and how this would be practical

Watch this video. Go streight forward to the 3rd minute(nothing else worth anything).Look how easy it is to close shields. And when overlapping the shield of the hoplite to the right is not pressed to your chest but rather to your right arm or shoulder.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ySaI5ypaCcY