Angon and Francisca finds 3rd Century

[Longovicium]

I am involved in a debate in one of the RTW mods and the issue of the use of angon throwing javelins and the Frankish axe has come up. There seems to be little to no actual evidence - written, archeological or artistic - for their use in the 3rd century. The throwing axe is first written about by Sidonius for example.

I was wondering if anyone here could advise me of any sources which attest angon use and axe use through the periods of the late 3rd/early 4th century? Specifically during the reigns from Aurelian down to Diocletianus and Constantine. I would be keen to find either pictoral representations/written sources and archeological evidence for angon use and francisca use.

At the moment, the consensus seems to be that these weapons were not in use at this period as no evidence exists that we are aware of. Any help would be appreciated!

[M. Caecilius]

I could not find much, but there is some information in P. Southern and K. Dixon The Late Roman Army: she too mentions Sidonius as a source, along with Procopius (who writes later, of course, in the 6th century) and a Panegyric on Maiorianus (5th century): not much help there.

She does refer to a work that might help you: U. Dahmlos, 'Fransisca-bipennis-securis. Bemerkungen zu archäologischem Befund und schriftlicher Überlieferung', Germania 55 (1977), pp. 141-167. I haven't got that work myself, and I expect new discoveries have been made since 1977, but it might be helpful if you can chase it up.

Southern herself comments that Germanic troops brought the weapon into the Empire in the 4th century, but then contrasts it to a Tetrarchic tombstone where a cavalrymen is wearing what looks like a conventional axe - again, not much help there.

As regards the angon, she mentions examples from Ccarvoran and South Shields, but does not give any dates for them, neither in the text nor in the accompanying illustrations, but it may be worthwhile checking her source out: L. Allason-Jones and R. Miket, The Catalogue of Small Finds from South Shields Fort, Newcastle upon Tyne, 1984.

Edit: note that Southern describes the weapons largely from a Roman, not Frankish context, but it may be used as a starting point.

[Longovicium]

Thanks, that is useful. It seems the evidence for the Frankish throwing axe in the 3rd/early 4th century is non-existent. I will re-read the Late Roman Army book and also backtrack to the 'Catalogue' source. The Ejsbol Mose finds circa 300 allow for around 193 barbed javelin heads so the angon issue is not heated at the moment.

The francisca however is proving difficult to verify for this period!

[Simplex]

In her book on the Katzenberg at Mayen (Die Befestigung auf dem Katzenberg bei Mayen und die spätrömischen Höhen-Befestigungen in Nordgallien = The Katzenberg fortification near Mayen and the late roman hilltop-forts in northern Gallia)Angelica Hunold list an axe
on page 153 referring (>note 366) to a paper of H.W. Böhme from 1974 where he classifies such axes as "in use from the third century to the middle-third of the 5th century AD".
(> H.W. Böhme, Germanische Grabfunde des 4. bis 5. Jahrhunderts zwischen unterer Elbe und Loire -- Münchner Beiträge zur Vor- und Frühgeschichte 19 -- München 1974 =
Finds from germanic burials from the 4th to the 5th century AD between lower Elbe and Loire)
I don't have that one but I thought this might be bring you further.
Judging from several citations you might also find that one useful:
Steuer/Bierbrauer: Höhensiedlungen zwischen Antike und Mittelalter von den Ardennen bis zur Adria,(Hilltop-forts from Antiquity to the Middle Ages between Ardennes and Adria) Reallexikon Germanischer Altertumskunde, Ergänzungsband/Supplementary 58, Berlin/New York 2008 .
I don't have this either.

Greez

Simplex