09-24-2005, 03:47 PM
Quote:M.C. Bishop dismisses this idea in favour of the edged shoulder doublings of the mail shirt.
I didn't dismiss the idea per se, but rather pointed out that there is (as is usually the case with all ambiguous sculptural reliefs) an alternative, equally viable, explanation for what is being seen. The same remains true of the Croy Hill relief: it may indeed show some sort of padded undergarment being worn, but that is not the only (or even the most plausible - see my comments above) explanation. It is best not to pin too much on such tendentious evidence; by all means note its existence, but such memes can very swiftly mutate into factoids and, before you know it, re-enactment groups are coming out with this sort of stuff in their commentary as if it is fact. A case in point is the 'evidence' for face masks used by standard bearers: factoid, not fact.
Mike Bishop