10-17-2005, 04:25 PM
Sorry Robert, should have read your reply more thoroughly :oops:
To see the Thoracomachus as armour of its own would make sense - if the 6th century has armour made from felt and/or leather, then why should 'felt armour' not have existed in the 4th century ?
On the other hand, according to the Anonymus the 'Thoracomachus' is/was just a subarmalis worn ad leuamen corporis armorum ponderi et asperitati (to relieve the weight and friction of the armour from the body)
A few lines later the same thing is stated again: the 'Thoracomachus' is worn to keep loricae (mail), clibani (squale) or similar armour from injuring the body through their weight and friction - ut hoc inducto primum lorica uel cliuanus aut his similia fragilitatem corporis ponderis asperitate non laederent.
How about the following solution...
If it is possible to wear a thick subarmalis as armour (if you can't afford metal armour, or if you want to be faster), than it would make sense to cover this subarmalis with a leather coat in rainy weather.
If however you wear the subarmalis as a subarmalis, then a layer of leather between armour and subarmalis would indeed be stupid.
Perhaps the Anonymus has unvoluntarily mixed this up ?
To see the Thoracomachus as armour of its own would make sense - if the 6th century has armour made from felt and/or leather, then why should 'felt armour' not have existed in the 4th century ?
On the other hand, according to the Anonymus the 'Thoracomachus' is/was just a subarmalis worn ad leuamen corporis armorum ponderi et asperitati (to relieve the weight and friction of the armour from the body)
A few lines later the same thing is stated again: the 'Thoracomachus' is worn to keep loricae (mail), clibani (squale) or similar armour from injuring the body through their weight and friction - ut hoc inducto primum lorica uel cliuanus aut his similia fragilitatem corporis ponderis asperitate non laederent.
How about the following solution...
If it is possible to wear a thick subarmalis as armour (if you can't afford metal armour, or if you want to be faster), than it would make sense to cover this subarmalis with a leather coat in rainy weather.
If however you wear the subarmalis as a subarmalis, then a layer of leather between armour and subarmalis would indeed be stupid.
Perhaps the Anonymus has unvoluntarily mixed this up ?
Florian Himmler (not related!)