Gladius baldric lenght and design

[Crispvs]

Regarding the method of passing the belt over the baldric to hold the scabbard in place, I used to do this but having observed that nowhere in the contemporary depictions I have seen does the belt pass over the baldric, I stopped doing it. It only took one show to get used to it and now I often wonder why I ever bothered to try and secure it in place. The only time it shifts out of place is when I am charging and by then I have already drawn my sword. A small tug on the baldric is enough to pull it back into place before I re-sheath my sword. Remember that if you shorten your baldric as I suggested above you will find that your sword does not swing around that much anyway. My suggestion, based on slightly circumstantial evidence from Vindonissa, Herculaneum and Delos, is to secure the free end of the baldric to the scabbard with a small buckle, placed right next to the scabbard. If you have the two part fastener which many people use on your baldric, remove this and sew the ends together. These fittings iare actually cavalry harness fittings and attempts to identify them a baldric fasteners are misguided.

Crispvs