Blog

From about 100 BC onwards, Legionaries received the sum of 225 denarii a year for their service. (The denarius was a silver coin with a weight of approx. 4.5 grams. Its initial value was put at 10 asses, yep asses, giving the denarius its name which translates to "containing ten".) This basic rate remained unchanged for many years until Domitian increased it to 300 denarii. There was no further rise until the time of Septimius Severus, who increa...

All troopers wore a helmet of steel and brass (300074) plus body armor, either a lorica segmentata (300176), made of steel lames or a lorica hamata, made of steel mail with shoulder doublings. As for the undergarments, very few articles were worn. There are examples of a loincloth or loose short being worn underneath and of course a long tunic (100042) overtop. During festivals and stately occasions a Roman would not be without his robes or toga...

Mail in this type of combat was very useful, but it was not long before pieces of plate armor began to be added at the elbows and knees and then to other areas of the body. This evolution spawned another and the arms race was on! One popular adaption was the increasing use of impact weapons like hammers, axes, maces, flails and clubs. Through the inventive change in circumventing the better armor of the day (300100), the sword still remain...