LOT 1088

Roman Bronze Armour Sections for Limbs

3RD-4TH CENTURY A.D.

2 3/8 - 4 3/4 in. (54 grams total, 6-12 mm).

Comprising four large plate sections from a segmented armour for arm (manica) or leg, three with pierced attachment holes to the edges, rounded extremity. [4, No Reserve]

Found Northern Europe.
UK private collection.
Acquired from Redhouse Antiques Centre, York, 2005.
Property of a Nottinghamshire gentleman.

Cf. Bishop, M.C. & Coulston, J.C.N., Roman military equipment, from the Punic wars to the fall of Rome, London, 2006, p.101, fig.58 (manica from Carlisle); fig.86 (manicae from Newstead and Carnuntum); D'Amato,R., Negin, A., Roman Heavy Cavalry (1), Cataphractarii & Clibanarii, 1st century BC-5th Century AD, Oxford, 2018, pp.38-39 (samples of limb armour from Dura Europos,Pochlarn and Siena Private Collection, the last presumably from the Danube).

On the Adamclisi monument, at least thirteen Roman legionaries and three standard-bearers have the right arm covered by an armoured sleeve (manica). It is likely that this laminated protection of the arm, derived from that worn by the gladiators, was introduced in the Imperial army in the early first century A.D., and extended to the legionaries fighting during the Dacian Wars. Domitian’s militia had already experienced the importance of protecting the arms from enemy falces. Modern scholars however do not consider this the only and exclusive reason for the introduction of this part of equipment to the Roman army between 21 and 70 A.D.

The armoured sleeve can often be seen on weaponry trophies of 1st century A.D., not only on those linked with the revolt of Sacrovir, like that of Scafa, but also those related to the civil wars, like the armoury assemblage of Split, where the manica is even furnished with laminated gauntlet. This combat item can also be seen on legionary tombstones like those of Sextus Valerus Severus and Gaius Annius Salutus, both from Mainz; and legionaries of Legio XXII Primigenia, who were based in Mogontiacum between 43-70 A.D. Their tombstones show manicae as part of the decorative edge of weaponry surrounding the inscription of the tombstone. Severus' manica shows eleven plates and a hand shaped section of four plates. As suggested by Paul Brown all this clearly places the manica as being used by Roman legions around 21-70 A.D., with a widespread use throughout the empire at the time of the Dacian Wars.

In the following period its use continued: a monument of Legio XIII Gemina, from Apulum (now Alba Julia) still shows a legionary of early third century in lorica segmentata combined with a manica like his predecessors of Adamclisi. Several specimens have been found in all the territories of the Empire, especially in England (Carlisle, Newstead), Austria (Carnuntum), Spain (Santa Marina de Leon), and of course in Romania (Ulpia Sarmizegetusa Trajan). However, we cannot exclude that our fragments are related to the limb armour of Roman heavy cavalryman, the cataphractarius or clibanarius. The peculiarity of the pieces is that they had rounded edges, and were certainly fixed to a leather backing. Also Ammianus (XVI,8) speaks about the lamminarum circuli (circles of laminated sheets) protecting the Roman heavy cavalrymen of the Imperial Guard.