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Details
LOT 1411
Roman Iron Plumbata
4TH-5TH CENTURY A.D.
5 1/4 in. (95 grams, 13.4 cm).
The barbed head with tapering cylindrical stem and biconical lead weight; socket to the reverse.
Provenance
Ex B. Posey collection, UK, 1990s.
Literature
Cf. Southern, P. & Dixon, K.R., The Late Roman Army, London, 1996, fig.46, pp.113-115.
Footnotes
The lead-weighted darts known as plumbatae mamillatae (or 'breasted javelin') were short darts mounted upon a shaft of the same shape, and thrown from a short distance. A Roman soldier would typically carry around 5-6 of these darts at any one time, fastened to the back of his shield. They could be thrown overhand or underhand, with an effective throwing range of up to 60 metres by trained soldiers.
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