so apparently CAS iberia have teamed up with legacy arms to stock 2 models of gladii

http://casiberia.com/product/roman-gladius-sword/ip-022

a pompeii and a mainz gladius. the thing that raises an eyebrow wityh me is the non rounded pommel, did those exist?

and with the mainz, the blade geometry is VERY unusual, a hexagonal section blade, with a diamond section toip that is slightly thicker at the centre than the rest of the blade and has an abrupt stop just before the tip.

http://casiberia.com/product/roman-maintz-gladius-sword/ip-023

any thoughts? are legacy arms usually good manufacturers?

Nice fantasy pieces.

William P wrote:

http://casiberia.com/product/roman-gladius-sword/ip-022

From what I've seen of the 2 swords actually found at Pompeii, this doesn't look anything like them. The point is too long and the wrong shape. They're still using that incorrect thick steel guard plate, and now they've added metal spacers in the hilt! Never seen anything like that pommel--oh, wait, it vaguely resembles a copper weapon from about 2500 BC from somewhere in the middle east... Mind you, there have been some new finds that I have not kept up with, but since they say they're copying the actual Pompeii swords, that pommel should be spherical.

Quote:

and with the mainz, the blade geometry is VERY unusual, a hexagonal section blade, with a diamond section toip that is slightly thicker at the centre than the rest of the blade and has an abrupt stop just before the tip. http://casiberia.com/product/roman-maintz-gladius-sword/ip-023

Sorry, that's a completely non-Roman blade. Same problems with the hilt, too, with the addition of ANOTHER spacer in the guard.

Both scabbards are worthless, historically speaking. You can't even salvage the wood since it's the wrong shape.

Hey, look, they even plagiarized the lie from the old MRL catalog: "...it was not uncommon to find 4th century Legionnaires carrying either models." (My apologies if I am attributing that ridiculous bit of fantasy to the wrong source! I just remember seeing it there first.)

Sorry about that! I'm, uh, SURE these are finely made "weapons" and fully functional. They're just farther from "Roman" than what was being made 25 years ago.

Matthew