| Author |
Message |
Gabriele C.
Location: Roma,Italia Joined: 09 Apr 2007
Posts: 38
|
 Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 5:52 am Post subject: Arms and armor of Longobards in VI-VII centuries |
 |
|
Hi everyone.
I'm Gabriele, i live in Roma ad i'm 25. I've always have a passion for arms and armor, especially those of acient times. migration period and rinascimento. I still remember the first time i saw a zweihander in a palace of the city center (stolen from a lanzichenecco during the sack of Rome in 1527), my love for history and arms begun there. I studied deeply latin and acient greek in high school (a particular kind called liceo classico) and this year i'm going to take a degree in law, but i hope to become a military historian.
The first thing i'd like to share with you is an amazing sword from the migration period. It was found in the necropoly of Nocera Umbra (200km from Roma), a "cemetery" developed between 570 and 640 AD.
The hilt is unbelivable, entirely made in gold and finely decoreted, is one of the most beatiful thing i've ever seen. The upper guard is affixed to the tang and the pommel is riveted to the upper guard in a sort of "Petersen type R" ante litteram.
I try to mesure the sword but was hard with the the protecion-glass, i think it's under 90cm all.
Here a photo that count more than one thousand words.
ps. excuse me for my english.
 Attachment: 120.82 KB
[ Download ]
|
|
  |
 |
Bruno Giordan
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 7:51 am Post subject: |
|
|
Rinascimento= Renaissance for the anglosphere.
In Italy there are many fine weapons from the migration era sleeping in less famous museums.
For example in Verona\'s Castelvecchio they have some lombard swords almost as beautiful as the one by Gabriele.
Usually they are ignored by the public which concentrates mainly on paintings an architectural wonders.
|
|
|
|
|
Gabriele C.
Location: Roma,Italia Joined: 09 Apr 2007
Posts: 38
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 8:40 am Post subject: |
|
|
Yes it's true. Probably because here the interest in arms and armor is very low..no one here can understand the historical value of a similar sword. The only good italian books on the subject came from Lionello Boccia but now are really hard to find (fortunately i bought online all Oakshott works).
In that museum, that is half mile from home, there is another sword like that, with a different hilt, other simply sword (all very close to spatha), a dozen of sax and a particular weapon, one harpago (a sort of sickle mounted on a staff), and a lot of spear points (seveal are very fine manufactured).
Maybe the best thing of the museum is the "funeral corredo" (all the thing put in the tomb with the corpse) of tomb 119 from Castel Tirosino. It his the most complete longbard corredo ever found in Europe. This Longobard was probably an high ranked official and was buried with a complete lamellar armor and a wonderful lamellar elm with a rigid forehead and nose protection. The stripes of metal were fixed to this rigid piece at the bottom and fixed to a round element in the upper part. A sax, a sword, a spear and an harpago complete his offensive equipment. For defense he had also a round shield. The fornitures and decorations found demostrates a Byzantine influence in longbard art. Very close to the Esarcato and to the Adriatic Sea, the centre-Italy longbard showed soon the most incredible mix of pure roman, byzantine and barbaric traditions.
Attachment: 37.53 KB
the fine spear point
Attachment: 98.75 KB
the lamellar elm [ Download ]
Attachment: 105.82 KB
lamellar armor [ Download ]
Attachment: 59.86 KB
the "harpago" [ Download ]
|
|
|
|
|
John Cooksey
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 9:19 am Post subject: |
|
|
I had often wondered about the presence of "Migration-period" archaeological sites in Italy----there appears to be very little in print about that topic.
That is a beautiful spear . . . . .
Great post.
I didn't surrender, but they took my horse and made him surrender.
|
|
|
|
|
Gabriele C.
Location: Roma,Italia Joined: 09 Apr 2007
Posts: 38
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 10:07 am Post subject: |
|
|
In Italy there are tons of swords and other edged weapons (armi bianche) that simply lie in museums storages. The interest goes to vase,pot,marbles and other things. I took part to an archeological campaign in 2000 near Viterbo. Well, we found a huge longbard site, grown up on a Roman Villa of the V century. Swords ,spears,schields etc went in the storage, while ceramic ware went in the exposition. In the next months i'm going to visit other museum near here to see other "forgotten beauties" and i'd like to write something about migration period sword in Italy next year, a catalogue with all the most important infos. The problem is that in italy it's hard to find a publisher and even harder to find someone interested in buying a book on the subject.
Here another photo. On this silver plate of the VI century i've noticed a wonderful engraving of a bizantyne horseman fully equipped.
Attachment: 101.92 KB
[ Download ]
|
|
|
|
|
|
Geoff Wood
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 11:44 am Post subject: inlay? |
|
|
Hi Gabriele
On the pommel on the sword in your first post, is there any suggestion of glass or similar inlay in the spaces in the net pattern on the pommel face?
Geoff
|
|
|
|
|
Gabriele C.
Location: Roma,Italia Joined: 09 Apr 2007
Posts: 38
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 12:50 pm Post subject: Re: inlay? |
|
|
| Geoff Wood wrote: | Hi Gabriele
On the pommel on the sword in your first post, is there any suggestion of glass or similar inlay in the spaces in the net pattern on the pommel face?
Geoff |
Good question. I ask myself the same thing when i saw the pommel. I think it is a possibility. Infact if you draw an imaginary line in the middle of pommel's face you have 2 simmetrical parts. Maybe there was a pattern made by small pieces of coloured glass (considering the byzantine influence).
On the other hand a simple geometrical design, without inlaids, reduces the weight of the pommel and it's high decorative too. Moreover we have several exemples of bizantine inlaids with glass, and all of theose came till present days intact, so it's strange that none a single piece of glass was in the pommel.
|
|
|
|
|
Bruno Giordan
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 1:44 pm Post subject: |
|
|
|
funeral corredo = funeral set, what is buried with the corpse.
|
|
|
|
|
Bruno Giordan
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 1:48 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Gabriele C. wrote: | In Italy there are tons of swords and other edged weapons (armi bianche) that simply lie in museums storages. The interest goes to vase,pot,marbles and other things. I took part to an archeological campaign in 2000 near Viterbo. Well, we found a huge longbard site, grown up on a Roman Villa of the V century. Swords ,spears,schields etc went in the storage, while ceramic ware went in the exposition. In the next months i'm going to visit other museum near here to see other "forgotten beauties" and i'd like to write something about migration period sword in Italy next year, a catalogue with all the most important infos. The problem is that in italy it's hard to find a publisher and even harder to find someone interested in buying a book on the subject.
Here another photo. On this silver plate of the VI century i've noticed a wonderful engraving of a bizantyne horseman fully equipped. |
Not to mention the fact that the only civilizations that count are the roman, the greek and the etruscan one.
Kelts, venetics, ligurians, italici (southern populations who were not greek and were absorbed by the romans after log wars), lombards are just second or third choice for expositions and popularization, ancestors to be forgotten some way.
|
|
|
|
|
Jared Smith
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 2:02 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Bruno Giordan wrote: |
Not to mention the fact that the only civilizations that count are the roman, the greek and the etruscan one.
Kelts, venetics, ligurians, italici (southern populations who were not greek and were absorbed by the romans after log wars), lombards are just second or third choice for expositions and popularization, ancestors to be forgotten some way. |
I had the impression that Langobards never really absorbed into Roman culture at all. In other regions near Cologne, Trier, etc. there were many Latin scholars who commented on adoption of Gaul cavalry techniques, and integration of their forces into Legions. Some areas were counted as relatively well integrated into Roman culture, until subsequent invasions of other Goths, Vandals, Alans, etc.
The metalurgical aspects of this regions' swords is not given due credit. Back to Etruscan era, swords exhibited good quality laminar construction as well as pearlite and martensite not replicated elsewhere until long afterwards. Offering of very high quality metal casting and forging at large scales not done comparably well anywhere else still occurs in Italy today.
Absence of evidence is not necessarily evidence of absence!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Geoff Wood
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 2:16 pm Post subject: Re: inlay? |
|
|
| Gabriele C. wrote: |
Moreover we have several exemples of bizantine inlaids with glass, and all of theose came till present days intact, so it's strange that none a single piece of glass was in the pommel. |
A good point. I wonder if organic inlays were ever used in place of glass or garnet - maybe a dark wood or a patterned horn or something that disappeared in the same way that the spacers between the metal plates on the upper and lower guards disappeared.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Russ Ellis
Industry Professional
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 2:24 pm Post subject: Re: inlay? |
|
|
| Geoff Wood wrote: | Hi Gabriele
On the pommel on the sword in your first post, is there any suggestion of glass or similar inlay in the spaces in the net pattern on the pommel face?
Geoff |
Beat me to it, was wondering if at one time it might have looked something like the Sutton Hoo pommell...
TRITONWORKS Custom Scabbards
|
|
|
|
|
Gabriele C.
Location: Roma,Italia Joined: 09 Apr 2007
Posts: 38
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 4:20 pm Post subject: Re: inlay? |
|
|
| Russ Ellis wrote: | | Geoff Wood wrote: | Hi Gabriele
On the pommel on the sword in your first post, is there any suggestion of glass or similar inlay in the spaces in the net pattern on the pommel face?
Geoff |
Beat me to it, was wondering if at one time it might have looked something like the Sutton Hoo pommell... |
I think it's a realistic ipotesis....
OT: the scabbards in your site are excellent.
|
|
|
|
|
Gabriele C.
Location: Roma,Italia Joined: 09 Apr 2007
Posts: 38
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 4:23 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Bruno Giordan wrote: |
Not to mention the fact that the only civilizations that count are the roman, the greek and the etruscan one.
Kelts, venetics, ligurians, italici (southern populations who were not greek and were absorbed by the romans after log wars), lombards are just second or third choice for expositions and popularization, ancestors to be forgotten some way. |
Terremare and Villanoviana civilizations are really intresting and poorly studied. And for roman and greek the interest going to everything they did but arms and armor eheeheh!
|
|
|
|
|
Gabriele C.
Location: Roma,Italia Joined: 09 Apr 2007
Posts: 38
|
| Posted: Wed 11 Apr, 2007 4:38 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Jared Smith wrote: |
I had the impression that Langobards never really absorbed into Roman culture at all |
Yes, the arrival of the Longbards in 568 was the real shock of roman burocracy and law system. Eruls and Gots mixed with romans in a short period, while longbards needed 200 years to mix with latins. They kept for i long time their own law (Rotari edict of 643 confirmed the principle of "personality of the law": roman judged by corpus iuris and longbard by acient germanic law), their religion (until 700ca) and their language (close to gothic, deeply influenced the evolution of acient latin in the "vulgar" form).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
This is a standard topic