The prices on these items are not cheap. There is a very good reason for this. These items are done with great care; they are not quickly milled out on a production line. Many of these items are actually an ensemble of numerous, small elements that need to be carefully made by hand and orchestrated together to make for a quality item. I constantly check source material while I'm working, and for armour items also need to size the project to fit the wearer nicely. This all takes a lot of time, but the results are well worth it.
In the Spirit of Smithwork,
Joe Piela
If you are looking to join a Roman Historical Reenactment Unit, check out:
Legio III Gallica.
Legio XX is centered in the state of Louisiana.
Legio V Macedonia LegioV@Yahoo.com. Legio V is centered in the state of Illinois.
Legio X Fretensis, IV Cohort, located in California.
Legio X Gemina, located in Holland.
Legio XX Valeria Victrix.
Legio XX is centered in the state of Maryland.
Legio XXIV Media-Atlantia.
Legio XXIV is centered in the southern Pennsylvania.
For a great deal of general warfare & reenacting info from a variety of periods, check outWarplay.
For some great reference material on Roman Warfare, check out the RedRampant Website. They have lots
of interesting material for reenactors, wargamers, etc.
Be sure to check out Roman Empire.Com
The helmet is from the 1st Century BC to the
1st Century AD. It is a good example of what the average Roman soldier wore during Julius Caesar's Gallic Wars.
The top, tail, and topknot of the helmet are raised from one pieceof 18 gauge bronze.
Though most of my Roman helmets have a medium grade, satin finish, this example has a high grade, near-mirror polish.
The topknot is filled with lead to provide stability for the crest. Prices:
The top is raised from one pieceof steel and is welded to the
tail. It is made from either 16 or 18 gauge mild steel. Price $1800
This helmet is based on one found in Nijmegen, Holland, from the mid to late first century B.C.
The connection between this helmet and a Celtic Port helmet is clear. Experts
believe the Type A is the first type of helmet the Romans had the Celts make
for them.
Shown here is Mike Cope of Legio XX Valeria Victrix equipped in marching order.
This picture shows Robert Garbisch of Legio X Fretensis with Augustan period equipment
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He is wearing one of our Type A Imperial Gallic helmets (welded top and tail version). Mike made the mail coat, and most of the other items as well.
Other members of Legio XX helped with the rest of the equipment, such as the shield and shield cover by Tom Kolb.
He is wearing another example of our Type A Imperial Gallic Helmets (welded top and tail version). The picture was taken while Robert was performing
a 25 mile march in the Sierra Forest.
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This is an early 1st Century AD helmet based on an example found near Eich.
This helmet is raised by hand like the original, with the top and tail made in one piece. This helmet is examined in an article in the "Journal of Roman Military Equipment Studies I 1990" by Jurgen Oldenstein.
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This is a First Century AD helmet based on an example found in the Rhine at Mainz.
This helmet consists of a bowl made from two pieces welded together; the tail is then welded onto the bowl. There are numerous brass components (edging, rosettes, etc) and sculpting which adorn the various parts of the helmet.
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This helmet is also based on the example found at Mainz, but the top and tail of the helmet have been hand-forged from one piece of 16 gauge steel using the ancient raising process. This is the manner in which the original helmet was made. The cheek pieces are forge from 18 gauge steel. This helmet was commissioned by Q. Equitius Frontinus of Legio XX Valeria Victrix. I usually use a medium grade, satin finish on my Roman helmets, but Frontinus preferred a high grade finish
To see more pictures of this helmet, along with pictures showing a few steps in the lengthy raising process, click Here.
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This is a First Century AD helmet based on an example found in the Rhine at Mainz. The original helmet belonged to L. Lucretius Celeris, a member of Legio I Adiutrix. No cheek pieces were found with Celeris' helmet, but bronze cheek pieces of an appropriate style have been found in Nijmegen and Caerleon, and have been used as models for reconstruction.
This helmet consists of a bowl made from one piece of bronze; the tail is then welded onto the bowl. There are numerous bronze components and sculpting which adorn the various parts of the helmet.
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This is also a First Century AD helmet based on an example found in the Rhine at Mainz.
This helmet consists of a bowl made from two pieces welded together; the tail is then welded onto the bowl. The Type D Italic helmet has a considerable amount of unique brass decoration applied to the surface of the helmet (such as images of eagles and temples).
Shown here is George Metz of Legio XXIV Media-Atlantia wearing the above Type D Italic Helmet.
The helmet is adorned with a brass Italic twist-on crest holder (price $75.00) and a red horsehair crest (price $300.00; for a natural
white or black horsehair crest, the price is $250.00). He is also wearing a "Lorica Segmentata Praefectorum" which we made, detailed below.
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This is a type of helmet from the first half of the 1st Century AD. It is not based on any single helmet, but is a combination of many typical elements found on this type of helmet. These helmets are generally thought to have only been used in the Roman Cavalry Sport. However, recent evidence is pointing towards the possibility of combat use, at least for earlier models like the Type D.
This is an early Second Century AD helmet based on a helmet in the Archaeological Museum in Florence and images shown on Trajan's Column. The heavy reinforcement bars were thought to have originated during the Dacian Wars, when extra protection was needed against the cutting power of the Dacian Falx.
This helmet is welded together from several pieces.
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This is a mid Second Century AD helmet from Friedberg.
This helmet is welded together from several pieces. The original was in the museum at Damstadt but was destroyed in World War II.
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This is an example od the steel and bronze version of the Type E Auxiliary helmet, based on one from Hedderheim.
This helmet is welded together from several pieces.
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This is a circa AD 400 helmet. It is based on the fragmentary helmet found at Burgh Castle in England, and some continental European examples, such as one helmet from Concesti. The example shown has leather lining attached to interior of the helmet (bowl, cheekpieces, and tail). The lining may need additional padding to achieve the best fit. The Burgh Castle helmet can also be ordered without lining.
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This gladius and scabbard are based on examples found on a Roman soldier who died in the disaster at Pompeii. The gladius (like all of our swords), is not a mass produced item, but individually made with a great deal of care. The High-Carbon Spring Steel blade is Hand-Forged and Heat-Treated. The gladius has a heavy-duty tang for solid strength. The handguard and pommel are made of hardwood. The brass hilt-plate is carefully inlaid into the front of the handguard. This hilt plate also has the blade slightly counter- sunk into it. The grip is of carved bone. All of the components are very carefully fitted together.
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This weapon is based on a gladius we photographed while visiting a museum in Mainz. It comes with a high carbon spring steel blade, hardwood handguard and pommel, bronze plate on handguard, bone grip. All of the components are very carefully fitted together.
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This gladius is based on numerous examples found at Mainz. A ferry that the Romans had there probably contributed to a great deal of equipment being lost in the river. The gladius (like all of our swords), is not a mass produced item, but individually made with a great deal of care. The High-Carbon Spring Steel blade is Hand-Forged and Heat-Treated. The gladius has a heavy-duty tang for solid strength. The handguard and pommel are made of hardwood. The brass hilt-plate is carefully inlaid into the front of the handguard. This hilt plate also has the blade slightly counter- sunk into it. The grip is of carved bone. All of the components are very carefully fitted together.
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Made of 20 gauge brass, sculpted with repousse.
The designs on the plates are taken from several first century A.D. sources. Tom Kolb from Legio XX Valeria Victrix commisioned the plates shown in the first two images. Mr. Kolb then mounted them on a scabbard, adding brass strips to hold the plates in place, and decorating the plates with low relief tinning. An image of Tom's completed scabbard is shown below.
This first century AD weapon is similar in design to the gladius, but longer for cavalry use. It is generally believed to have evolved from the Celtic Spatha, since Celtic people supplied many of the Cavalry soldiers of the Roman army. The Spatha and Sheath are taken from a variety of First Century AD finds. It comes with a high carbon spring steel blade, hardwood handguard and pommel, bronze plate on handguard, bone grip.
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This is the First Century AD sidearm of the Legionary. The blade is hand forged of high carbon steel, and has a handled consisting of hardwood layered with steel. The blade has dual fuller grooves. The scabbard has a wooden core covered with steel.
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Made in 18 gauge, mild steel, with hand made brass fittings.
This is a based on the late first century A.D. finds at Corbridge. Fragmentary finds at other sites show that this type of armor was in use even in the early first century A.D.
Price for Type A Corbridge Lorica Segmentata $1100George Metz of Legio XXIV Media-Atlantia recently commissioned a lorica from us which had fancier fittings: more complex buckles, piercings on the shoulder hinges, and round brass stock used on the buckles for greater strap life. We referred to this lorica as a "Lorica Segmentata Praefectorum" (Officer's Lorica Segmentata). An image of Mr. Metz is shown wearing this Lorica above in the "Type D Helmet" section. A close-up of the Lorica Segmentata Praefectorum is also shown below.
Price for Lorica Segmentata Praefectorum: $1400
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| Arms & Armor in JRR Tolkien's Middle Earth; An essay by Joe Piela |
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