- INVASIO BARBARORVM III -

[Magister Militum Flavius Aetius]

Kaftans have largely remained unchanged for several centuries. The Kandys was different but pretty much the same in many regards.

Reconstruction of the Hun noble buried at Volnikovka, D2 period roughly (400-450 AD):

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Only real qualm I have with that image is that the top of his kaftan should be pinned together near the neck/shoulderblades with a Fibula.

[Linke]

isn't kandys a very specific coat where arms hang down by side, not neccesarily the standard iranian tunic
at least in achaemenid days I think

[Magister Militum Flavius Aetius]

Kandys is a specific riding coat that has a different cut to the front of the Kaftan. Both the Zostarion and Kandys had armpitholes under the sleeves so you could wear it without the sleves with the arms tied behind your back. The Kandys also had sleeves longer than the arm with tight cuffs called Persomanikia which were later buttoned. The Zostarion (traditional Kaftan) likely had these as well.

The Kavvadion or padded riding coat the "Byzantine" Romans used in the 7th-8th centuries onwards was a Zostarion made of quilted felted wool. It was the most common armor of the Hunnish peoples (Huns, Oghur Huns, and Avars). Likely common amongst the Alans as well. It's likely the Avars introduced padded coifs.

[Charerg]

@MMFA:

Earlier you mentioned that splint greaves/vambraces first appear in Vendel-era finds from Sweden. However, the RomanArmyTalk discussion regarding Sarmatian armour seems to suggest that at least splinted greaves were used earlier.

A few relevant posts:

They appear to have aromored chaps in illustrations, even Trajan's column. I'm guilty of wearing splint greaves, my theory this: If the Scythians and Saka wore them (and we have archaeological examples), and the Huns wore them (well documented also), then the Sarmatians-- being the direct culture between the Saka and Huns-- also wore them. That's a bone of contention, but the chances that Sarmatians would "forget" or "reject" splint greaves is highly unlikely. Also the Chinese, who borrowed so much weaponry and armor from the Saka/Wuson/Sarmatians, also wore them. :dizzy:

An extant example of a Roman fishing reel has never been found, yet one is depicted on a c. AD 500 fish platter in the Getty Museum. Negative artifactual evidence does not rule out probability. ;-)

According to Bishop and Coulston Roman Military Equipment, among the Romano-Thracian burials full-length splint greaves have been found. They refer to articles by Velkov, Mansel, Abdul-Hak, Radulescu, Nikolov and Bujukliev, most in journals I do not know, so that will take some time to retrieve.

Eduard,

I found examples in Russian articles, actually early Saka. There are Scythian (western) splint greaves at Oxford's Ashmolean museum; and Hun splint greaves have been found dating to the 5th century. There are RAT members who wear them "informally," like John Conyard. My premise is nothilng but linking that must have existed if the Sarmatians weren't suffering from amnesia of cultural isolation. After all, the steppe was the great ancient highway. :whistle:

It seems that since there actually are archaeological finds of splint greaves, they existed as armour, at least among the Alans and the Huns (probably adopted by some Germanic tribes as well, judging by their appearance in 7th century Sweden).

[Magister Militum Flavius Aetius]

I have no evidence that the Huns wore splinted greaves, I have some Hun burials I need to research anyways so I will let you know if I come across anything.

I have heard that greaves made of wooden splints were in existence during the Scythian and Sarmatian Era. We know they were in use by the time of the late 6th century Strategikon. I do not know the archaeological examples that I have been told about.

As for bracers, those are certainly Vendel.

[Charerg]

Well, the segmented helm is largely finished now:


Btw, is the Kispek helmet you posted earlier in the "Hunnic armament" thread also Slavic, or is that a genuine Hunnic helmet (see spoiler)?

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[Magister Militum Flavius Aetius]

It's Alan.

[Charerg]

Ok, the Kishpek helm is pretty much done as well:

Front:


Top:


Again, trying out different tones of iron. Though it has to be said that my "bronze" parts ended up looking rather golden instead of bronze! Well, I'll probably tinker with the tone a bit more at some point. Next up, I'll probably do a version of this helm with Kertch/Illichevka style domed cap and a different browplate, though I think I'll just use the same bowl shape and lamellar arrangement (speeds production, also the depictions of the Kertch/Illichevka finds here look pretty vague).

@MMFA:

What do you think of this Spangenhelm? Is that a genuine 6th century helm?

[Magister Militum Flavius Aetius]

It might be a genuine 13th century helmet.

[Charerg]

The Kertch helmet is done as well. I made it more akin to the Niederstotzingen with the lamellae bound together with leather, as well as including a leather liner.

Closeup:


Side:

[Magister Militum Flavius Aetius]

Kerch is 6th century and Avar, IIRC. Wouldn't be appropriate for Hun, but still a useful asset.

[Charerg]

So, the later lamellar helmets (the Niederstotzingen type, primarily) fall beyound our era as well? Also, I was thinking of modelling the Voivoda baldenheim (late 5th century), and perhaps the Heraklea Lyncestis as well (late 5th to early 6th). Personally I think the Voivoda helmet in particular is so close to the period that it probably was used in the 450s.

Actually, it might be useful if you have any sort of catalogue of which helmets/helmet types would be appropriate for the era. Since it's probably best (from a "production speed" point of view) to work in a more "factory line" fashion and get all the helmets done before moving on to other assets. Although I'll probably leave the Roman helmets unmodelled for now, since Stealth4Health seems to be mostly working on the Roman equipment, and it would be a bit pointless for me to do the same work again that he may have done/perhaps plans on doing.

Edit:
Also, I think there is a possibility that the Kerch-type helmets preceded the Avars. From The Pontic-Danubian Realm in the Period of the Great Migration:

The earliest lamellar helmet from this region was found in a 2nd-century A D Sarmatian grave by the stanica Tbilisskaja on the Kuban; it has a hemispherical bowl resembling the Roman helmets (Simonenko 2001, 263-265). Another Sarmatian burial, from Kišpek in Kabardino-Balkaria, dated between the late 3rd and the first half of the 4th century, contained glass-paste gems and a lamellar helmet with a T-shaped nasal plate (Fig. 3 : 2). Likewise, the early Byzantine fortress Il’ičevka on the Taman Peninsula delivered a helmet dated to the 5th-6th century (Nikolaeva 1986), with a hemispherical bowl and a T-shaped nasal plate (Fig. 3 : 3).

If the Illichevka helmet (very similar to Kerch, by the looks of it) is truly 5th century, this would indicate that helmets of this type were used before the arrival of the Avars.

[Magister Militum Flavius Aetius]

Baldenheims first appear in the mid-late 5th century, the earliest example is the Stuttgart Helmet which dates to 470.

They're not out of the question, just more suitable to late-game units.

Kalkhni and Kispek are both Lamellenhelms... but I'm against using helmets dated to much later (Illichevka and Kerch are both mid-6th century found in distinctly Avar graves) in a 5th century mod.

[Charerg]

Tbh, I don't see much choice other than using some late 5th century Baldenheims, since it would hardly be accurate to equip every faction with Roman helmets! And I don't know if there are that many helmet finds from the 5th century (that are outside the Roman sphere). Well, I guess there's the Sisak spangenhelm and the spangenhelms depicted on the Arch of Galerius.

In any case, if the Stuttgart burial is dated 470, and we assume the deceased was say, 40, and had used that helmet for an extended period, a 450 date for the usage of Baldenheims seems perfectly acceptable to me. Speaking of which, I tried to google for some references of the Stuttgart baldenheim.

Is this an image of the Stuttgart baldenheim?



It's labelled as "Alamannic grave goods, 460-480 CE".

[Magister Militum Flavius Aetius]

The Spangenhelmets and Bandhelmets were the most common helmets of the time other than ridge helmets. We have plenty of finds of typical Spangenhelmets including Sinj (Dated 6th Century), Leiden Museum (4th Century), Iadar/Sisak (6th Century), and the Bandhelmets from Sveti Vid.

That is the Stuttgart find, yes. It was deposited sometime around 470-480, and I would put an absolute earliest date of usage at 440 for the Baldenheim, but more likely around 450 onwards.

Hmm... I had always thought Stuttgart to be East Gothic, yet it does seem to be Alamannic.

[Charerg]

I think 440 is making the "window of usage" too narrow. We have to remember that there's a large amount of chance at play when it comes to archaeological finds. If something turns up at a particular date or location, that does not always mean that the item was first used in that particular location, or even that particular time. In the case of baldenheims, they are spread over such a large area, that I think the chances are high that they were used (to a more limited extent) well before the first finds. It's probably only at the point that the type becomes relatively commonplace and replaces earlier dominant types, that we really see them appearing in the archaeological finds, that have essentially by blind chance survived to present day.

In the case of the Stuttgart find, for example, if the user was buried in the 470s, the helmet may have been forged as early as the 450s. By which I don't necessarily mean that I think the baldenheims were common during the 440s, but I think there is a strong possibility that some wealthy chieftains and such used the type even then. Although I think it's probably a good idea to reserve them for more elite units, representing a new helmet type that is only available for the wealthy aristocrats who can afford them.

Regarding unit design, as the mod covers a very narrow time period (about 20 years), I don't really plan to divide the units into "early" and "late" unit types. Ideally, a population mechanic (such as will be implemented for a few other mods) should be implemented, and basically most of the roster would be accessible from the start, with the recruitment of more elite units restricted by the population mechanic. The population mods essentially have a separate population for several social classes (nobles, peasants, slaves, foreigners, to give an example), and specific unit types are recruited from a specific group. In the Vae Victis mod, for example, Auxilia are recruited from the Peregrini (foreigners).

[Magister Militum Flavius Aetius]

In the case of baldenheims, they are spread over such a large area, that I think the chances are high that they were used (to a more limited extent) well before the first finds.

Only the Stuttgart dates to the late 5th century, the overwhelming majority date from the Early-Late 6th Century. Mostly in the mid-6th century. The common consensus amongst scholars is that they were only just appearing at the time of Stuttgart and become widespread after the Romans adopt it at the end of the 5th century and in the early 6th and begin giving them out as gifts to Barbarian nobles/chiefs/kings.

Although I think it's probably a good idea to reserve them for more elite units, representing a new helmet type that is only available for the wealthy aristocrats who can afford them.

All of them were gilded... only the elites could afford them, regardless of whether they were new or not. Helmets themselves were expensive. A baldenheim probably cost as much as maille body armor (about 12 solidi in the late 6th century). For reference most people back then were making wages in a year that didn't even equal a Siliqua (silver coin).

[Charerg]

Ok, I've decided to model the Voivoda and the Stuttgart baldenheims, as both of these are thought to date to the 5th century. I'm not 100% sure if I'll model the Heraklea Lyncestis yet, but it's a possibility as well. Anyway, here's what the "Pontic-Danubian Realm in the Period of the Great Migration" has to offer in terms of dating the Voivoda and Heraklea helmets:

The earliest specimens come from an Illyrian urban context. One helmet was found in an imperial fortress near Voivoda in Bulgaria (Fig. 6), destroyed in the second half of the 5th century (Vagalinski 1998), the other, in the late 5th – early 6th century destruction layer in the south annex of the basilica C in Heraklea Lyncestis in Macedonia (Fig. 7) (Maneva 1987).

As an aside, do you know if the Stuttgart helmet had a "mini-noseguard" like this baldenheim, for example (or is it just a straight band around the rim, like the Heraklea helmet):

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[Magister Militum Flavius Aetius]

All baldenheims have that stunted noseguard.

Herakleia Lynkestis is an interesting helmet... it's not actually a Baldenheim. It's actually evidence of their evolution, I'd hazard to guess. I would classify it as a Spangenhelmet.

I hesitate to classify Voivoda as a Baldenheim, it is a bandhelm. Baldenbandhelm?

I need to email Christian Miks.

[Charerg]

I suppose the Voivoda is a bit of a crossbreed, yeah. As an aside I found a bit better picture of it:



It does kind of have those "diagonal bands" that Baldenheims have, though in a miniaturized form. Although I'm not sure if the helmet's bowl was actually made of six parts, or if those diagonal bands are purely ornamental.