1/9/2024 0 Comments Greek hoplite shield insideAll the men wear sandals, which is fine, and the only other item on the legs is the greave, which is on both legs of every figure. Again these look to be well done and entirely accurate, and we thought the balance between the numbers of each type of cuirass was well chosen.īelow all the cuirasses and covering the groin there are the pteruges, strips of material which offered some protection but still allowed relatively easy movement. For the rest, they wear the lighter and cheaper composite cuirass, which was made of layers of linen and might have metal plates within it but might only rely on the stiffened linen for protection, although some here have external metal scales. As might be expected, the officer too has a muscle cuirass, and both his and those of his men are well done. Sculpted to resemble the ideal male musculature, all three such cuirasses here are of the later style with the front extending down towards the groin rather than the earlier 'bell' type. Earlier a full metal cuirass had been common but during the classical period this expensive item gave way to cheaper alternatives, and only three soldier poses in this set have one. As a result the exact look of hoplites was highly varied, with individual taste and wealth being the main deciders for the look of each man. Hoplites were normally just citizens called to military service as the need arose, and they were required to provide their own arms and armour, which were not cheap. Hoplites were not professional soldiers - none of the Greek states could afford that apart from Sparta, which as in so much else was an exception. The officer too is very nicely done, but in our view far too much emphasis has been placed on swordsmen, leaving too few spearmen poses to adequately form a typical phalanx. The figure holding his shield well out behind him is rather strange but the rest are pretty good, with good positioning of sword and shield. On the whole the swordsmen are much more animated and a good bunch of figures. With only half the poses armed with the spear the rest must have the sword (although the first figure in the third row has a ring hand and so could have either). In short then the spearmen leave a lot to be desired. Perhaps the kindest thing to say is he is facing a mounted opponent, but that too was a rarity in Greek warfare. The fourth pose (the first man on the top row) looks suspiciously like he is trying to throw his spear, which was a rarity. These poses are not particularly active (no one seems to be pushing), but to their credit they are at least holding their shield in front of them, as they certainly should. Three of these poses have the spear over their arm as if in contact with the enemy, although all seem to be standing still, and therefore have already clashed with their opponents. These leaves four for the phalanx, none of which are carrying their spears underarm, which is a considerable disappointment as this ignores an important part of their drill. This set has just six spearman poses, of which the middle man in the second row is at ease while the middle man in the top row is on alert. When considering poses then we would expect to see a good many men walking forward steadily, with spear pointing forward either underarm, as would be the case while just manoeuvring, or overarm, when the fight was imminent or in progress. Swords would then be drawn for what could become a confused melee as the battle was decided in multiple individual combats. Frequently this imposing formation caused the enemy to flee before contact was even made, but if the two sides did meet then shields would be held to the front and both would attempt to push the other backward while using their spears to inflict casualties. At a signal the body moved forward, and when within close range of the enemy would charge to contact. The hoplites formed up, perhaps eight ranks deep, with shields at the ready and spears pointing forward. While hoplites famously faced Persian foes on numerous occasions, their most common opponent would have been other Greeks as the cities fought one another for supremacy. For much of this time there seems to have been little or no light infantry, nor cavalry, so the hoplite has become synonymous with ancient Greek warfare. Literally meaning armed or armoured men, the hoplites were heavy infantry which formed up in a phalanx and moved as a single body to try and force the enemy from the field. For the latter part of the Archaic and most of the Classical periods warfare in the various Greek city states was dominated by the hoplite.
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