Wielding a sarissa overarm

[RichT]

Yes thanks - and aspis epichalkos koile as in Asclep v.1 of the shields of the phalanx Makedonike chalke octopalaistos ou lian koile - which is what I was reminded of.

[Prufrock]

Gentlemen (and any ladies who may also be reading), I would like to apologise for having been a little antagonistic earlier in this thread. It may not read too badly, but my attitude was not of a standard I am happy with. Apologies to Justin especially. He and I do tend to disagree on quite a lot of things, but his heart is in the right place.

On reflection, my tone here over the past while has probably slipped from what I would previously have considered appropriate. In future, I will look to reverse that trend.

Thanks, and again, my apologies.
Aaron 

[Justin Swanton]

All OK Aaron.  For my part I'm realising just how much I have to learn. This is the place to do it.

Shield grips are getting complicated. A porpax is different from an ochane but it is an ochanon. So ochane/ochanon is a flexible term - perhaps the different spelling hints at that? - that will have different meanings depending on who is using it.

[Duncan Head]

perhaps the different spelling hints at that?

The different spelling indicates a different gender - -on is a neuter ending, -ē is feminine - but whether that enables us to deduce anything about different shades of meaning I do not know.

[Erpingham]

Just observing, knowing nothing of the language, but it seems to me ochanon/ochane may simply be a word like handle - a generic word for something to hold something whose precise form depends on what it is the handle of.  A briefcase handle is different from a saucepan handle, for example.

In this case, though, perhaps we should try to look at what might be different about the ochane and the porpax.  Is a porpax always rigid for example?  In which case, an ochane could be something more flexible?

[RichT]

I think it's unlikely the gender difference indicates different meanings, and more likely it's just one of those things (an error, a copyist's error, a dialect difference, a personal preference difference, a time difference).

Ochanon gives every impression of meaning pretty much the same as porpax and/or antilabe:

Pausanias 5.26.3: "Among the offerings of Micythus is Struggle carrying jumping-weights, the shape of which is as follows. They are half of a circle, not an exact circle but elliptical, and made so that the fingers pass through as they do through the handle of a shield [ochanon aspidos]"

Strabo 14.2.27: "As evidences of their zeal for military affairs, writers adduce shield-holders [ochana], shield-emblems, and crests, for all these are called "Carian." At least Anacreon says,"Come, put thine arm through the shield-holder [ochanou], work of the Carians.""

Herodotus 1.171.4: "They invented three things in which they were followed by the Greeks: it was the Carians who originated wearing crests on their helmets and devices on their shields, and who first made grips [ochana] for their shields; until then all who used shields carried them without these grips [ochanon], and guided them with leather belts [telamosi] which they slung round the neck and over the left shoulder."

Herodotus 2.141.5: "Their enemies came there, too, and during the night were overrun by a horde of field mice that gnawed quivers and bows and the handles [ochana] of shields, with the result that many were killed fleeing unarmed the next day."

Aelian, De Natura Animalium 12.5 and 12.30 - translations forthcoming!

Aeneas Tacticus 29.12: - translation forthcoming

Lucian, Anacharsis 27: "Yes, and you saw in the gymnasium a bronze disk like a small buckler [aspis], but without handle [ochanon] or straps [telamonas]; you tried it as it lay there, and found it heavy and, owing to its smooth surface, hard to handle."

Lucian, Herodotus and Aetion 5: "On the other side of the picture, more Loves playing among Alexander's armour; two are carrying his spear, as porters do a heavy beam; two more grasp the handles [ochanon] of the shield, tugging it along with another reclining on it, playing king, I suppose;"

Procopius de Bellis 1.1.13: "But the bowmen of the present time go into battle wearing corselets and fitted out with greaves which extend up to the knee. From the right side hang their arrows, from the other the sword. And there are some who have a spear also attached to them and, at the shoulders, a sort of small shield without a grip [ochanou], such as to cover the region of the face and neck."

And add Duncan's discovery,

Julius Africanus, Kestoi 7.1.10: "For the Greeks are fond of heavy, full armour: they have a double helmet, a breastplate covered with scales, a concave bronze shield held by two handles [ochanois duo] (of which the one surrounding the forearm avails for othismos, while the other is grasped by the end of the hand), two greaves, a hand-held javelin, and a spear for hand-to-hand combat."

Then ochane:

Plutarch, Cleomenes 11.2: "Then he filled up the body of citizens with the most promising of the free provincials, and thus raised a body of four thousand men-at-arms, whom he taught to use a long pike, held in both hands, instead of a short spear, and to carry their shields by a strap [ochane] instead of by a fixed handle [porpax]."

Some of these authors are not such as you would expect to know or be concerned about precise technical details of shield carrying arrangements, but the suggestion is:
- ochanon/-e is a general word for a shield handle that doesn't have a strong technical meaning
- porpax and antilabe are more specific words for the armband and handgrip
- telamon is a strap round the shoulder
So the porpax and the antilabe are examples of ochana; but Plutarch's distinction must mean something, and given the perishability and mouse-eatability of other ochana, and the context of freeing up the left hand, I suggest that while the porpax is a rigid (sometimes bronze) armband worn below the elbox, the ochanon/-e in this case is a flexible leather strap that could be pushed above the elbow.

[Duncan Head]

The Aineias 29.12 example, as said in the other thread, refers to shields with ochana of leather or wood - ochana ... skytina kai xylina, which supports the idea of a word with a fairly broad meaning.

[Justin Swanton]

I think it's unlikely the gender difference indicates different meanings, and more likely it's just one of those things (an error, a copyist's error, a dialect difference, a personal preference difference, a time difference).

Ochanon gives every impression of meaning pretty much the same as porpax and/or antilabe:

Pausanias 5.26.3: "Among the offerings of Micythus is Struggle carrying jumping-weights, the shape of which is as follows. They are half of a circle, not an exact circle but elliptical, and made so that the fingers pass through as they do through the handle of a shield [ochanon aspidos]"

Strabo 14.2.27: "As evidences of their zeal for military affairs, writers adduce shield-holders [ochana], shield-emblems, and crests, for all these are called "Carian." At least Anacreon says,"Come, put thine arm through the shield-holder [ochanou], work of the Carians.""

Herodotus 1.171.4: "They invented three things in which they were followed by the Greeks: it was the Carians who originated wearing crests on their helmets and devices on their shields, and who first made grips [ochana] for their shields; until then all who used shields carried them without these grips [ochanon], and guided them with leather belts [telamosi] which they slung round the neck and over the left shoulder."

Herodotus 2.141.5: "Their enemies came there, too, and during the night were overrun by a horde of field mice that gnawed quivers and bows and the handles [ochana] of shields, with the result that many were killed fleeing unarmed the next day."

Aelian, De Natura Animalium 12.5 and 12.30 - translations forthcoming!

Aeneas Tacticus 29.12: - translation forthcoming

Lucian, Anacharsis 27: "Yes, and you saw in the gymnasium a bronze disk like a small buckler [aspis], but without handle [ochanon] or straps [telamonas]; you tried it as it lay there, and found it heavy and, owing to its smooth surface, hard to handle."

Lucian, Herodotus and Aetion 5: "On the other side of the picture, more Loves playing among Alexander's armour; two are carrying his spear, as porters do a heavy beam; two more grasp the handles [ochanon] of the shield, tugging it along with another reclining on it, playing king, I suppose;"

Procopius de Bellis 1.1.13: "But the bowmen of the present time go into battle wearing corselets and fitted out with greaves which extend up to the knee. From the right side hang their arrows, from the other the sword. And there are some who have a spear also attached to them and, at the shoulders, a sort of small shield without a grip [ochanou], such as to cover the region of the face and neck."

And add Duncan's discovery,

Julius Africanus, Kestoi 7.1.10: "For the Greeks are fond of heavy, full armour: they have a double helmet, a breastplate covered with scales, a concave bronze shield held by two handles [ochanois duo] (of which the one surrounding the forearm avails for othismos, while the other is grasped by the end of the hand), two greaves, a hand-held javelin, and a spear for hand-to-hand combat."

Then ochane:

Plutarch, Cleomenes 11.2: "Then he filled up the body of citizens with the most promising of the free provincials, and thus raised a body of four thousand men-at-arms, whom he taught to use a long pike, held in both hands, instead of a short spear, and to carry their shields by a strap [ochane] instead of by a fixed handle [porpax]."

Some of these authors are not such as you would expect to know or be concerned about precise technical details of shield carrying arrangements, but the suggestion is:
- ochanon/-e is a general word for a shield handle that doesn't have a strong technical meaning
- porpax and antilabe are more specific words for the armband and handgrip
- telamon is a strap round the shoulder
So the porpax and the antilabe are examples of ochana; but Plutarch's distinction must mean something, and given the perishability and mouse-eatability of other ochana, and the context of freeing up the left hand, I suggest that while the porpax is a rigid (sometimes bronze) armband worn below the elbox, the ochanon/-e in this case is a flexible leather strap that could be pushed above the elbow.

Interesting. Putting it all together, ochanon can be a generic term that covers porpax and antilabe (which would be Lucian's meaning), or it can refer to something that works like a porpax but is not a porpax and is made of leather or wood. Plutarch implies that the non-porpax ochanon is different from the porpax in that it leaves the left hand free to hold the pike. The regular Greek porpax only works if the left hand grasps the antilabe, wedging the forearm firmly in the porpax which keeps the shield rigid on the arm. A porpax doesn't work without the antilabe, but an ochanon does. So we need something that does not let the shield flop about uselessly but leaves the left hand free. It could be something for the upper arm.

For the life of me I can't see three straps in Secunda's interpretation of the Ajax shield. I see only one strap, possibly two with the index finger holding on to the second one.

[PMBardunias]

Hmmm... has anyone linked the description of Ochanon and telamon below to the somewhat odd Urartian shield grip system?

Herodotus 1.171.4: "They invented three things in which they were followed by the Greeks: it was the Carians who originated wearing crests on their helmets and devices on their shields, and who first made grips [ochana] for their shields; until then all who used shields carried them without these grips [ochanon], and guided them with leather belts [telamosi] which they slung round the neck and over the left shoulder."

See attached.

Justin, see the attached image of three grips on an aspis that have vexed me.

Just a reminder that many aspides had three grips, with a second antilabe opposite the normal one.  Probably to allow the aspis to be carried as a litter or basket.

The Kalkan shield has three "ochanes" much like some ancient pelta.  See here how they were used to grip the shield in multiple ways: http://bearwayarchery.blogspot.com/2016/09/use-of-kalkan-shield-part-2-shield-on.html

[Justin Swanton]

Hmmm... has anyone linked the description of Ochanon and telamon below to the somewhat odd Urartian shield grip system?

Herodotus 1.171.4: "They invented three things in which they were followed by the Greeks: it was the Carians who originated wearing crests on their helmets and devices on their shields, and who first made grips [ochana] for their shields; until then all who used shields carried them without these grips [ochanon], and guided them with leather belts [telamosi] which they slung round the neck and over the left shoulder."

See attached.

Justin, see the attached image of three grips on an aspis that have vexed me.

Just a reminder that many aspides had three grips, with a second antilabe opposite the normal one.  Probably to allow the aspis to be carried as a litter or basket.

The Kalkan shield has three "ochanes" much like some ancient pelta.  See here how they were used to grip the shield in multiple ways: http://bearwayarchery.blogspot.com/2016/09/use-of-kalkan-shield-part-2-shield-on.html

The first image shows how three ochana would have worked. The middle one does the actual supporting of the shield. The one around the wrist and upper arm keeps the arm rigid in a bent shape, preventing the forearm from slipping out the middle band whilst leaving the left hand free to hold javelins/spears. I'm guessing the Urartian shield grips worked in a similar way - they seem to be angled to do so. But, mmh, they are in the wrong place on the shield.

[Patrick Waterson]

The kalkan shield reminds me of a passage in Xenophon's Anabasis:

"And now fire was already showing through the roof, and Xenophon and his men inside the house had equipped themselves with breastplates and were furnished with shields and swords and helmets, when Silanus the Macistian, a lad of about eighteen years, gave a signal with the trumpet; and on the instant they leaped forth with swords drawn, and so did the Greeks from the other houses. Then the Thracians took to flight, swinging their shields around behind them, as was their custom; and some of them who tried to jump over the palings were captured hanging in the air, with their shields caught in the stakes, while others missed the ways that led out and were killed; and the Greeks continued the pursuit till they were outside the village." - Anabasis VII.4.16-17

I'm guessing the Urartian shield grips worked in a similar way - they seem to be angled to do so. But, mmh, they are in the wrong place on the shield.

The Urartian shield may have had a different design intention.  Using all three grips together seems impossible given normal human anatomy.  Using the central grip with one of the other two gives the option of holding the shield high to protect the face (as one might wish to do against archery) or low to protect the body (as in close combat).  Whether it was convenient to reverse the hold in battle, or whether the troops would start out with the shield in one of the two positions and keep it that way throughout, is perhaps an experimental archaeology question.  I would expect the high shield grip (handles along the lower part) to have been used for assaults on cities (a surprisingly common event in warfare of the period) and the low grip (handles at the top) to have been used for battle.

That is my best guess, anyway.

[Erpingham]

For the life of me I can't see three straps in Secunda's interpretation of the Ajax shield. I see only one strap, possibly two with the index finger holding on to the second one.

Two straps seem certain - one in the fingers near the rim and the second just above the wrist.  The third one I'd guess would be the slightly lighter edge to the painting of the body, from the bottom edge and disappearing under the chest.  If that is a strap, it is somewhere around the elbow.

[PMBardunias]

The kalkan shield reminds me of a passage in Xenophon's Anabasis:

"And now fire was already showing through the roof, and Xenophon and his men inside the house had equipped themselves with breastplates and were furnished with shields and swords and helmets, when Silanus the Macistian, a lad of about eighteen years, gave a signal with the trumpet; and on the instant they leaped forth with swords drawn, and so did the Greeks from the other houses. Then the Thracians took to flight, swinging their shields around behind them, as was their custom; and some of them who tried to jump over the palings were captured hanging in the air, with their shields caught in the stakes, while others missed the ways that led out and were killed; and the Greeks continued the pursuit till they were outside the village." - Anabasis VII.4.16-17

I'm guessing the Urartian shield grips worked in a similar way - they seem to be angled to do so. But, mmh, they are in the wrong place on the shield.

The Urartian shield may have had a different design intention.  Using all three grips together seems impossible given normal human anatomy.  Using the central grip with one of the other two gives the option of holding the shield high to protect the face (as one might wish to do against archery) or low to protect the body (as in close combat).  Whether it was convenient to reverse the hold in battle, or whether the troops would start out with the shield in one of the two positions and keep it that way throughout, is perhaps an experimental archaeology question.  I would expect the high shield grip (handles along the lower part) to have been used for assaults on cities (a surprisingly common event in warfare of the period) and the low grip (handles at the top) to have been used for battle.

That is my best guess, anyway.

The Uratian shield would have looked like this when held, but also had a telamon attached to the two lateral grips. The make of this shield seems to be the same as the later kalkan by the way.

[Erpingham]

More Funcken nostalgia - the Anatolian Guard!  Les Higgins made a figure of this one in his Ancient range.

[Patrick Waterson]

The Uratian shield would have looked like this when held, but also had a telamon attached to the two lateral grips. The make of this shield seems to be the same as the later kalkan by the way.

Interesting.  So the two small handles are not so much handles as strap attachments.  That would make eminent sense, and brings to mind Herodotus about the Carians inventing grips (okhana) for shields,

"... until then all who used shields carried them without these grips (okhanōn), and guided them with leather belts (telamōsi) which they slung round the neck and over the left shoulder." - Herodotus I.171

The Urartians seem to have pioneered the concept of belt and braces, so to speak.