Home Region:  Southern Europe (Europe)

Latium - Iron Age

D G SC WF HS EQ 2020  it_latium_ia / ItLatIA

Preceding:
1800 BCE 900 BCE Latium - Bronze Age (it_latium_ba)    [continuity]
Add one more here.

Succeeding:
716 BCE 509 BCE Roman Kingdom (it_roman_k)    [continuity]
Add one more here.

In Latium, the region of Central Italy roughly corresponding to modern-day Lazio, the earliest evidence for the emergence of a distinctive regional culture dates to the 10th century BCE. [1] Iron Age Latial culture has been divided into the following phases and sub-phases: LC I (1000-900), LC IIA (900-830), LC IIB (830-770), LC IIIA (770-740), LC IIIB (740-720), LC IVA (720-620) and LC IVB (620-580). [2] This period is known by several names, including Old Latium (Latium Vetus in Latin and Lazio Antico in Italian) and the Southern Villanovan. [3]
The first and second phases of the Latial culture correspond respectively to the Proto-Villanovan and Villanovan archaeological cultures of Italy as a whole. The fourth phase is contemporary with the Orientalizing period of Etruscan civilization, and the third phase is transitional between the second and fourth phases. LC I is characterized by simple undecorated pottery and cremation as the dominant funerary rite, while in LC II cremation is replaced by inhumation, and pottery is decorated with simple patterns. Foreign influences can be detected in the pottery of LC III, and in the fourth and final phase both foreign pottery and its local imitations are represented. [2] Major sites include Osteria dell’Osa and Castel di Decima.
Population and political organization
It is difficult to reconstruct the exact political organization of Iron Age settlements in Latium. At Osteria dell’Osa, one of the most well studied LC II sites likely inhabited by between one and three hundred people, the distribution and quality of grave goods suggest that status was largely determined by age and gender. Men were usually buried with weapons, women with weaving equipment and jewellery, and the elderly with drinking cups. LC III and IV burials provide evidence for increasing social differentiation, a decrease in the importance of gender and age for determining status, and greater receptivity to external (i.e. Greek and Etruscan) influences. Most of the burials at Castel di Decima (LC III and IV) are quite simple inhumations, with no or modest grave goods, but a minority of graves are accompanied by high-quality goods such as amber beads, gold fibulae, and even chariots. The wealth of this minority appears to increase throughout the 8th and 7th centuries. [2]
There appear to be no reliable estimates for the overall population of Latium at this time. However, a few estimates exist for the population size of settlements. At one extreme, some sources suggest that thousands of people lived at some Iron Age settlements. [4] However, Osteria dell’Osa likely only had between one and three hundred inhabitants. [2]

[1]: (Anzidei, Sestieri and De Santis 1985, 140) Anna Paola Anzidei, Anna Maria Bietti Sestieri and Anna De Santis. 1985. Roma e il Lazio dall’età della pietra alla formazione della città. Rome: Quasar.

[2]: (Forsythe 2006, 53-58) Gary Forsythe. 2006. A Critical History of Early Rome: From Prehistory to the First Punic War. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

[3]: (Cornell 1995, 33-55) Tim Cornell. 1995. The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000‒264 BC). London: Routledge.

[4]: (Cornell 1995, 32-33) Tim Cornell. 1995. The Beginnings of Rome: Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000‒264 BC). London: Routledge.

General Variables
Identity and Location
Utm Zone:
33 T  
Original Name:
Latium - Iron Age  
Alternative Name:
Latial Culture  
Southern Villanovan  
Old Latium  
Latium Vetus  
Temporal Bounds
Duration:
[1,000 BCE ➜ 580 BCE]  
Political and Cultural Relations
Supracultural Entity:
Latial Culture  
Succeeding Entity:
Roman Kingdom  
Relationship to Preceding Entity:
continuity  
Preceding Entity:
Succeeding: Roman Kingdom (it_roman_k)    [continuity]  
Preceding:   Latium - Bronze Age (it_latium_ba)    [continuity]  
Language
Linguistic Family:
Indo-European  
Language:
Latin  
Religion
Social Complexity Variables
Social Scale
Population of the Largest Settlement:
[100 to 300] people  
Hierarchical Complexity
Settlement Hierarchy:
1  
Religious Level:
1  
Military Level:
[1 to 3]  
Administrative Level:
[1 to 3]  
Professions
Professional Soldier:
absent  
Professional Priesthood:
inferred present  
Professional Military Officer:
absent  
Bureaucracy Characteristics
Specialized Government Building:
absent  
Merit Promotion:
absent  
Full Time Bureaucrat:
absent  
Examination System:
absent  
Law
Professional Lawyer:
absent  
Judge:
absent  
Formal Legal Code:
inferred absent  
Court:
absent  
Specialized Buildings: polity owned
Market:
unknown  
Irrigation System:
unknown  
Food Storage Site:
unknown  
Drinking Water Supply System:
unknown  
Transport Infrastructure
Canal:
absent  
Bridge:
inferred absent  
Special-purpose Sites
Mines or Quarry:
unknown  
Information / Writing System
Written Record:
inferred absent  
Script:
inferred absent  
Phonetic Alphabetic Writing:
inferred absent  
Nonwritten Record:
present  
Non Phonetic Writing:
absent  
Information / Kinds of Written Documents
Scientific Literature:
inferred absent  
Sacred Text:
inferred absent  
Religious Literature:
inferred absent  
Practical Literature:
inferred absent  
Philosophy:
inferred absent  
Lists Tables and Classification:
inferred absent  
History:
inferred absent  
Fiction:
inferred absent  
Calendar:
present  
absent  
Information / Money
Paper Currency:
absent  
Indigenous Coin:
absent  
Article:
unknown  
Information / Postal System
Postal Station:
unknown  
General Postal Service:
absent  
Courier:
unknown  
Information / Measurement System
Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)
Fortifications
  Wooden Palisade:
present  
  Stone Walls Non Mortared:
unknown  
  Stone Walls Mortared:
unknown  
  Settlements in a Defensive Position:
present  
  Modern Fortification:
absent  
  Moat:
inferred absent  
  Fortified Camp:
unknown  
  Earth Rampart:
present  
  Ditch:
present  
  Complex Fortification:
inferred absent  
  Long Wall:
absent  
Military use of Metals
  Steel:
absent  
  Iron:
present  
  Copper:
inferred present  
  Bronze:
present  
Projectiles
  Tension Siege Engine:
absent  
  Sling Siege Engine:
absent  
  Sling:
inferred present  
  Self Bow:
inferred present  
  Javelin:
inferred present  
  Handheld Firearm:
absent  
  Gunpowder Siege Artillery:
absent  
  Crossbow:
absent  
  Composite Bow:
inferred present  
  Atlatl:
absent  
Handheld weapons
  War Club:
inferred present  
  Sword:
present  
  Spear:
present  
  Polearm:
present  
  Dagger:
present  
  Battle Axe:
present  
Animals used in warfare
  Horse:
inferred present  
  Elephant:
absent  
  Donkey:
unknown  
  Dog:
absent  
  Camel:
absent  
Armor
  Wood Bark Etc:
present  
  Shield:
present  
  Scaled Armor:
absent  
  Plate Armor:
absent  
  Limb Protection:
present  
  Leather Cloth:
present  
  Laminar Armor:
absent  
  Helmet:
present  
  Chainmail:
absent  
  Breastplate:
present  
Naval technology
Religion Tolerance Nothing coded yet.
Human Sacrifice Nothing coded yet.
Crisis Consequences Nothing coded yet.
Power Transitions Nothing coded yet.

NGA Settlements:

Year Range Latium - Iron Age (it_latium_ia) was in:
 (1000 BCE 717 BCE)   Latium
Home NGA: Latium

General Variables
Identity and Location
Utm Zone:
33 T

Original Name:
Latium - Iron Age

Alternative Name:
Latial Culture

900-770 BCE: Latial Culture, Southern Villanovan, Old Latium, Latium Vetus [1]

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), pp. 33-55

Alternative Name:
Southern Villanovan

900-770 BCE: Latial Culture, Southern Villanovan, Old Latium, Latium Vetus [1]

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), pp. 33-55

Alternative Name:
Old Latium

900-770 BCE: Latial Culture, Southern Villanovan, Old Latium, Latium Vetus [1]

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), pp. 33-55

Alternative Name:
Latium Vetus

900-770 BCE: Latial Culture, Southern Villanovan, Old Latium, Latium Vetus [1]

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), pp. 33-55


Temporal Bounds
Duration:
[1,000 BCE ➜ 580 BCE]

[1]

[1]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58


Political and Cultural Relations
Supracultural Entity:
Latial Culture

[1]

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), pp. 33-55


Succeeding Entity:
Roman Kingdom

[1]

[1]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58


Relationship to Preceding Entity:
continuity

[1]

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), pp. 31-32


Preceding Entity:
Latium - Iron Age [it_latium_ia] ---> Roman Kingdom [it_roman_k]
Preceding Entity:
Latium - Bronze Age [it_latium_ba] ---> Latium - Iron Age [it_latium_ia]

[1]

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), pp. 31-32


Language
Linguistic Family:
Indo-European

Language:
Latin

[1]

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 42


Religion

Social Complexity Variables
Social Scale
Population of the Largest Settlement:
[100 to 300] people

Inhabitants.
Rome, like Veii and other Etruscan poleis, likely had more than 100 inhabitants in 800 BCE.
Osteria dell’Osa, the best known site (but not the largest site in Latium at any point), is estimated to have been inhabited by 100 people [1] . However, it is possible that Osteria dell’Osa was not a unitary settlement, but a cluster of small villages. [2]

[1]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), p. 54

[2]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 54


Hierarchical Complexity
Settlement Hierarchy:
1

levels.


Religious Level:
1

levels.
1. Holy manThe cremated remains of what appears to have been a ritual specialist at Osteria dell’Osa have been found, accompanied by a small figurine depicting a human making an offering, as well as a miniaturised sacrificial knife, a ritually broken pot and miniaturised vessels of the kind that were used to make ritual offerings [1] .

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 52


Military Level:
[1 to 3]

levels.
A restricted group of individuals were cremated, instead of inhumed, and their urns were accompanied by vessels containing, among other things, weapons, suggesting that these males were warriors of some kind [1] . However, there is no indication of differences, among these warriors, in terms of rank.

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), pp. 51-53


Administrative Level:
[1 to 3]

levels.
Writing present which would have helped organize and create administrative levels.
Cornell writes that there is "no evidence of economically differentiated classes or any other kind of permanent social stratification" [1] , but after pointing differences in burial treatment of a certain restricted group of privileged males compared to the general population, including a "potential chief or leader" of Osteria dell’Osa, which suggests that there was some kind of social stratification [2] . There is a lot of evidence for the existence of elites throughout the chronological sequence [1] [3] .
"Most of the burials at Castel di Decima (LC III and IV) are quite simple inhumations, with no or modest grave goods, but a minority of graves are accompanied by high-quality goods such as amber beads, gold fibulae, and even chariots. The wealth of this minority appears to increase throughout the 8th and 7th centuries. [4]

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 54

[2]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), pp. 51-53

[3]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58

[4]: (Forsythe 2006, 53-58) Gary Forsythe. 2006. A Critical History of Early Rome: From Prehistory to the First Punic War. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.


Professions
Professional Soldier:
absent

Not until 406 BCE did "Romans introduce pay for military service." [1] This is the earliest possible start date for professional soldiers.

[1]: (Fields 2011)


Professional Priesthood:
present

Early Roman cults were funded by regular public offerings, large individual donations, and payment for services. The hierarchy could also profit from land ownership. Professionalism of the priesthood likely pre-dates the Roman era as similar patterns are evident in Greek and Egyptian civilization. When the state provided gifts, it was often in the form of a lavish construction, such as a new temple. Examples: priests of Isis were "full-time religious professionals" [1]
The cremated remains of what appears to have been a ritual specialist at Osteria dell’Osa have been found, accompanied by a small figurine depicting a human making an offering, as well as a miniaturised sacrificial knife, a ritually broken pot and miniaturised vessels of the kind that were used to make ritual offerings [2] . However, it may be excessive to leap to the conclusion that there was a "professional priesthood".

[1]: (Grant and Kitzinger, 1988, 938)

[2]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 52


Professional Military Officer:
absent

The highest officers in the Roman military system were not professionals.


Bureaucracy Characteristics
Specialized Government Building:
absent

The first senate building, the Curia Hostilia, existed from about 600 BCE. [1] The first paving of the Roman Forum occurred around 575-625 BCE. [2] The first coin minted in Rome occurred about 269 BCE (one in Neapolis produced coins slightly earlier, around 281 BCE) and the first state archives was created in 78 BCE. Other possible buildings include: granaries and storehouses.

[1]: (Cornell 1995, 94)

[2]: (Cornell 1995, 100)


Merit Promotion:
absent

Roman administration was typically formed out of a class of hereditary aristocrats. Within the army, distinctions between classes of legionary and distinctions between age and experience were not eliminated until Marius in 105 BCE. [1]

[1]: (Dupuy and Dupuy 2007)


Full Time Bureaucrat:
absent

During the Roman Principate there were salaried officials who worked in the Imperial Bureaux (scrinia) [1] but before this time any bureaucrats that existed are thought to have been unpaid aristocrats.

[1]: (Mattingly 1910, [1])


Examination System:
absent

There was no examination system.


Law
Professional Lawyer:
absent

Law specialists first existed during the Principate when they commanded fees for their expertise. We know this because Emperor Claudius attempted to "limit the fees of advocates, which had become intolerably heavy" to protect "women and other helpless litigants from the rapacity of their lawyers." [1] The first law school in Rome, for persons who wished to pursue career in the Imperial civil service, was established late second century CE. "Professional" lawyers replaced orators during the Roman Dominate period. [2]

[1]: (Allcroft and Haydon 1902, 121 [2])

[2]: (Mousourakis 2007, 163)


Judge:
absent

Professional judges did not exist until the Roman Dominate although at that time their precise role vis-a-vis that of Imperial officials is a matter of debate. [1] Before this time there were no judges as a distinct profession in the Roman system of law. Local magistrates dealt with local matters, provincial governors dealt with provincial matters, and the praetors often dealt with cases in Rome. The Roman people could be duly convened as a final court of appeal in cases involving citizens.

[1]: (Mousourakis 2007, 163)


Formal Legal Code:
absent

A formal legal code was first founded in the Twelve Tables of 450-449 BCE. Law thereafter was based on precedent. Our sources of knowledge of Roman law include the forensic speeches of Cicero; the Institutes of Gaius textbook (from 160 CE); and, much later, the sixth century CE Corpus Ius Civilis of Justinian. Wax tablets and papyri (contracts and wills etc.) also provide information on Roman law. [1] However, before this time restrictions on funerary extravagance, from the start of the 6th century, may suggest the Twelve Tables laws (of the Early Republic) codified an existing body of law and legal practices. [2]

[1]: (Tellegen-Couperus, 2002, 66)

[2]: (Cornell 1995, 106)


Court:
absent

During the Roman Dominate administration of justice was "thoroughly bureaucratized" and "regular courts, special courts were established to deal with particular matters and categories of persons." [1] Before this time there was no specialised court building. Courts could be held in the basilicas [2] (introduced by the 3rd Century BCE [3] ) where a provincial governor could an hold audience or in the Roman forum. Basilicas were multi-purpose buildings a place for banking and money-changing and town hall activities. The forum was a multi-purpose building which had existed since the Roman Kingdom.

[1]: (Mousourakis 2007, 161)

[2]: (Berger 1968, 742)

[3]: (Stearns 2001)


Specialized Buildings: polity owned
Market:
unknown

The multi-function Roman forum building which also functioned as a marketplace was not present at this time.


Irrigation System:
unknown

Possibly unnecessary within Italy at this time due to sufficient rainfall. [1]

[1]: (Evans 2013 Evans, J (2013) A Companion to the Archaeology of the Roman Republic, John Wiley & Sons)


Food Storage Site:
unknown

The multi-function Roman forum building which also functioned as a marketplace was not present at this time "From literary sources [Livy] it seems that the major development of Rome’s river port and its attendant warehouses did not take place until the early second century B.C. Earlier the old Forum Boarium and Forum Holitorium in the centre of Rome seem to have coped with the main flow of imports which had probably come down the Tiber from the Italian hills." [1]

[1]: (Rickman 1971, 2 Rickman, G. 1971. Roman Granaries and Store Buildings. CUP Archive)


Drinking Water Supply System:
unknown

A pipe network that connects the drinking water to individual settlements is not known to exist / not thought to be present.


Transport Infrastructure
Canal:
absent

The first canal is thought to have been built by Marcus Aemilius Lepidus (consul 187 BCE) to drain the lower Po region.


Bridge:
absent

The first bridge thought to be the Pons Sublicius possibly in built 642 BCE under Ancus Marcius.


Special-purpose Sites
Mines or Quarry:
unknown

Information / Writing System
Written Record:
absent

Western alphabet developed c800 BCE and by 700 BCE had arrived in Italy. [1] However, "most [Italian peoples before the Romans] were not even literate" [2] , although some writing has been found in association with elite graves [3]

[1]: (Cornell 1995, 103)

[2]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 37

[3]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58


Script:
absent

Western alphabet developed c800 BCE and by 700 BCE had arrived in Italy. [1] However, "most [Italian peoples before the Romans] were not even literate" [2] , although some writing has been found in association with elite graves [3]

[1]: (Cornell 1995, 103)

[2]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 37

[3]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58


Phonetic Alphabetic Writing:
absent

Nonwritten Record:
present

Art. E.g. Black-figure pottery painting.


Non Phonetic Writing:
absent

Information / Kinds of Written Documents
Scientific Literature:
absent

Sacred Text:
absent

Inferred from the fact that "most [Italian peoples before the Romans] were not even literate" [1] , although some writing has been found in association with elite graves [2] . Religious inscriptions discovered at Lavinium. [3] probably applies to Roman Kingdom polity.

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 37

[2]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58

[3]: (Cornell 1995, 66)


Religious Literature:
absent

The Sibyl of Cumae reportedly offered nine books of prophecies to the Roman Kingdom monarch Tarquin. Three books were purchased and kept in the Temple of Jupiter.


Practical Literature:
absent

probably unknown


Philosophy:
absent

Lists Tables and Classification:
absent

Servius Tullius (578-534 BCE) carried out the first Roman census. [1]

[1]: (Cornell 1995, 173, 179)


History:
absent

Fiction:
absent



Calendar:
present

First Roman calendar thought to be the 8th century BCE "Calendar of Romulus." Numa Pompilius reformed this calendar in 713 BCE>

Calendar:
absent

First Roman calendar thought to be the 8th century BCE "Calendar of Romulus." Numa Pompilius reformed this calendar in 713 BCE>


Information / Money
Paper Currency:
absent

The Romans did not use paper currency in any period.


Indigenous Coin:
absent

Rome produced its first coin about 281 BCE, a Greek-style silver didrachma, minted in Neapolis (and twelve years later coins were minted in Rome.) [1]

[1]: (Crawford 2001, 32)


Article:
unknown

Salt was used as payment to soldiers from 406 BCE and was an essential commodity with the "Salt Road" being in existence from the start of the Roman Kingdom period.


Information / Postal System
Postal Station:
unknown

No general postal service until the Cursus Publicus, established by Augustus during the Principate. However "A series of postal stations connected by wagon and horse relays along the major trunk roads of the Empire". [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 209) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


General Postal Service:
absent

No general postal service until the Cursus Publicus, established by Augustus during the Principate.


Courier:
unknown

"Before Augustus, Romans wanting to post a letter had to find a courier wherever they could, and work out the arrangements for delivery ad hoc. [1] This would be inferred present if there was a proto-government administration at this time.

[1]: (Nicholson 1994)


Information / Measurement System

Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)
Fortifications
Wooden Palisade:
present

Stone Walls Non Mortared:
unknown

Stone Walls Mortared:
unknown

Settlements in a Defensive Position:
present

[1]

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 48


Modern Fortification:
absent

Moat:
absent

No fortresses to moat?


Fortified Camp:
unknown

Earth Rampart:
present

This concept of defense, ditch and mound, is an old one, as the defenses of Ardea, Decima, Acqua Acetosa, Laurentina and Gabii demonstrate. [1]

[1]: R. Ross Holloway, The Archaeology of Early Rome and Latium (1994), p.91


Ditch:
present

This concept of defense, ditch and mound, is an old one, as the defenses of Ardea, Decima, Acqua Acetosa, Laurentina and Gabii demonstrate. [1]

[1]: R. Ross Holloway, The Archaeology of Early Rome and Latium (1994), p.91


Complex Fortification:
absent

Fortifications consisted mainly of earthen walls, some like the Colle Rotondo were internally reinforced by transverse cross beams. [1]

[1]: (Cifani 2013: 82) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/NIPGF5BZ.


Long Wall:
absent

Military use of Metals
Steel:
absent

Iron:
present

A short iron sword found in Quattro Fontanili cemetery in Veii near Rome. [1] However, sword blades were typically made of bronze, the use of iron being "comparatively rare." [2] Used in spearheads. [2] Iron likely present in Latium from Roman Kingdom 700 BCE (note their Etruscan-origin kings). “Most metallurgical activity in both Italy and Spain, however, dates to a time after the sixth century BC, when iron weapons and implements appear more frequently, with some exceptional finds such as the group of 150 almost identical axes from an archaic Greek shipwreck off the north coast of Mallorca’.” [3] Iron spearheads in south Italy appeared eighth century BCE. Bronze spearheads continued to be manufactured during the Early Iron Age. End of eighth century BC, iron completely replaced bronze for spearheads. (Inala 2014). Lost full reference, expert needed to locate full name and work.

[1]: Osgood, Monks, Toms, Bronze Age Warfare (2000), p.105

[2]: (Fields 2011)

[3]: (Kostoglou 2010, 174) Kostoglou, Maria. Iron, Connectivity and Local Identities in the Iron Age to Classical Mediterranean. in Van Dommelen, Peter. Knapp, Bernard A. eds. 2010. Material Connections in the Ancient Mediterranean. Mobility, Materiality and Identity. Routledge. Abingdon.


Copper:
present

Inferred from the presence of bronze.


Bronze:
present

Inferred from the presence of miniaturised bronze weapons in certain burial sites [1] .

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 52


Projectiles
Tension Siege Engine:
absent

In Anatolia siege warfare was mentioned in Old Hittite records. [1] Presumably at this time the catapult was not used? In India, according to Jain texts, Ajatashatru, a 5th century BCE king of Magadha in North India, used a catapult "capable of hurling huge pieces of stone". [2] Marsden (1969) said archaeological records exist before the 4th century BCE. [3] The Achaemenids (c400 BCE?) are assumed to have had the catapult because the Macedonians did. [4] Pollard and Berry (2012) say torsion catapults first came into widespread use in the Hellenistic period 4th - 1st centuries BCE. [5] The Syracuse Greek Dionysios I invented a form of crossbow called the gastraphetes in 399 BCE which encouraged the development of large tension-powered weapons. [6]

[1]: Siegelova I. and H. Tsumoto (2011) Metals and Metallurgy in Hittite Anatolia, pp. 278 [In:] H. Genz and D. P. Mielke (ed.) Insights Into Hittite History And Archaeology, Colloquia Antiqua 2, Leuven, Paris, Walpole MA: PEETERS, pp. 275-300

[2]: (Singh 2008, 272) Upinder Singh. 2008. A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century. Pearson Longman. Delhi.

[3]: (Marsden 1969, 5, 16, 66.) Marsden, E. W. 1969. Greek and Roman Artillery: The Historical Development. Toronto: Oxford University Press.

[4]: (Dandamaev 1989, 314) Dandamaev, M A. 1989. A Political History of the Achaemenid Empire. Brill.

[5]: (Pollard and Berry 2012, 45) Pollard, N, Berry, J (2012) The Complete Roman Legions, Thames and Hudson, London Rives, J (2006) Religion in the Roman Empire, Wiley

[6]: (Keyser and Irby-Massie 2006, 260) Paul T Keyser. Georgia Irby-Massie. Science, Medicine, And Technology. Glenn R Bugh. ed. 2006. The Cambridge Companion to the Hellenistic World. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge.


Sling Siege Engine:
absent

The counter-weight trebuchet was first used by the Byzantines in 1165 CE.


Sling:
present

Many ancient armies used slingers. Vulnerable to counter-attacks, slinger units were usually small and used at the start of the battle. Because of the training required to produce and effective slinger they were often hired mercenaries. [1]

[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 31) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport.


Self Bow:
present

Inferred from flint arrowheads found in earlier period - but were they used in a military capacity?


Javelin:
present

Certainly likely present toward end of period, if not earlier.


Handheld Firearm:
absent

Gunpowder Siege Artillery:
absent

Crossbow:
absent

Composite Bow:
present

Composite bow already an important weapon of the pre-Roman Iron Age. [1]

[1]: (James 2018: 9) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/HDQVHM42.


Atlatl:
absent

Handheld weapons
War Club:
present

An aklys isa small club, sometimes with spikes on one end and often attached to the arm with a leather strap, estimated to have been used by the Osci tribes of phrehistoric Italy. [1]

[1]: (Tarassuk and Blair 1982: 17) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/LK8ZLPC7.


Sword:
present

Miniaturised and full-size swords were buried next to the urns of important males [1] .

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 52


Spear:
present

Miniaturised and full-size spears were buried next to the urns of important males. [1]

[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 52


Polearm:
present

Lances were buried along with the remains of an elite male at Castel di Decima [1] .

[1]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58


Dagger:
present

Knives were found in the Bernardini tomb in Praeneste [1] .

[1]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 57


Battle Axe:
present

Bronze axe found in the Quattro Fontanili cemetery in Veii near Rome. [1]

[1]: Osgood, Monks, Toms, Bronze Age Warfare (2000), p.105


Animals used in warfare
Horse:
present

Inferred from the war chariots found at six different graves at Castel di Decima [1] . Iron horse bits and bronze cheek pieces found at the Quattro Fontanili cemetery in Veii near Rome. [2]

[1]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58

[2]: Osgood, Monks, Toms, Bronze Age Warfare (2000), p.105


Elephant:
absent

Donkey:
unknown

Dog:
absent

Camel:
absent

Armor
Wood Bark Etc:
present

Shields


Shield:
present

Found buried in the richest grave at Castel di Decima [1] . "Miniature weapons and armour (swords, daggers, spears, shields, pectorals also occur in central Italy in the Early Iron age, for example in a few tombs in the Latial cemetery of Osteria dell’Osa" [2]

[1]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58

[2]: Osgood, Monks, Toms, Bronze Age Warfare (2000), p.104


Scaled Armor:
absent

Plate Armor:
absent

Limb Protection:
present

Helmets, pectorals, greaves. [1] What date does this reference refer to precisely?

[1]: (Fields 2011)


Leather Cloth:
present

Shields


Laminar Armor:
absent

Helmet:
present

"Early Iron Age sheet bronze helmets adorn select rich male tombs" [1]

[1]: Osgood, Monks, Toms, Bronze Age Warfare (2000), p.103


Chainmail:
absent

Breastplate:
present

Found buried in the richest grave at Castel di Decima [1] . "Miniature weapons and armour (swords, daggers, spears, shields, pectorals also occur in central Italy in the Early Iron age, for example in a few tombs in the Latial cemetery of Osteria dell’Osa" [2] "The simple metal disc worn on the breast and sometimes the back of warriors was one of the oldest forms of body-armour. It was usually supported by crossed straps passing over the shoulders, as in the case of the statue of a seventh- to sixth-century B.C. Italic warrior from Capistrano in the Museo Nazionale, Rome". [3]

[1]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58

[2]: Osgood, Monks, Toms, Bronze Age Warfare (2000), p.104

[3]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York.


Naval technology

Human Sacrifice Data
Human Sacrifice is the deliberate and ritualized killing of a person to please or placate supernatural entities (including gods, spirits, and ancestors) or gain other supernatural benefits.
- Nothing coded yet.
- Nothing coded yet.
Power Transitions
- Nothing coded yet.