Roman helmet with a few careful owners. – AncientBlogger

A question I was recently asked concerned the re-use of kit in the Roman army. What happened to the kit when a soldier either left (e.g. retirement) or died? Well when I visited the Legion exhibition I came across this helmet which gives a good example.

You’d expect the Roman army to be efficient and the kit (e.g. the armour and weapons) of a legionary belonged to the legion. So when something like this occured the kit would be passed on to another legionary. This helmet is a great example. According to the information at the exhibition and on British Museum website it dates to the first century AD, found in London and on the neck guard are the names of four individuals. These are presumably its previous owners. 

August 2nd 216 BC is traditionally the date for the Battle of Cannae. What better way to understand it better than via my vlog on…

Around this time of year in 218 BCE Hannibal fought Rome in his first major battle with them. In a vlog from a few years…