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Pilum. The pilum (Latin: [ˈpiːɫʊ̃]; pl.: pila) was a javelin commonly used by the Roman army in ancient times. It was generally about 2 m (6 ft 7 in) long overall, consisting of an iron shank about 7 mm (0.28 in) in diameter and 600 mm (24 in) long with a pyramidal head, attached to a wooden shaft by either a socket or a flat tang.
A sturdy pilum that does not bend upon impact would be in line with the numerous historical Roman writings that state the pilum was often used as a weapon in melee combat: For example, in "The Gallic Wars" Caesar writes that at Alesia his troops used the pila as spears or pikes. In the "Life of Pompey" and "Life of Antony", Plutarch describes ...
A javelin is a light spear designed primarily to be thrown, historically as a ranged weapon. Today, the javelin is predominantly used for sporting purposes such as the javelin throw . The javelin is nearly always thrown by hand, unlike the sling , bow , and crossbow , which launch projectiles with the aid of a hand-held mechanism.
While scoping the cave’s upper level, archaeologist Asaf Gayer from Ariel University spotted an extremely well-preserved Roman pilum or javelin – a shafted weapon – in a deep narrow crevice.
Archaeologists have found four Roman swords and a shafted weapon known as a pilum dating from 1,900 years ago in a cave near the shore of the Dead Sea in Israel. Four 1,900-year-old Roman swords ...
Attached to each maniple were about 20 leves, javelin-armed light infantry. [7] The hastati stood in the first battle line, in front of the principes of the second line and the triarii of the third. [5] In a pitched battle, the leves would form up at the front of the legion and harass the enemy with their javelins to cover the advance of the ...
The pilum was a short-range javelin with an effective range of about 15 meters (50 ft), but could also be used as a spear in situations where an enemy had to be held back. [44] It was hurled at the enemy formations right before the charge and this hail of javelins was intended to break the force of the enemy charge as well as demoralize the ...
The pilum, a heavy javelin that eventually all Roman foot soldiers were equipped with, was probably also of Spanish design and also adopted during the First Punic War. (Alternatively, it has been suggested that the pilum was of Samnite origin, but there is no evidence that the Samnites possessed any such weapon). [12]