Lorica hamata

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article does not cite any references or sources. (July 2007)
Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.

Reconstruction of Roman soldier 175 AD from a northern province.

This article is part of the series on: Military of ancient Rome (portal) 800 BC – AD 476
Structural history
Roman army (unit types and ranks, legions, auxiliaries, generals)
Roman navy (fleets, admirals)
Campaign history
Lists of wars and battles
Decorations and punishments
Technological history
Military engineering (castra, siege engines, arches, roads)
Personal equipment
Political history
Strategy and tactics
Infantry tactics
Frontiers and fortifications (limes, Hadrian's Wall)

The lorica hamata is a type of mail armour used during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire up to the 2nd century, when it was briefly supplemented by lorica segmentata, but then was reintroduced in the 4th century AD. It was a standard-issue armour for both primary legionaries and secondary troops (Auxilia). They were mostly manufactured out of bronze or iron. It alternated with rows of closed washer-like rings, and riveted rings running horizontally, this produced a very flexible, reliable and strong armour. Each ring had an inside diameter of about 5 mm, and an outside diameter of about 7 mm.

The shoulders of the lorica hamata had flaps that were similar to the Greek 'Linothorax' which ran from about mid-back to the front of the torso, and were connected by brass or iron hooks which connected to studs riveted through the ends of the flaps. Several thousand rings would have gone into one lorica hamata.

The knowledge on the manufacturing of mail may have come from the Celts, though the first documented contact occurred during the invasion of Spain. There were several versions of this type of armour, specialized for different military duties such as skirmishers, cavalry and spearmen.

Although labor-intensive to manufacture, it is thought that, with good maintenance, they could be continually used for several decades.

Around the 2nd century A.D., the lorica hamata was still common amongst the Legionary soldiers. The lorica hamata remained standard issue for all soldiers, including both the legionaries and auxilia. Later versions had sleeves and expanded to the knees unlike the earlier lorica hamata.