1 plumbatae ROBERT VERMAAT The plumbata or martiobarbulus was a projectile weapon used by the late Roman army from around the late 3rd century CE onwards. Weapons of this type have been identified with finds of a type of lead-weighted spearhead, found from the UK to the Caucasus, and dated from the 3rd to 6th centuries. The name plumbata may be a diminutive from hasta plumbata or “leaded spear” (Barker 1979: 97; Bennett 1991: 59). Weighted weapons were not a new invention. Pliny the Elder described sagittae plumbatae or “lead-weighted arrows” used to shoot nests of birds (HN 10.97; 12.85), and both Livy (42.65.9) and Polybius (27.11(9).1) described the cestrosphendon, a short wooden dart with an iron head, thrown with a sling, as introduced in the early 2nd century BCE. The earliest reference to the plumbata is in Vegetius’s Epitoma, written probably during the reign of Theodosius I (379–395 CE). Vegetius not only provides the name plumbata for the weapon, but also mentions the alternative name mattiobarbulus. It is generally assumed that the prefix is a scribal error for martio-** (Bennett 1991: 59), giving martiobarbulus (barb of Mars). This assumption seems to be confirmed by a later source (Maur. Strat.). The suffix barbulus (barb) indeed describes a characteristic feature of the weapon, the barbed point. Vegetius mentions that the plumbata originated with two regiments known as Mattiobarbuli after their use of this weapon. After the accession of Diocletian and Maximian (since Diocletian’s rule began in 284 CE, the writer may refer to the year of their first joint consulship in 286 CE) both regiments were honored with the names of Ioviani and Herculiani (Mil. 1.17). The use of the weapon then spread to the rest of the army. According to Vegetius, each infantryman carried up to five weapons of this type “in the hollow of his shield” to be used against enemy infantry as well as cavalry, with a range exceeding that of a javelin (Mil. 1.17). The plumbata was to be thrown “at the first assault,” but the text remains unclear as to whose assault is meant (Mil. 2.15). Not just the front-line troops, but also the heavy infantry of Vegetius’s second and third lines, as well as the light troops behind those, all were to be armed with plumbatae (Mil. 2.15–16). Vegetius also mentions plumbatae as used in both offensive and defensive roles in siege warfare (Mil. 4.21, 29), and even in naval warfare (Mil. 4.44). The anonymous De rebus bellicis, a probably late 4th-century source that describes two types of plumbata, provides details of the construction. In fact the author describes two versions. One of these, the plumbata mamillata or “breasted” plumbata (Anon. DRB 11) looks like most of the plumbata remains that have turned up so far, and might therefore be the weapon described by Vegetius. The author claims that it was powerful enough to penetrate a shield. The other type, the plumbata et tribulata or “caltrop” plumbata (10), looks indeed as if the spikes of a caltrop have been added, and the anonymous designer had indeed in mind that it would wound the foot of a soldier when it had failed to hit anyone. The author provides crucial information about the plumbata. The head is shaped like a hunting spear, while the shaft is made of wood, similar to that of an arrow. Flights are added to give speed, and room is to be provided behind the flights for the fingers of the thrower. The source also provides the only illustration of a plumbata which shows a short dart with the weight or the caltrop in the middle of the shaft. No specimens of the plumbata et tribulata have so far turned up in the archaeological record, giving rise to the assumption that this type was an invention of the anonymous author, which never left the drawing board. The last source to mention this type of weapon is the Strategikon, a military handbook ascribed to Emperor Maurice, written during the late 6th century CE. The weapon is here referred to as a martzobarboulon, closely resembling the martiobarbulus of Vegetius. The Strategikon mentions the weapon as part of the arms of the heavy infantry, who should be able to throw it over a long distance (12.B.2, 4). The front-line infantry throw The Encyclopedia of the Roman Army, First Edition. Edited by Yann Le Bohec. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Published 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. DOI: 10.1002/9781118318140.wbra1170 2 their plumbatae at the enemy when they come into range, resting their lances on the ground (12.B.16). The light infantry are also armed with plumbatae, and are told to form up behind the heavy infantry with their missiles, or on the flanks, but never in the middle (12.B.12). Besides the infantry, plumbatae are also used in defense of the baggage train (12.B.18). The remains of plumbatae have been found from the UK to Georgia (Völling 1991: 296–298; Degen 1992: 146; Höck 2003: 73). No complete remains have been found, only the heads and/or (parts of) the attached weight. The remains vary in size from roughly 95 to 160 millimeters (with a few exceptions), and weigh between 40 and 130 grams. Most finds are concentrated on the borders of the Roman Empire, although there are some find spots in the hinterland (especially in Slovenia), from mountain passes and other thoroughfares. By far the most finds come from the western part of the empire, with no finds from the Middle East or Africa. The reason for this discrepancy could lie in the state of the archaeological research in these areas (Höck 2003: 72). Modern tests with hypothesized reconstructions have achieved distances between 80 and 100 meters. See also archers, sagittarii: republic; archers, sagittarii: principate; archers, sagittarii: late empire. REFERENCES Barker, P. (1979) The plumbatae from Wroxeter. In M.W.C. Hassall & R.I. Ireland (eds) De rebus bellicis (part 1, pp. 97–99). Oxford. Bennett, J. (1991) Plumbatae from Pitsunda (Pityus), Georgia, JRMES 2: 59–63. Degen, R. (1992) Plumbatae: Wurfgeschosse der Spätantike. HA 23: 139–147. Höck, A. (2003) Archäologische Forschungen in Teriola. Vol. 1: Die Rettungsgrabungen auf dem Martinsbühel bei Zirl von 1993–1997, spätrömische Befunde und Funde zum Kastell, Fundberichte aus ÖsterreichMaterialheft, A 14 (pp. 69–73, 161). Horn. Völling, T. (1991) Plumbata–Mattiobarbulus– Martzobarboulon? Bemerkungen zu einem Waffenfund aus Olympia. AA: 287–298.