which are inscribed with the names of gladiators, and are valuable as
being dated by the names of the consuls in office (No. =174=). They
range from the beginning of the first century B.C. to the time of
Domitian (81-96 A.D.); those shown in the Case extend from 85 B.C. to
32 A.D. The usual formula of the inscription gives (1) the gladiator's
name, (2) the name of his master, (3) the letters +SP+ and the date
of the day and month, (4) the consuls of the year. The meaning of the
letters +SP+ is disputed, but the most likely explanation is that they
stand for _spectavit_, "became a spectator," with reference to the
honourable discharge of the recipient. Several examples are known
in which the word is thus written in full. The ticket of which an
illustration is given in fig. 60 bears the inscription, "Cocero the
gladiator of Fafinius became a spectator on the 5th of October in the
Consulship of Lucius Cinna and Gnaeus Papirius" (85 B.C.).
[Illustration: FIG. 60.--GLADIATOR'S DISCHARGE TICKET (NO. 174). L.
1-3/4 in.]
[Illustration: FIG. 61.--MAN AND BEAR (NO. 177).]
The contests in the arena were not limited to those between
gladiators. Combats of animals, and of men with animals enjoyed equal
popularity. In the latter case the men might be hunters (_venatores_),
lightly armed, and able to escape by agility and skill. They might
also be criminals or martyrs (who were counted as criminals) exposed
to wild beasts without hope of resistance or escape. Two terracotta
reliefs (Nos. =175=, =175*=) are shown in this Case, of about the
time of Augustus, which, though fragmentary, evidently relate to
exhibitions of this kind. A better and more complete example is the
sculptured relief from Ephesus (No. =176=) with four panels, in each
of which is a man in combat with a lion, probably successive stages
in a single event. A lamp (No. =177=; fig. 61) shows a man and a bear,
separated by a kind of turnstile, called a _cochlea_.
See also Daremberg and Saglio, s.v. _Gladiator_, and
_Venatio_.
(165) _Cat. of Lamps_, 663; (166) _Gréau Cat._, 264; (167)
_Cat. of Lamps_, 976; (168) _Cat. of Sculpture_, II., 1117;
(173) _ibid._, II., 1285; (174) for a recent theory that
the tesserae are records of an _incubatio_ at a medicinal
sanctuary (cf. p. 185) see Daremberg and Saglio, s.v.
_Tessera_ p. 136; (175) _Cat. of Terracottas_, D 624; (175*)
_ibid._, D 655; (176) _Cat. of Sculpture_, II., 1286; (177)
_Cat. of Lamps_, 1068.
[Footnote 34: _Mus. Borb._, XV., pl. 30.]
[Footnote 35: Cf. Tac., _Ann._ xv. 32; Suet., _Dom._ 4.]
[Footnote 36: Dio Cass., lxxv. 16.]
VIII.--CHARIOT-RACING AND THE CIRCUS.
(Wall-Case 110.)
Chariot-racing was one of the oldest of Greek sports, and is
described in the _Iliad_ as one of the contests held at the funeral
of Patroklos. At that time the two-horse war-chariot was used in the
race, and a special type of racing-car does not seem to have existed.
[Illustration: FIG. 62.--ROMAN RACING-CHARIOT TURNING THE POST (NO.
179). L. 16 in.]
The introduction of chariot-races in the great athletic contests was a
concession to the wealthy inhabitants of prosperous cities. To enter a
chariot with a team of four horses, which was now the usual number for
the great race at Olympia, demanded almost as large a proportionate
expenditure as to run a horse for the Derby to-day. Rich men in Greece
Proper found rivals in the tyrants of Sicily and Cyrene, who
ruled over cities with large revenues and districts providing good
opportunities for successful horse-breeding.
At Olympia four-horse chariots raced for the first time in 680 B.C.,
chariots with two horses not until 408. Between those dates a race
for horsemen was started, and won on the first occasion by a native of
Thessaly, which, owing to its rich plains, was celebrated in antiquity
for a magnificent breed of horses. A winner in the horse-race is
depicted on the vase No. =178= (exhibited in Case 107), about to
receive a wreath and a tripod as his prizes, while a herald proclaims:
"The horse of Dysneiketos wins."
The race of four-horse chariots was, perhaps, the greatest event in
the Olympian Games, and certainly the most exciting to the spectators,
as accidents were frequent, especially at the turn. Consummate skill
was necessary to double the post as close and as fast as possible.
Readers of Sophokles' _Electra_ will remember the account given by the
messenger of the alleged death of Orestes in a collision of chariots
turning the post.[37]
The Romans probably derived their custom of chariot-racing from the
Greeks, as also the plan which, with some alterations in detail,
they adopted for their _circus_. In the early days of Rome the marshy
valley between the Palatine and Aventine Hills was the place chosen
for the games, and remained so through the succeeding centuries,
during which the course was gradually surrounded with an immense
building; this in the fourth century after Christ held not far short
of 180,000 people.
[Illustration: FIG. 63.--IVORY STATUETTE OF A CHARIOTEER (NO. 180).
5:8.]
In the later Roman Empire the charioteers were hired by factions,
which were distinguished by different colours, and excited violent
enthusiasm among all classes of Roman society. The passion survived
the introduction of Christianity, and was perhaps even more violent at
Constantinople than at Rome; it was said that the inhabitants of the
new capital of the Empire divided their interests between a passion
for chariot-racing and theological discussion. Successful
charioteers were transferred from one faction to another like modern
football-players. Records exist of the number of victories gained by
famous whips, and of the proportion won under the different colours.
The costume of the charioteer was always distinct. In Greece he wore
a long robe girt at the waist, which is well seen on the bronze
statue from Delphi,[38] and on the chariot-racing reliefs from the
Mausoleum.[39] At Rome his dress was peculiar, and is illustrated by
the terracotta relief (No. =179=; fig. 62) and other objects in this
Case, notably the small ivory statuette (No. =180=; fig. 63). It
consisted of a close-fitting cap, and a shirt fastened round the
waist. Characteristic thongs called _fasciae_ were wound round the
ribs. The thongs of the reins were also wound about the body. A knife
was stuck in the belt so that the reins might be quickly cut in the
event of an accident.
[Illustration: FIG. 64.--LAMP SHOWING CHARIOT-RACE IN CIRCUS (NO.
181). Diam. 3-3/4 in.]
A sort of bird's-eye view of the whole circus, with a race in
progress, is given on the lamp No. =181= (fig. 64), on which we see on
one side the _carceres_ or barriers with folding-doors from which the
chariots started; on the other a stand with rows of spectators, while
in the lower part of the design is the _spina_, or central rib of the
circus, crowded with various structures. Not less instructive is the
scene on the terracotta relief (No. =179=), though only one chariot
is there represented (fig. 62, above). Two lamps (Nos. =182=, =183=)
illustrate respectively the return of a victorious horse (fig. 65)
and a victorious four-horse chariot. The former is accompanied by men
bearing palm-branches and a tablet probably inscribed with the name of
the successful competitor.
[Illustration: FIG. 65.--VICTORIOUS HORSE (NO. 182). 3-3/5 in.]
The cast No. =184= is taken from a mould in the Terracotta Room (No.
E 79) for the central panel of a large lamp. Its chief figure is a
successful charioteer, crowned with a bulky wreath.
(178) _Cat. of Vases_, II., B 144; (179) _Cat. of
Terracottas_, D 627; (181) _Cat. of Lamps_, 626; (182)
_ibid._, 788; (183) _ibid._, 671; (184) _ibid._, 1398.
For the circus in general see Daremberg and Saglio, s.v.
Two interesting sarcophagus reliefs, with scenes in the
circus, are shown in the Roman Gallery (_Cat. of Sculpture_,
III., 2318, 2319).
[Footnote 37: _El._ 680 ff.]
[Footnote 38: _Cat. of Casts_, No. 94.]
[Footnote 39: _Cat. of Sculpture_, II., Nos. 1036, 1037.]
IX.--ARMS AND ARMOUR.
(Wall-Cases 111-119, and Table-Case E.)
The arms and armour of the ancients are contained in Wall-Cases
111-119, and in Table-Case E. The weapons of attack date from the
beginning of the use of metal, in the prehistoric period, but all the
defensive armour belongs to the historical age.
=Armour.=--There is not much literary evidence for the armour of
antiquity, but military subjects are very commonly represented in
works of art, and these, with the actual remains of armour, give
a good idea of the ancient panoply. The armour of the prehellenic
civilisations of Greece, as described by Homer, is a subject of
dispute, and as this collection possesses no specimen of such remnants
as have been found, there is no need here to discuss the question. It
is enough to say that the armour of the inhabitants of Greece of
the Mycenaean or Bronze Age was entirely different from that of the
Hellenic period, which began with the introduction of iron in the
place of bronze, and that the heroes of the Homeric poems, who are so
frequently portrayed in classical art, are represented in the armour
not of their own day, but of that of the artist. The earliest Greek
fashion is seen in a small bronze figure of a soldier from Dodona,
a cast of which is exhibited in Case 113 (No. =185=; fig. 66). The
original is in the Antiquarium at Berlin. Its date is about 500 B.C.
The man was striking with a spear; he carries a shield on his left
arm, and wears a metal helmet, cuirass and greaves. These three pieces
of body-armour were worn throughout classical times, being adopted
from the Greeks by the Romans. All are represented in this collection.
=Helmet.=--The earliest type of helmet is known as Corinthian, because
it is worn by the goddess Athena in the well-known coin-type of
Corinth (fig. 12_e_). It was a complete metal casing of the head and
neck, open only in front of the eyes and mouth; the nose was protected
by a vertical strip which was left between the eyes, and the rest of
the face was covered as by a mask (fig. 66). In the earliest specimens
(No. =186=) the metal is everywhere of the same thickness, the
cheek-pieces large and clumsy, the nose-piece straight, and little
attempt is made to curve the back so as to fit the neck. Later helmets
were more gracefully designed: the nasal and cheek-pieces are shaped
and curved, the crown is distinguished from the lower part, the neck
has a natural contour, and is set off from the rest of the helmet by
a notch on each side of the bottom rim (No. =187=; fig. 67). The lines
of hair and eyebrows are often indicated in embossed and engraved
patterns (Nos. =188=, =189=; fig. 78).
[Illustration: FIG. 66.--GREEK SOLDIER. CAST OF BRONZE STATUETTE FROM
DODONA (NO. 185). 2:3.]
It would seem that the Corinthian helmet at its best was a cumbrous
piece of armour. The ears of the wearer were covered, and the
ill-fitting shell must have sat loose upon the head, so as to be
easily displaced by a sudden turn. This and the chafing of the metal
were obviated in some degree by a lining of felt or leather, which was
sewn inside the helmet in the rows of holes along the edges. In No.
=189= the actual fastenings may be seen as well as the holes: thin
twine along the bottom rim, and rivets in the holes elsewhere. This is
an unusually well preserved helmet; the wooden peg on which the plume
was tied is still in place (fig. 78). A leathern cap was also worn,
and is seen on the coins of Corinth (fig. 12_e_), where the helmet is
represented in the position in which it was carried when the wearer
was not fighting, _i.e._, pushed back until the lower rim projected in
a peak over the forehead. This position came to be adopted in battle
also; for in the last of the Corinthian series (Nos. =190=, =191=,
fig. 68, =192=) there is not sufficient depth to the helmet to admit
of its being worn over the face in the original way, nor are the
eyeholes large enough to be of use, while in two examples these are
represented only by engraving, a traditional design which shows the
evolution of the helmet (No. =192=). Such examples are, however, not
really Greek. They come from South Italy, and belong to a late
period, when the art and manners of Greek colonists were reproduced in
barbarous form among the natives. Drawings of this helmet on Italian
vases of the third century B.C. give a date for the class.
[Illustration: FIG. 67.--GREEK HELMETS OF "CORINTHIAN" AND "ISLAND"
TYPES (NOS. 187, 193). 1:5.]
An additional value is given to three of the early helmets by
inscriptions which they bear and which help to date them. The first
(No. =188=) is a record of a dedication of Corinthian spoils to Zeus
by the Argives: [Greek: TARG[EI]OI ANETHEN TOI DIWI TON QORINTHOTHEN],
in lettering which belongs probably to the end of the sixth century
B.C.[40] The helmet was found in the bed of the river Alpheios,
near Olympia, and was doubtless dedicated in the sanctuary. A shield
bearing the first word of a similar inscription has since been found
at Olympia, and was probably part of the same offering. Another helmet
(No. =186=) has five letters, [Greek: OLYMP], scratched on the
corner of one of the cheek-pieces in characters of about 500 B.C. The
complete word was perhaps [Greek: Olympiô], "_To the Olympian Zeus_."
This is said to have been found at Dodona in Epeiros. The third is
inscribed on the front with the name of its owner, [Greek: DASIMOS
PYRRHOU], "_Dasimos son of Pyrrhos_" (No. =194=). The date of the
writing is the beginning of the fifth century. This helmet, which
comes from South Italy, differs from the Corinthian only in having
holes for the ears, but it is really the first of a new type, the
so-called Attic.
[Illustration: Fig. 68.--GRAECO-ITALIAN HELMET OF DEBASED CORINTHIAN
FORM (NO. 191). 1:6.]
The evidence of inscriptions, painting and sculpture shows that the
Corinthian helmet was generally worn by the Greeks from the first
appearance of metal armour in the eighth century B.C. to the early
years of the fifth. It then became less common, but never quite
disappeared, and was used, certainly as a decorative type, by the
Romans of the Empire.
[Illustration: FIG. 69.--ATTIC HELMET FROM MACEDONIA (NO. 195). Ca.
1:4.]
[Illustration: FIG. 70.--ATTIC HELMET DECORATED WITH RAM'S HEADS ON
THE CHEEK-PIECES. AT NAPLES.]
[Illustration: FIG. 71.--HEAD OF HIPPOLYTE, WITH HELMET IN THE SHAPE
OF A PHRYGIAN CAP.]
The Attic helmet, which gets its name from its use on the coins of
Athens (fig. 12, _f-l_), appeared first in the sixth century B.C.,
and in the fourth was the usual type. In shape it is lighter than the
Corinthian, and resembles a cap with appendages to protect the neck,
cheeks and nose. The ear was thus left free. The finest Attic helmet
(No. =195=, fig. 69) has been acquired recently from the British
Salonika Force. It was found with a spearhead and other objects in a
grave of about 500 B.C. in the camp of the 29th General Hospital
at Mikra Karabournou, in January, 1918, and was transferred to this
collection from the Imperial War Museum. The nasal is elegantly
modelled, eyebrows and tongues of hair over the forehead are wrought
in relief, and broad spiral bands in relief decorate and strengthen
the cheek-pieces. The cheek-pieces were often hung on hinges (No.
=197=), and were pushed up from the face when the wearer was not
fighting (fig. 81). No. =198= is a cheek-piece from Loryma in Caria,
which reproduces the form of the face beneath it. An Attic helmet
from Ruvo in Apulia (No. =196=) has fixed cheek-pieces in the shape of
rams' heads, which were completed with applied reliefs like those of a
similar helmet at Naples (fig. 70). The nose-piece was often omitted.
The forehead was well covered, and was usually marked by a triangular
frontal band, often enclosing an ornament. No. =197= has the head of
a young Satyr in relief. The Attic helmet was also adopted in Italy,
especially by the Etruscans. No. =199= (fig. 78) was found in an
Etruscan tomb at Vulci.
[Illustration: FIG. 72.--ITALIAN HELMETS WITH METAL CRESTS (NOS. 205,
202). 1:6.]
These two helmets, the Corinthian and the Attic, were so far the most
general among the Greeks as to merit the name of the classical types.
No. =193= is an intermediate form which has been assigned to the
Aegean Islands because of its occurrence in vase-paintings from the
Cyclades. This example was found in the river Alpheios, and was
no doubt originally dedicated, like several other pieces in this
collection, in the temple at Olympia. It is cut straight over the
eyes, has no nose-piece and no ear-holes (fig. 67). A peculiar feature
is a broad band with high raised edges which runs over the crown of
the head from forehead to neck. A stout pin in front of this shows
that the band was a channel in which the crest was fixed. A row of
silver studs and a silver band decorate the rim of this helmet, and
there are remains of ornaments in relief, palmettes on forehead and
at the ears, and on each cheek-piece a horseman. These were no doubt
also of silver, but the plates have come away, leaving their impress
upon the cement which used to hold them in place. The style of the
modelling belongs to the end of the sixth century B.C. Another Greek
type has the shape of a Phrygian cap, with the addition of movable
cheek-pieces, of which the hinges are partially preserved (No. =200=).
Such a helmet is often worn by Amazons, for instance by the Queen
Hippolyte on an Attic bowl of about 450 B.C., which is exhibited in
the Third Vase Room (fig. 71). It is also shewn in the cast of an
Etruscan bronze statuette which stands beside the helmet (No. =201=).
The tall oval helmet (No. =202=, fig. 72) with its barbarous pair of
horns in the shape of crests of sea-horses, is Italian, but the same
type appears on Greek monuments.
[Illustration: FIG. 73.--ETRUSCAN AND EARLY ITALIAN HELMETS (NOS. 207,
203). 1:5.]
Italian helmets are more like hats, giving no protection to the face
unless cheek-pieces are added. An early form, from Ancona, is almost
hemispherical, with wide brim and two large bosses on the sides (No.
=203=, fig. 73). The bosses would stop glancing blows on the head. The
smaller knob on the front of this example may have held the crest;
if so, the corresponding knob behind has been lost. Two helmets from
Cannae are later developments of the same type (No. =204=, fig. 74).
They are decorated and stiffened with two curved bands in relief, one
on each side of the crown. The bosses and brims are broken away. The
earliest helmets of this shape belong to the seventh century B.C. Our
later specimens were probably worn in the battle of Cannae (216 B.C.).
They have wrongly been called Carthaginian because of their discovery
on this battlefield, but the type is European, and has been found at
Hallstatt. The helmet with sharp pointed top also belongs to a class
which extended to France and Germany in the early Iron Age (No. =205=,
fig. 72). The arched socket for the crest is a peculiarity of this
example, which is of later date, about fourth century B.C. More
strictly of Italian origin are the heavy Etruscan helmets resembling
reversed jockey-caps, with a knob on top, a short peak covering the
wearer's neck, and attached cheek-pieces (No. =206=, fig. 75). They
are cast; nearly all other helmets are hammered work. Their date is
from the fifth to the third century B.C. The Etruscans also used an
oval helmet with ridged crown, of which the most notable example comes
from Olympia, where it was dedicated as part of the Greek spoils from
the naval battle of Kyme (B.C. 474). This helmet is described above
among the Greek Inscriptions (p. 8, fig. 7, No. =13=). Other examples
are heavier, and have a broad decorated rim (No. =207=, fig. 73).
[Illustration: FIG. 74.--ITALIAN HELMET, FROM THE BATTLEFIELD OF
CANNAE (NO. 204). 1:5.]
[Illustration: FIG. 75.--ETRUSCAN "JOCKEY-CAP" HELMET WITH HINGED
CHEEK-PIECES (NO. 206). 1:5.]
There is no specimen of a Roman helmet in this collection. The
scarcity of remains of Roman armour is due to the fact that it was
mostly made of iron, which has decayed. Representations of different
shapes may be seen, in a statuette of an officer (No. =219=, fig. 85),
a small model of a trophy (No. =233=), a cast of a large marble relief
(No. =236=), and a drawing of a soldier from the Column of Trajan
(fig. 90). All these show close-fitting caps with broad chin-straps,
which also serve as cheek-pieces. They are varieties of the Attic
type. Some Roman helmets found in England are exhibited in the
Department of British and Mediaeval Antiquities. One of them is
reproduced in fig. 76. It is evidently related to the much older
Etruscan "jockey-cap." The hinged cheek-pieces are wanting. It is
likely that the Romans would combine Greek and Italian patterns in
designing a uniform helmet for their own army.
[Illustration: FIG. 76.--ROMAN LEGIONARY HELMET FOUND NEAR
BERKHAMPSTEAD. Ca. 1:4.]
[Illustration: FIG. 77.--PARADE HELMET MASKS (NOS. 209, 208).]
A peculiar fashion of Roman helmet is represented by two bronze
vizor-masks in Case 117 (Nos. =208=, =209=, fig. 77). A complete
helmet of the same kind, exhibited in the Room of Roman Britain, was
found at Ribchester in 1796, and two other specimens, a fragmentary
iron helmet and a bronze mask, have recently been excavated at
Newstead on the Tweed. The Newstead helmet has remains of padding
still adhering, which prove that these strange helmets were actually
worn, though Arrian, writing on tactics in the second century A.D.,
says that they were used for display, and not in battle. The earlier
of our examples (No. =208=, fig. 77, right), which probably belongs
to the first century A.D., is said to have been found on the face of
a skeleton in a grave at Nola in Italy in the eighteenth century. The
other (No. =209=, fig. 77, left), which has the more usual type
of features, has lately been presented to the Museum, having been
purchased at Aintab in Syria during the occupation of the country by
British troops. Both masks are pierced at eyes, nostrils and mouth,
and show traces of attachment to the helmet above the forehead. No.
=209= has remains of white metal plating on the face, the hair being
left in the colour of bronze.
[Illustration: FIG. 78.--HELMETS WITH WOODEN PEG FOR PLUME AND TUBE
FOR FEATHER (NOS. 189, 199). 1:5.]
[Illustration: FIG. 79.--ITALIAN HELMET DECORATED WITH HORNS, WINGS
AND PLUME.]
[Illustration: FIG. 80.--ITALIAN VASE-PAINTING, SHOWING FEATHERED
HELMET AND THE METAL CUIRASS.]
Crests are shown on all kinds of helmets, as in the Greek, Etruscan
and Roman statuettes (figs. 66, 81, 85), and the drawings on Greek and
Italian vases (figs. 79, 86, etc.); it is not uncommon to find three
on one helmet. They had thick horsehair plumes, sometimes simply wired
to the helmet, sometimes mounted in sockets. Very few helmets show
original fittings for the crests. These must have been added by the
owners. Some helmets have holes drilled in the crown; No. =186= has
remains of wire in the holes. No. =189= has a bronze socket still
holding a wooden peg, but this is only fastened with cement, and its
rough make is not in keeping with the fine finish of this helmet (fig.
78). The flanged channel and pins of No. =193= (fig. 67) are peculiar
to that type of helmet. An Etruscan helmet of Attic shape (No. =199=,
fig. 78) had a pair of tubes to carry single feathers, only one
of which remains (_cf._ fig. 80). It was an Italian habit to wear
fantastic ornaments. The head of a horseman from a wall-painting
at Capua shows horns, wings, and a plume or feather (fig. 79). A
Corinthian helmet from Apulia has a pair of curved horns like those in
the wall-painting (No. =190=). An Attic helmet belonging to a suit of
armour which was found in a grave at Capua, and is exhibited here on
loan from H.M. Armoury in the Tower of London (No. =210=), has horns
of coiled wire (perhaps clips for feathers), and a pair of wings.
The oval bronze hat (No. =202=, fig. 72) has two crests of sea-horses
mounted as horns, with the support for a plume between them. These
accessories are detachable; they are cut out of thin sheet metal and
fit on to flat ears on the helmet. Two of the latest of the Corinthian
class (No. =191=, fig. 68) have such attachments.
[Illustration: FIG. 81.--ETRUSCAN BRONZE STATUETTE WITH PLATED
CUIRASS. 1:4.]
[Illustration: FIG. 82.--A SOLDIER PUTTING ON HIS CUIRASS.]