''Plumbatae'' or ''martiobarbuli'' were lead-weighted darts carried by infantrymen in

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and the Middle Ages.

History

The first examples seem to have been carried by the Ancient Greeks from about 500 BC onwards, but the best-known users were the

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and Eastern Roman armies. The earliest and best written source for these weapons refers to a period around 300 AD, though the document was composed around 390–450 AD.''De Re Militari'', Book I: The Selection and Training of New Levies
/ref> A second source, also from the late 4th century, is an

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treatise titled '' De rebus bellicis'', which briefly discusses (so far archaeologically unattested) spiked ''plumbatae'' (''plumbata tribolata''), but which is also the only source that shows an image of what a ''plumbata'' looked like. The image shows what looks like a short

arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...

with a weight attached to the shaft. Although only later copies of the original manuscript exist, this is confirmed by the remains which have so far turned up in the archaeological record. A third source is the late 6th century '' Strategicon'', written by the Byzantine emperor Maurice, who wrote about the ''martzobarboulon'', a corruption of its Latin name ''martiobarbulum''. ''Plumbatae'' etymologically contain ''plumbum'', or lead, and can be translated "lead-weighted arts. ''Martiobarbuli'' in this translation is ''mattiobarbuli'' in the Latin, which is most likely an assimilation of ''Martio-barbuli'', "little barbs of Mars". The barb implied a barbed head, and Mars was the god of war (among other things). Archaeology gives a clearer picture of ''martiobarbuli''. The reference listed has an illustration of a find from Wroxeter identified as the head of a ''plumbata'' and a reconstruction of the complete weapon: a fletched dart with an iron head weighted with lead. The reconstruction seems entirely consistent with Vegetius' description. War darts were also used in Europe later in the Middle Ages.

Notes

References

Primary sources

* Anonymous, ''De Rebus Bellicis'': On matters of war. * Maurice, ''Strategikon'': On Strategy. * Vegetius, ''Epitome Rei Militari'': Epitome of Military science.

Secondary sources

* Barker, P., ''The plumbatae from Wroxeter'', in: Hassall and Ireland 1979, De Rebus Bellicis, BAR Int. Ser., vol. 63 (Oxford), part 1, pp. 97–9. * Connolly, Peter, ''Greece and Rome at War'', Greenhill Books, 1998, * Degen, R., Plumbatae: Wurfgeschosse der Spätantike, in: Helvetia Archaeologica 1992, vol. 23, pp. 139–147. * Ireland, Robert, ''De Rebus Bellicis'' (anon.), in: BAR International Series 63 (Oxford), part 2. * Dennis, George T., ''Maurice's Strategikon. Handbook of Byzantine military strategy'', University of Philadelphia Press 1984, . *Keszi, Tamás: ''Plumbata, the Roman-Style Darts. A Late Antique Weapon from Annamatia.'' Hungarian Archaeology 2018. Spring, 21-32. https://www.academia.edu/36798885/Plumbata_the_Roman-Style_Darts._A_Late_Antique_Weapon_from_Annamatia * Milner, N.P., ''Vegetius: epitome of military science'', Liverpool University Press 1993, . * Völling, T. (1991): ''Plumbata - Mattiobarbulus - Martzobarboulon? Bemerkungen zu einem Waffenfund aus Olympia'' in: Archäologischer Anzeiger, pp. 287–98.

External links