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Battle Standards ...Again


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I know this has been brought many times but it just bewilders me.Never mind the Eagles although that's just as mystifying The only battle standard I have ever seen was a single partial cohort sign http://www.romancoins.info/a-2005-phalera%20(6).JPG . I mean these guys went to war over these standards and worshiped them. Wasn't there a temple in Rome just to house standards? What happened to them all? Surely someone must have saved a few somewhere..or maybe not. Anyone ever heard any theories on what happened to them or where they might be? I wonder if there are any archaeologists that specifically are searching for these things

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I know this has been brought many times but it just bewilders me.Never mind the Eagles although that's just as mystifying The only battle standard I have ever seen was a single partial cohort sign http://www.romancoins.info/a-2005-phalera%20(6).JPG . I mean these guys went to war over these standards and worshiped them. Wasn't there a temple in Rome just to house standards? What happened to them all? Surely someone must have saved a few somewhere..or maybe not. Anyone ever heard any theories on what happened to them or where they might be? I wonder if there are any archaeologists that specifically are searching for these things

 

In times of peace the standards were housed in the public treasury in Rome - Aerarium, under the protection of the Quaestor.

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I know of the remains of a cloth Vexillum from Egypt. It is made from linen and shows a winged Victory holding a wreath. She stands on top of the globe.

 

The subject is given a good overview on Red Rampant -

 

Vexillum - Red Rampant

Here's another look at some various standards. Most of these are reconstructions used by modern reenactors, mostly taken from museum artifacts, pictures, etc.

http://www.legionxxiv.org/signum/

Pretty interesting commentary on their respective uses, and no shame about saying "We don't know" where that applies.

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Somewhere, (I think), an almost complete standard was recently unearthed. Teutoborg?

Maybe your thinking of this? http://www.unrv.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=5408 It does say that Germanicus only recovered 2 of the 3 Eagles lost at Teutoburg but according to this "The third standard was recovered in 41 AD by Publius Gabinius from the Chauci during the reign of Claudius, brother to Germanicus" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Teutoburg_Forest That's what intrigues me, all the effort they put into these symbols, Augustus recovering the ones lost to the Parthians is another example. Everyone in the world knew what they represented, I can't believe they all just vanished with no trace

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