Beards in AD 100

[ASCLEPIADES]

Salve, LSG

I would have to disagree about shaving being a bonding ceremony for soldiers. Out in the desert where there is little water, you would not waste your water to shave your face. On the defensive areas such as Hadrian's Wall and the Rhine area, civilian barbers would have been readily accessible, much like the hospitals that were based with the legions. I just don't think shaving would have been something readily done while on the march. The 'appearance' of a soldier was probably something that grew up around the 18th or 19th century with the appearance of Victorian society.

As Maty rightly pointed at the beginning of this thread, some (in fact, most) of the legionaries depicted in Trajan's column are actually clean-shaven.

[caldrail]

I would have to disagree about shaving being a bonding ceremony for soldiers. Out in the desert where there is little water, you would not waste your water to shave your face. On the defensive areas such as Hadrian's Wall and the Rhine area, civilian barbers would have been readily accessible, much like the hospitals that were based with the legions. I just don't think shaving would have been something readily done while on the march. The 'appearance' of a soldier was probably something that grew up around the 18th or 19th century with the appearance of Victorian society.

Then why does Trajan's column show beardless troops? Teenagers? No, sometimes they did shave, not just for military appearance, but their own personal cleanliness and personal preference. A beard can harbour parasites as much as hair.

 

As for wasting water, it does depend on the supply of it. Remember that romans were marching from well to well, and no station could be manned in desert areas without some form of water to sustain it, especially as the concentration of troops meant a good amount was going to be used. The romans did not conquer territory as we do now, they had no need of wilderness. What they did was capture particular places, forts, cities, etc, which all must have had some form of water supply by virtue of their location as a settlement. Are there alternatives to water use? Did they use the ubiquitous olive oil for that too?

 

As regards shaving in spare time on the march, why not? What else were they going to do to keep themselves busy? Read bedtime stories? Song and dance routines? Camp life is full of activity like shaving to keep one busy and the romans were hardly going to be any different there.

 

As regards the bonding rituals, these activities are part and parcel of daily life for humans. They wouldn't have seen the act of shaving as such (unless the commander was particularly astute for roman times) but it would still perform that function, strengthening the social bonds within the Conterbernium - which does mean 'Close Friends'.