Explanation: Oftentimes, media depictions of Roman soldiers have them wearing the distinctive - and very cool - Lorica Segmentata.

… even in periods after it fell out of common use.

Don’t even get me started on the inaccuracy of helmet choice!

Romans erecting a ramp to assail the otherwise unreachable fortress of Masada during the First Jewish-Roman War

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It’s kinda funny that we don’t even really know what they called it. ‘segmentata’ is just us making shit up cuz, hey it was there and, hey, it’s different that other kinds of loricas.

I also don’t know that the legions thought it was “cool” from nerds who have and care about such things, apparently it’s pretty uncomfortable and hard to maintain, compared to a lorica hamata.

one thing I never understood is why they have the mail shoulder-things on the hamata, when they could have had the segmentata things over the mail just as well. It seems like that would be a useful hybridization…

I also don’t know that the legions thought it was “cool” from nerds who have and care about such things, apparently it’s pretty uncomfortable and hard to maintain, compared to a lorica hamata.

It was, at least, strongly associated with the Legions at the time! Trajan’s Column universally shows legionary forces in segmentata, with only auxilia and barbarians in hamata or squamata.

Whether your common legionary regarded it as lifesaving, or just a burden… well… XD

fwiw, my understanding is that Trajan’s column may have used it as a convention for depicting legionaries. Similar, actually, to how the movie producers today do it so everyone knows, “hey! that guy is a roman soldier!”

I’m reminded of a time in US military history where infantry were issued ugly goggles because of shrapnel risks and stuff, and they didn’t wear them cuz they were ugly so the army (or maybe marines? don’t hate me.) contracted Oakley to make totally-cool-not-birth-control-goggles