Sam Hughes. BA, MA. Edge of Empire Irish Sub-Roman swords: Problems of Origins and Chronology sam.hughes@ucdconnect.ie Although far shorter than the average Roman Spatha, (fig. 3) The Irish SubRoman type distinguish themselves from the Gladius imitations through their longer and narrower blade proportions. While the Spatha remained in use in the Roman military for far longer than the Gladius, The peening blocks which survive on four of these swords provide us with convincing evidence for an An isolated Ireland? early date: a comparison with a typology of hilt furnishings developed from the Danish bog deposits at Illerup Ådal shows that the Irish examples most A group of Irish swords with characteristically Roman blade construction (fig.1) square shoulders, diamond blade section, and Roman style peening blocks (fig.4) - has closely resemble type 3a1, dated to c. AD 150 – c. AD 200 (see fig.4). long been recognised. However, these weapons have hitherto been assigned to the Fig.1: Four Sub-Roman swords ©National Museum of Ireland Irish Early medieval period (c. AD 400 – AD 800) (Rynne 1982, 95). Fig.4. Type 3a1 peening blocks after Biborski & Ilkjaer 2006 (left) compared with a Sub-Roman example (right) Context Previous theories about the origins of these weapons rested on the assumption that the Irish Iron Age was an almost purely La Tène or “Celtic” period with little to no influence from the Empire. However, recent work has The reliance on Medieval texts to date all material, including the first known Sub- highlighted the extent of connections between Ireland and the Roman Roman swords, from Lagore crannóg, Co. Meath, led to the general acceptance that Empire (Cahill Wilson 2014; fig. 5). Fig.5: Sub-Roman swords in the context of Roman material in Ireland these swords belonged to very late or post Roman period (Rynne 1982). It was suggested that 4th/5th cent. Irish raids on Britain led to the copying of what was considered to be superior Roman weapons (Warner 1991). Radiocarbon dating and recent reassessments of the Lagore material, however, have demonstrated a much longer history of human activity at this location. In this light, a reassessment of the origins of Sub-Roman swords was long overdue. Back to basics Sub-Roman swords can be divided into two groups: those that resemble the Pompeii type Gladius - a short sword which was used by legionaries from the mid 1st to mid 2nd centuries AD - and those that resemble the Spatha - a longer blade usually associated with auxiliaries and cavalry before the mid 2nd century AD, but which thereafter replaced the gladius as the legionary sword (Bishop & Coulston 2006). Lagore (BM 1867.0720.1) 10 "Northern Ireland" 8.4 37.20 35.70 River Erkina 9.6 38.40 Derrymore 10.1 37.50 Lagore (NMI 0003:Wk003) 31.80 9 Dunshaughlin 33.80 10.2 0 5 Fig. 3 (bottom): Lengths of surviving Sub-Roman spathae 33.90 9.2 NMI X2118 Fig.2 (left): Lengths of surviving Sub-Roman gladii 10 15 Tang length (cm) 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 Lagore (NM 13055) 10.5 Craigywarren 10.7 5 evolving in concert with British and continental styles, remained exceptionally 46.3 short. 45.80 9.9 0 examples. This indicates that the hilt furnishings did not copy Roman styles as earlier in the Iron Age whereby Irish La Tène swords, despite blade morphology 10.7 Lagore (BM OA.1709) take inspiration from Roman types, their tangs are far shorter than Roman they would not fit on such a small tang. A similar set of choices can be seen 55 Blade length (cm) Lagore (NMI 0002:Wk002) However, these swords are not Roman imports: although the blades undoubtedly 38.3 This continuity in size from the La Tène swords, combined with the potentially 51.75 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 Tang length (cm) Blade length (cm) 45 50 55 60 65 70 Although shorter overall than their Roman counterparts, ca. half of the Irish swords bear close resemblance to the Pompeii type gladius, making the mid-2nd cent. AD a likely terminus ante quem for the introduction of this specific type to Ireland. The chances of a gladius being found by Irish raiders after this time are relatively low and as such, the Sub-Roman swords most likely predate the 4th/5th centuries AD. local style hilt furnishing, raises questions: are we seeing a change in the portrayal of Irish warrior identity that has taken on some aspects of the Roman military? A potential parallel is the introduction of spurs to burial assemblages in Germania during the Roman Iron Age, interpreted as a way of displaying the deceased’s identity as part of the Roman military (Wells 1999). Could Irish people have been involved in a similar way with the Roman military earlier than previously thought? References Biborksi, M. & Ilkjaer, J. 2006. Illerup Ådal Bd. 11. Die Schwerter: Textband. Aarhus. Aarhus University Press Bishop, M. & Coulston, J. 2006. Roman Military Equipment. 2nd Ed. Oxford: Oxbow Cahill Wilson, J. 2014. Late Iron Age and Roman Ireland. Dublin: Wordwell Rynne, E. 1982. Pre-Viking Irish Iron Swords, In: B. G. Scott Warner, R. 1991. The earliest history of Ireland. In: M. Wells, P. (ed). 2013. Rome beyond its frontiers: Imports, (ed). Studies on early Ireland. Belfast. Association of Ryan (ed). The illustrated archaeology of Ireland. Dublin. attitudes, and practices. Portsmouth. JRA. Young Irish Archaeologists Country house