The Army of Maximinus Thrax: The Roman Soldier of the early 3rd Century AD.

An excellent look at a very neglected part of history, lavishly illustrated,great use of new and old sources.

Excellent book in all respects.

This book contains the only artist’s reconstruction I’ve ever seen of the Roman “manuballista” or as I like to call it,the sawn-off ballista. It’s essentially a scaled down,handheld artillery piece utilizing the same torsion powered spring frame as its big brothers. If that alone doesn’t justify purchasing this book then frankly I don’t know what does. Outstanding discussion of Roman extra-heavy cavalry as well going into great detail about the psychological impact of their equal parts majestic and terrifying face-masks. For those that can’t get enough visuals of these remarkable horsemen there are two examples(one cataphractarius and one clibanarius)both specially commissioned by the book’s artist. The various types of body armor utilized are also discussed in great detail. There is full-color original artwork of several different troop types on almost every page. Rewards for deeds of heroism and valor are also touched on along with various methods of corporal punishment. All in all a very fascinating and enlightening read.

gute Buch

belles illustrations et bien qu'il soit en anglais il se lit très facilement