Tarquinia

Tarquinia. 

Andre Willers. 

13 Mar 2014

Synopsis :

Origin of hoplites . Developed in Tarquinia .

Discussion :

1.See picture : http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/9aFkAf/:Wd7Bwl.9:ns@Z9xJI/realhistoryww.com/world_history/ancient/Misc/Med/Etruscan_tomb_painting1.htm/

"Battle of the Amazons," Sarcophagus from Tarquina, Archeological Museum, Florence. Photo from Skira, Inc., Etruscan Painting, 1952. This painting obviously involves a woman and warriors, and the text should explain who is involved and what is happening in the scene. The woman does not appear to be wearing armor, and the semi-naked warrior in blue also has no armor, has a Phrigian helmet, and brandishes a sword towards the woman. On the other side of the woman is an armored soldier pointing a spear at the woman. The armed man, carring a bow, on the far right is actually leading the group away. The scene suggests the capture of the woman, not necessarily a battle. It may depict an abduction.

Notice the shields , and how small the horse is . Large horses had not been bred yet .

Notice the helmets and shin greaves .

Notice the light body armour .

Notice the short sword in the right hand of the figure on the right . Not a gladius .

Notice the military boot . The military boot was invented by the Assyrians .

See http://www.biblelandpictures.com/gallery/gallery.asp?action=viewimage&categoryid=56&text=&imageid=6550&box=&shownew

This image predates Rome or Greece .

The flow of military influence seems to have been from Assyria to Etruscans to Greeks to Romans .

Maybe  Greek .

The Greeks seems to have copied the Etruscans as far as I can see .

They had a flourishing wine trade with the Etruscans as middlemen to Western Europe .

2.Hoplite

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoplite

The word hoplite (Greek: ὁπλίτης hoplitēs; pl. ὁπλίται hoplitai) derives from hoplon (ὅπλον, plural hopla ὅπλα), the type of shield used by the soldiers, 

The shield , like the later Roman shield  , was 2/3 of the weapon system .

Greek Hoplite .

Compare the shields

The boots and greaves are better than Assyrian . Later .

 

3. There seems to be a strong case that the Etruscans were an Assyrian colony .

Probably the losing side in one of Assyria’s interminable civil wars .

Assyria had the perfect military machine . They used it to tear themselves apart.

Typically human .

Andre

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx