The Pugio a Roman dagger made of wood
What would the Roman legionnaires have been without their weapons...?
One of the most important weapons was the Roman dagger, called Pugio, which every legionnaire carried on his belt.
Simple in its execution or richly decorated, it showed the status of a soldier. So the Pugio could always save the life of his wearer, whether as a tool or a weapon!
- Length: 32cm
- Material: genuine beech wood
- Origin: Germany
- Origin and function of the Pugio
Pugio from the Latin : "Dagger" is one of the most popular weapons of attack of an infantryman in ancient Rome of the 1st century A.D. Probably since the end of the 2nd century A.D., at the latest, however, in the early 3rd century A.D., it comes again correctly to validity as a firm stock of the equipment of a Roman warrior.
It was worn on the left side, directly at the belt (= cingulum).
The Roman Pugio next to the sword (= gladius) was used as a practical second weapon.
Like the sword, the dagger comes from the Iberian Peninsula.
Due to its extremely strong construction, it is assumed that the Roman Pugio was not only intended to give the opponent the last blow of death, but also for blows in a narrow fighting radius, optionally as a replacement for the spatha sheath or sword.
Pugio description
The Roman Pugio, had a wide, double-edged blade, which became narrower from the notebook to the place. In order to fulfil the function described above, the dagger was equipped with an additional longitudinal reinforcement. The place was pointedly worked out. The handle was usually made of wood, bone or metal. There were different versions of the Roman Pugio. For example, its blade could be from 17 to 25 cm long and from 3 to 5 cm wide. The differences can also be seen in the equipment.
Roman Pugio is often confused with parazonium. Also the difference to other types of daggers or long knives mentioned by the ancient authors (like clunaculum and lingula) is nowadays rather blurred and should be specified more carefully.
The collection piece is a handmade replica of the Roman findings. The replica was made of real beech wood. The handle is turned and solidly glued.
Connections:
Roman Pugio was usually protected in a sheath made of metal and a wooden core. The latter sometimes carried a very rich decoration or was covered with silver. The sense behind it was to underline the own status.
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