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arma de ponce
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arma de ponce

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Gladius () is a Latin word properly referring to the type of sword that was used by ancient Roman foot soldiers starting from the 3rd century BC and until the 3rd century AD. Linguistically, within Latin, the word also came to mean "sword", regardless of the type used.

Key facts

Weapon.name
Gladius
Weapon.image
Uncrossed gladius.jpg
Weapon.image_size
300
Weapon.caption
Replica Pompeii gladius
Weapon.origin
Carthaginian Spain as the Celtiberian sword, adopted and modified by Rome
Weapon.type
Sword
Weapon.is_bladed
yes
Weapon.service
3rd century BC – 3rd century AD
Weapon.used_by
Celtiberians in service to Carthage during the Punic Wars Roman foot soldiers during the wars of the Roman Republic and Roman Empire
Weapon.blade_type
Iron of varying degrees of carbon content, pointed, double-edged
Weapon.hilt_type
Wood, bronze or ivory

via Wikipedia infobox

~15 min read

Encyclopedic overview

18 sections
Contents
  • Etymology
  • Predecessors and origins
  • Manufacturing
  • Technique
  • Production
  • Description
  • Variations
  • ''Gladius Hispaniensis''
  • ''Mainz Gladius''
  • ''Fulham gladius''
  • ''Pompeii gladius''
  • See also
  • Notes
  • References
  • External links
  • Pictures of ancient swords
  • Reenactments, reconstructions, experimental archaeology
  • Articles on the history or manufacture of the sword

Gladius () is a Latin word properly referring to the type of sword that was used by ancient Roman foot soldiers starting from the 3rd century BC and until the 3rd century AD. Linguistically, within Latin, the word also came to mean "sword", regardless of the type used.

Early ancient Roman swords were similar to those of the Greeks, called xiphe (, : xiphos). From the 3rd century BC, however, the Romans adopted a weapon based on the sword of the Celtiberians of Hispania in service to Carthage during the Punic Wars, known in Latin as the gladius hispaniensis, meaning "Hispanic-type sword". The Romans modified it depending on how their battle units waged war, and created over time new types of "gladii" such as the Mainz gladius and the Pompeii gladius. Finally, in the third century AD the heavy Roman infantry replaced the gladius with the spatha (already common among Roman cavalrymen), relegating the gladius as a weapon for light Roman infantry.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “arma de ponce” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

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