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The term barbotine refers to a ceramic technique in which decorative elements are either piped onto an object similar to decorating a cake, or molded then applied to a pottery vessel.
With Type A barbotine, the potter uses a quill, horn, or other kind of nozzle to apply a soft slip mixture to a ceramic piece. Today the technique is known as slip-trailing. The slip would normally be in a contrasting color to the rest of the vessel, and forms a pattern, or inscription, that is slightly raised above the main surface. Barbotine designs have been found on pottery from ancient Egypt, the Middle Minoan period on Crete, and embellishing Roman vessels, where the color may be the same as the rest of the vessel rather than contrasting.
With type B barbotine, the sllip or barbotine is cast in molds to form three-dimensional decorative sections which, when dried out, are added to the main vessel. Typically, these might be flowers, fruit, or animals. Type B barbotine was particularly popular in Britannia and the Roman provinces of Europe because of the consistency of the local clay. These vessels were probably filled with foods or liquids and given either as gifts to an elaborate burial or as offerings to a god's shrine.
Romano-British beaker, decorated in the barbotine technique with a chariot-racing scene. Made either in Colchester or in the Nene Valley region of Cambridgeshire. 2nd century CE. at the British Museum, London courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor AgTigress.
The form and the single handle suggest that this jug was used for pouring wine. It is decorated in the "barbotine" technique, where a liquid clay or slip is applied in relief through a tube, much like icing is applied to a cake. Here, two stork-like birds are facing a large plant in the middle, framed by a garland of ivy leaves around the neck of the jug. Such idyllic scenes with animals and plants are typical of ceramic and metal vessels made during the time of Emperor Augustus. 1st century BCE - 1st century CE courtesy of the Walters Art Museum.
Closeup of a Barbotine-applied decoration of a bird on a Roman jug from the Augustan Period, 1st century BCE-1st century CE courtesy of the Walters Art Museum.
Ancient Roman beaker with hunting scene, from the castellum of the 1st Canathenian cohort in Straubing courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor Wolfgang Sauber.
Ancient Roman beaker with hunting scene, from the castellum of the 1st Canathenian cohort in Straubing courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor Wolfgang Sauber.
Terracotta cup with barbotine decoration, 2nd–early 3rd century C.E., Roman, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This cup is representative of the sort of pottery that was produced in Roman Britain, influenced by wares made in eastern Gaul and the Rhineland. The shape of the vessel and the style of the hunting scene are typical of the northwestern provinces, but barbotine decoration itself—the application of a thick clay slip to the vessel surface—is found on many different types of pottery across the Roman Empire.
Terra Sigillata bowl with barbotine decoration in the Museum Rheinzabern courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor Haselburg-müller.
"Caster Ware" Vase with Hunt Scene, Roman, mid-2nd century, courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
Bellied pot with barbotine decoration made of novaesium, rough-walled ware, 1st century CE, Clemens-Sels-Museum, Neuss courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor Hartmann Linge
Green glazed_beaker, glazed earthenware with barbotine decoration, 1st century CE, made of novaesium, Clemens-Sels-Museum, Neuss courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor Hartmann Linge
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According to Arrian of Nicomedia, a Roman provincial governor and a close friend of Hadrian, face mask helmets were used in cavalry parades and sporting mock battles called “hippika gymnasia“. Both men and horses wore elaborate suites of equipment on these occasions, often in the guise of Greeks and Amazons. Parades or tournaments played an important part in maintaining unit morale and fighting effectiveness. They took place on a parade ground situated outside a fort and involved the cavalry practising manoeuvring and the handling of weapons such as javelins and spears (Fields, Nic; Hook, Adam. Roman auxiliary cavalryman: AD 14-193).
Calvary helmets were made from a variety of metals and alloys, often from gold-coloured alloys or iron covered with tin. They were decorated with embossed reliefs and engravings depicting the war god Mars and other divine and semi-divine figures associated with the military.
To see a fascinating selection of these masks and read more about them check out:
Finished watching the new German Netflix original series "Barbarian" last night and I give it a big two thumbs up! Excellent acting, stayed pretty close to historical events, and I was awestruck by scenes of how large a Roman encampment of three legions was (especially in comparison to the small local villages which I think was the point) and how fearsome the legions marching in formation must have appeared to the local tribesmen who referred to them as columns of steel.
I'm currently listening to book 4 of S.J.A. Turney's Marius' Mules series of novels about Julius Caesar's conquest of Gaul and at this point in the war (55 BCE) Caesar had eight legions with him not just the three Varus commanded, which still looked quite formidable in the German film. Caesar's encampment must have truly appeared as a metropolitan city in the middle of a near wilderness.
I also enjoyed watching the legions on the march realistically packing all of their kit on their backs with their centurions striding along in the front line and the tribunes and legates riding along beside each legion. It really made the images of Legate Fronto and his tenth legion described in Turney's novels come alive for me!
I'm also grateful supernatural elements, did not dominate the film as they did in "Britannia."
Just one historical note - Arminius was a hostage raised in Rome, but not by Publius Quinctilius Varus as depicted in the film. I can understand how this fictional relationship served a dramatic purpose, though, to emphasize Arminius' conflicted nature about betraying the people who had raised him from a child. He was drafted into the Roman military at an early age, during which he was granted Roman citizenship and became a Roman knight as accurately depicted in the film. After serving with distinction in the Great Illyrian Revolt, he was sent to Germania to aid the local governor, Varus, in completing the Roman conquest of the Germanic tribes. In the aftermath of the battle of the Teutoburg Forest, Arminius fought retaliatory invasions by the Roman general Germanicus in the battles of Pontes Longi, Idistaviso, and the Angrivarian Wall, and deposed a rival, the Marcomanni king Maroboduus before eventually being assassinated by his own people in 21 BCE. I assume these battles will be the focus of future seasons of the series.
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This is really exciting. Apparently, Rome didn't totally withdraw from Germania after the Teutoburg Forest disaster after all.
[Image -The battle in the Teutoburg Forest in 9AD, by H. Knackfuss, 1890. Norddeutsches Schulmuseum, Friesland (School Museum in Northern Germany), courtesy of the Museum and Park at Kalkriese]
"Archaeologists have found an ancient battlefield in Germany that indicates that the Roman Legions were still fighting Germanic tribes deep inside "barbarian" territory as late as the 3rd Century AD – 200 years later than hitherto believed.
The discovery comes as preparations are being made to commemorate the 2,000th anniversary of the famous Battle of Teutoburg Forest in September 2009. In the battle, Germanic guerrilla fighters annihilated three elite Roman Legions, the XVIIth, XVIIIth and XIXth, in September of the year 9 AD.
...the new archaeological discovery, if verified, could mean that the history books must be rewritten, as the newly discovered 3rd Century battlefield is located 100 miles (160 kilometres) further east of the Teutoburg Forest.
..."The find can be dated to the 3rd Century and will definitely change the historical perception of that time," said Dr. Henning Hassmann, director of historic preservation in the state of Lower Saxony.
So far, 600 artefacts have been unearthed that are clearly of Roman 3rd Century origin and dating, says Michael Wickmann, an official in the town of Northeim, where the dig has been conducted over a period of months.
...Initial reports said that DNA fingerprinting evidence indicated that some of the arrows had been made of African wood, which was the preferred wood used in the manufacture of Roman arrows. However, Hassmann said he could not confirm those reports.
It is unknown whether that outpost predates the 9 AD battle of Teutoburg Forest or whether it might be a later tribal camp where Germanic warriors stocked up on Roman-made armaments smuggled or looted from imperial frontier garrisons.
I thought this little "hagiographic view" of Arminius' victory at Teutoburg was like a classical period "Triumph of the Will"
The Battle of Teutoburg Forest between myth and reality: an hagiographic view
I think a little more objective explanation of the events surrounding the disaster are contained in the History Channel presentation, "Decisive Battles". I really liked this series that used the game engine from "Rome Total War" to recreate a number of important battles in the classical world. I bought the entire set on DVD. I think I would have preferred the "big picture" game images interspersed with reenactment closeups though. It would have given the presentation more of a human touch.
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