Chainmail + Breastplate combination?

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

If this is taken to be a hauberk, it would be our only evidence for such armour for centuries, and would also be one of the earliest representations of mail of any sort, meaning that they had somehow, very soon after inventing mail, learned how to make full hauberks, and then later either forgot how to do it or simply did not. It all seems very, very unlikely.

Well, now we're reaching a different arguement. Given the fragmented nature of metalworking skills in antiquity, there's a reasonable possibility one smith did it one time and no one could copy it. Plutarch records that Demetrios had a unique piece of body armour, one of only two in existence. Not a reliable source, granted, but still indicative of the possibilty.

[MeinPanzer]

Well, now we're reaching a different arguement. Given the fragmented nature of metalworking skills in antiquity, there's a reasonable possibility one smith did it one time and no one could copy it. Plutarch records that Demetrios had a unique piece of body armour, one of only two in existence. Not a reliable source, granted, but still indicative of the possibilty.

But Demetrius' cuirass was one of a very unique few because ironworking was just developing to a stage where such armours could be made (so, for instance, the iron cuirass from Vergina was a very rare and, undoubtedly, expensive luxury item in its owner's day). Soon after the time of the Diadochoi, iron body armour begins to appear more and more, as one would expect.

In this case, however, the mail cuirasses which we find later are both cruder and much slower in appearing. That's why this item being a mail cuirass is so unlikely (beyond any arguments about the figurine itself) - it is so out of place in the (otherwise coherent) grand scheme of the development and spread of mail throughout Europe that it would require a total rethinking of its spread.

Though I'd rather assume that if he indeed wears mail sleeves and a long shirt, those are not in one piece but three separate bits; the sleeves would probably be attached similarly to the... whatchamacallthose shoulder-guard pteruges... pinions ? which IIRC aren't fixed to the cuirass either.

Those shoulder pteruges don't really have a name that I'm aware of, but evidence points to them being fixed to the cuirass, as can be seen on trophies and weapons reliefs (with that from Pergamon being the best example).

[Watchman]

Huh. Pretty sure I've read the Romans at least fixed them on some kind... don't remember now actually... under the armour. Practical experiments apparently suggest fixing them to the body armour itself doesn't really work very well - the two need to be able to move relative to each other, or somesuch.
Though that may have been with mail; more solid stuff (like the tube-and-yoke organic cuirasses) might well provide a better "base"...

...should probably go and reread that text so I don't need to spam caveats...

[MeinPanzer]

Huh. Pretty sure I've read the Romans at least fixed them on some kind... don't remember now actually... under the armour. Practical experiments apparently suggest fixing them to the body armour itself doesn't really work very well - the two need to be able to move relative to each other, or somesuch.
Though that may have been with mail; more solid stuff (like the tube-and-yoke organic cuirasses) might well provide a better "base"...

...should probably go and reread that text so I don't need to spam caveats...

In the Hellenistic world, all evidence points to the pteruges being an intrinsic part of the cuirass, whether it was organic or metal.

[Watchman]

In the Hellenistic world, all evidence points to the pteruges being an intrinsic part of the cuirass, whether it was organic or metal.

I'll give you the more "solid" base of the tube-and-yoke corselet and the bronze breastplate in all likelihood gives a rather better fit than the mail the Romans mostly played with.

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

Huh. Pretty sure I've read the Romans at least fixed them on some kind... don't remember now actually... under the armour. Practical experiments apparently suggest fixing them to the body armour itself doesn't really work very well - the two need to be able to move relative to each other, or somesuch.
Though that may have been with mail; more solid stuff (like the tube-and-yoke organic cuirasses) might well provide a better "base"...

...should probably go and reread that text so I don't need to spam caveats...

Submallis, I may have put in too many "L"s.

Yes, though the under-garment is a matter of contention, whether or not legionaries always wore one is a particularly contentious question.

[Prussian to the Iron]

examining the statue, it seems to me more like a scaled ceremonial dress/tunic (by 'dress' I of course mean formal wear), such as depicted in the Pahlava cavalry.

whether it is or isn't, I, who am only 14, can think of an easy way to use mail sleeves, so i don't know why the ancient romans -who had some of the greatest non-greek minds until the 1600's- had a problem with it.

the solution to sleeves: simply create the arm tubes, then attack them to the main body with flexible lace of some sort. like the same lace used to hold together ancient leather armor?