Battlefield Archaeology

In the fall of 2009, the authors conducted a limited
ground-penetrating radar survey in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
on the remains of the First Fort Crawford (47CR249). First Fort Crawford was built in 1816 and abandoned in 1832. In the 1930s, the fort was accidentally rediscovered. At that time, Leland R. Cooper of Hamline University excavated a majority of the fort’s rooms as a Works Progress Administration project. Largely undocumented, these excavations have left us without an accurate idea of the extent of the excavations and, more to the point, what was not excavated. Sketchy surviving records suggest that the powder magazine and latrines were either not located or not excavated at the time. Comparing forts with similar architecture offered clues as to where to look for those features. Cooper’s accession books and photographs allowed us to reconstruct much of the excavation and its features. Geophysical Survey Systems SIR-3000 ground-penetrating radar was used in an attempt to relocate these features for future excavation and to determine the extent of previous excavations. The results of these investigations indicate that there are intact rooms and features that were not previously excavated.

Archaeological excavations at the “Alaiye Martyrdom Museum” started in July of the 2019 within the scope of the “Martyrdom Museum” project developed by Istanbul Governorship, Department of Investment Monitoring and Coordination. The works carried out under the supervision of the Istanbul Archaeology Museums Directorate in Çatalca District, Yazlık Village, sheet 4, plots 756 and 758 lasted for about nine months. As a result of the excavations, the graves of the Ottoman soldiers who were martyred in the First Balkan War, the blockhouses built during the preparation of the World War II and many military materials were discovered. In this article, it is aimed to document, date and evaluate the graves and military material, as well as to explain the historical and general architectural features of the blockhouses unearthed in the archaeological excavations of the “Alaiye Martyrdom Museum”.

This paper examines the chronological implications for the prolonged use of matchlock muskets by Bedouin during the Ottoman period (1453-1918). Although the technology behind the matchlock ignition system is from the fifteenth century, this weapon was used by many Bedouin until the beginning of the twentieth century. As a result, the presence of gun parts from matchlock muskets poses a potential problem for identifying Bedouin occupations from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in the southern Levant and in northern Arabia. This issue is heightened by the paucity of diagnostic artifacts found at archaeological sites associated with the Bedouin during the Ottoman period.

The Mongols created the world‟s most powerful empire in the thirteenth century, conquering China and establishing the Yuan dynasty. Their military power was in doubt, however, after failed naval invasions in Japan and Vietnam. According to historical records, the Vietnamese tactics used against the Mongolian Armada were designed to prevent them from reaching the mouth of Bach Dang River by using hidden stakes that were driven into the riverbed in secrecy. Using the large difference in tides, the Vietnamese successfully lured the enemy fleet into the trap, destroying or capturing perhaps as many as 400 vessels. Since the 1950s, approximately 700 years after this watershed event, Vietnamese archaeologists have discovered a number of large wooden stakes in the midst of reclaimed paddy fields along the Bach Dang River. Excavations and research were conducted which led to the identification of several stake-yard sites believed to be dated to the battle that took place in 1281 C.E., howev...

This paper explores the spatial dimensions of a northern landscape – the Flodden battlefield. This is the focal site of the Flodden 1513 Ecomuseum; the centre to a network of 40 other sites around the United Kingdom which together interpret the Flodden story. However, this distributed network does not fit easily with the foundational ecomuseum concept of 'territory' as the boundary around a shared heritage, memory and community. The relative merits of three concepts of ecomuseums are discussed in relation to the Flodden 1513 Ecomuseum. Inspired by Doreen Massey's interpretation of space, this study explores multiple dimensions of Flodden space through four semiautobiographical journeys to the Flodden battlefield during the author's life: as a family holiday; a teenager with interest in military strategy; an early career field geologist; a project manager working with the local community and artists. The article concludes by suggesting the word territory may not be appropriate for ecomuseums: it suggests that Peter Davis's favoured term place may be an improvement; however, it ends by proposing that space may be an even better word for the geographic context of ecomuseums.

The study of material culture generated by military engagements has created an emergent sub-discipline of archaeological studies centred on battlefields. This approach has developed a particular and sophisticated methodology that is able to deal with the fact that archaeologists will often not find either structures or a useful stratigraphical record on the site, as the material remains of the battle

, Director and Trustee Edinburgh and SouthEast Scotland, and myself, Archaeological Advisor and Trustee for South West Scotland and Glasgow, made a visit to the battlefield at Auldearn. In the wake of extensions to the A9 motorway, crossing both this battlefield and that at Culloden, potentially damaging what came to appear as an almost perfectly preserved contemporary landscape, we felt it was necessary to carry out a walking brief to understand the nature of the battle and the impact such changes would effect. This is the result. After a failed attempt on Dundee, Montrose's forces were forced to retreat northwards back towards the Royalist heartlands of highland Scotland. Reaching Auldearn, Maccolla's Irish brigade and the troops under Gordon garrisoned the village, the rest of Montrose's forces spread out to the East, a feature that would make concentration of forces in the morning difficult to achieve. Unbeknownst to them, they had been outflanked by the Covenanting forces of Sir John Hurry, after last seeing his covering force at dusk the previous day. Despite this a light picket was placed around the village, but due to bad weather during the night, this gradually, against Montrose orders, withdrew into the village. 7 miles away, near Cawdor, Hurry's forces had joined with the garrison of Inverness and Seaforth's highland levies. Undertaking a forced march north East along the present route of the A9, they stopped at Nairn to clear their muskets, thus supposedly breaking the element of surprise and informing Montrose's forces. Hurry's forces were made up of 5 regiments of foot, 2 of horse, a third of which were raw, numbering in the region of 3300-5000 men. Opposed to them, Montrose force was made up of Maccolla's Irish, the Strathbogie regiment and foot and cavalry under Gordon, numbering between 1400-2000 men. Auldearn's cottages and yards stretch for a quarter mile North to South, its modern setting bisected East-West. This acts as a very good marker defining the modern extent of the village, demarcated by a boxgrid system of development, the Northern extent a mishmash of streets, yards and buildings with no clear system-we got lost trying to navigate these several times. The battlefield is clearly demarcated between the extremities of the motte marking the original position of Auldearn castle, now marked by a 17 th century dovecote (every 17 th century site needs one-although its complete lack of use for interpretation of the site is a major oversite) and the brooding ridgeline in local crop fields of Garlic Hill. It is believed that it was here, on the motte and between Kinnudie farm, half a mile to the East, that Hurry's forces deployed at the start of the engagement at 7am, in particular Campbell of Lawer's black coated regiment. The site provides a good overview of the main valley area. What it does not provide though is a clear line of site through the village to the rear or flanks of anyone using it as a strategic position.

The discovery of the remains of a Spanish Civil War soldier, gave rise to an extensive archaeological survey with a metal detector, which
allowed us to recover several thousand objects and to document more than a hundred structures. The study of materials has documented the
intensity of almost unknown military operations, deployment and movement of the forces involved, and even the quality and external influence on the ordnance on both sides.

El hallazgo de los restos de un combatiente de la Guerra Civil dio origen a una extensa prospección arqueológica con detector de metales,
que permitió recuperar varios miles de objetos y documentar más de un centenar de estructuras. El estudio de los materiales ha servido para
documentar la intensidad de unas operaciones militares casi desconocidas, el despliegue y movimientos de las fuerzas implicadas e, incluso, la calidad y la influencia externa en el municionamiento de ambos bandos.

Obdobie 2. svetovej vojny sa teší medzi laickou verejnosťou i odbornou vedeckou obcou stále živému záujmu. Dokladá to nielen množstvo dostupnej literatúry k tejto téme, no i početné rekonštrukcie bojov, ktoré sa pred vyše 70 rokmi odohrali na území Slovenska. Krok s dobou sa snaží držať aj archeológia. Vďaka súčasnej legislatívnej úprave sú ako archeologické nálezy definované aj zbrane, munícia, strelivo, súčasti uniforiem a iný vojenský materiál nachádzajúci sa v zemi, na jej povrchu a pod vodou, ktorý pochádza spred roku 1946. Častokrát sú archeologické nálezy spojené s bojovou činnosťou nachádzané náhodne (ide predovšetkým o muníciu). Na ich objavenie sa tak nemožno vopred pripraviť, nehovoriac ani o ich preventívnej ochrane. Súčasný rozvoj technológií však túto nevýhodu čiastočne zmazáva. Pomocou leteckého laserového skenovania zemského povrchu a následných priestorových analýz je možné objaviť miesta výskytu (najmä) zahĺbených stavieb, v tomto prípade predovšetkým poľných opevnení, kde možno očakávať výskyt vojenského materiálu. Takto získaný obraz terénu by však mal len malú výpovednú hodnotu, ak by nebol doplnený svedectvom ďalších prameňov objasňujúcich históriu daného regiónu. V nami skúmanej problematike je nutné sa opierať predovšetkým o doposiaľ publikovanú literatúru, výpovede pamätníkov, archívne záznamy či kartografické diela. Kombinácia uvedených prameňov následne dovoľuje vytvárať vysoko pravdepodobné interpretácie objavených terénnych útvarov. V nasledujúcom texte sa pokúsime demonštrovať prínos takéhoto pracovného postupu na príklade katastra obcí Horné Orešany a Smolenická Nová Ves, ktoré sa nachádzajú na východnom úpätí Malých Karpát.

Con il termine Guerra dei Trent’anni vengono definiti tutti quei conflitti combattuti tra il 1618 e il 1648, in cui furono coinvolte tutte le maggiori potenze dell’Europa continentale.
Gli scontri, maturati da fattori religiosi e politici, ebbero inizio fra i seguaci tedeschi della Riforma protestante contro i loro connazionali cattolici, entrambi appoggiati da potenze e fazioni esterne. Subito dopo la prima fase boema iniziata con una rivolta religiosa che avrebbe potuto facilmente venire isolata,la guerra travolse nella lotta, in modi diversi, quasi tutti gli stati europei.
Al conflitto iniziale si aggiunsero quindi rivalità dinastiche, la determinazione di molti principi tedeschi di liberarsi dal potere imperiale e l’opposizione di alcune potenze europee (soprattutto Svezia e Francia) al predominio imperiale degli Asburgo.
La guerra, che fu una tra le più distruttive della storia europea e mondiale, viene tradizionalmente suddivisa in quattro fasi: la boemo-palatina-tedesca (1618-1625); la fase danese-olandese (1625-1629); la fase svedese (16301635) ed infine la fase francese (1635-1648).
Questo scontro fu una catastrofe che gettò gran parte dell’Europa in un abisso di crudeltà, immani disastri e di barbarie. Tuttavia, benché gli stati scandinavi, Francia e Inghilterra, l’Italia e i Paesi Bassi rappresentassero una parte pur consistente nella tragedia, principale teatro della guerra fu quasi sempre l’impero, rappresentato in gran parte dalla attuale Germania, e primi a soffrirne furono per l’appunto il popolo tedesco e quello boemo.
Il conflitto aggiunse una grave depressione sociale ad una drastica crisi economica, producendo devastazioni feroci di cui la storia offre pochi esempi. Le popolazioni rurali, i contadini e tutti i cittadini dell’impero tedesco subirono il peggio: saccheggi, carestia, fame, persino cannibalismo.
Interi villaggi scomparvero e intere popolazioni sterminate (famoso fra tutti il famigerato sacco di Magdeburgo).
La Germania, che agli inizi del secolo era in primo piano nella civiltà europea, alla fine della guerra si ritrovò priva di letteratura e di arte, nella bancarotta più profonda, con un paese insomma che ricominciava da zero, richiamando in ciò il titolo del famoso film di Roberto Rossellini, ”Germania anno zero” anch’esso ambientato alla fine di un’altra disastrosa guerra che coinvolse il popolo tedesco quasi tre secoli dopo.

"Do you know the story of the Battle of Hungry Hill? A woman--Queen Mary--led the Native Americans from horseback, and her booming voice could be heard across the battlefield. They won that battle" -- Coquille elder George Bundy Wasson Jr. 1994

The Battle of Hungry Hill, fought on October 31 and November 1, 1855, ended in a “humiliating defeat for a fragile coalition of U.S. Army dragoons and several companies of citizen volunteers” against the Takelma. In this research article, Mark Tveskov describes how Euro-American accounts of the battle “overlooked the American defeat,” “veterans of the battle minimized the defeat and desertion in their memoirs, sometimes mythologizing the battle to the point of turning it into a victory,” and “the battle was lost to the larger historical narrative of the American West.” In September 2012, a team of archaeologists and scholars discovered the battle site, and their research points to a history that is sometimes at odds with long-standing portrayals of the Battle of Hungry Hill.

The Battle of Mine Creek took place on October 25, 1864, south of the present-day community of Pleasanton in Linn County, Kansas. In a short engagement, a United States force of some 2,500, mostly mounted cavalry, defeated a Confederate force of approximately 7,500, also mostly mounted cavalry. Later, a portion of the battlefield was purchased by the State of Kansas and is currently being developed to interpret and commemorate the battle and the Civil War in Kansas. To gain knowledge of the battle beyond that preserved in written accounts, major archaeological work was conducted at this site by the Kansas State Historical Society in 1989, 1990, and 1991. The 1989 and 1990 work was supervised by the author and John D. Reynolds, and by the author in 1991. Reynolds also supervised a small project at the site in 1991. Analysis of information from this archaeological research has led to the development of a number of observations and interpretations about this battlefield, all of which relate to the fundamental conclusion that the battlefield is substantially larger than it was believed to be at the inception of this study. Recommendations are also made for archaeological survey of additional lands to the north of Kansas Highway 53 and for detailed reexamination of certain areas surveyed between 1989 and 1991.

The battle for Peleliu in what is now the Republic of Palau, Micronesia, took place in late 1944 and was one of the most bitter island conflicts of the Pacific War. The 11,000-strong Japanese garrison died almost to a man, along with thousands of forced labourers from Korea and elsewhere; the invading Americans took some of their highest proportional casualties of the entire war. The indigenous cultural, and sacred, landscape of the island was obliterated, with far-reaching social and psychological consequences for the native Palauans. Building on extensive archaeological surveys of the battlefield, this paper explores the different ways in which the former combatants, the indigenous population, bystanders and external stakeholders have chosen to remember the fighting through their relationship with its material remains. In particular, we focus on the memorial process that actually began during the battle itself, in the form of proactive souvenir hunting. Often commencing literally seconds after enemy soldiers died, and conducted to the point of self-endangerment during ongoing combat, this phenomenon was widespread in the Pacific campaigns (and elsewhere) and is underrepresented in the literature of war. As heirlooms in veteran families, the resulting material culture is now itself part of Peleliu's documented archaeological heritage. The collection of battlefield debris continues today, at a critical intersection with the appropriate and respectful recovery of human remains. Against a contemporary backdrop of geopolitical concerns that still resonate from the war, conflicting memories of the battle for Peleliu are reified as both the sacred and the profane.

The Viking Age in popular culture is often set in a dark and lawless era, a
Hollywood conception of Ultima Thule, in which individual warriors fought
for personal glory. But the archaeological evidence suggests a much different
reality; the tale told by the inanimate objects uncovered from archaeological
sites is one of a highly organized society in which justice
and equality mattered. This view is also supported by the written sources.
Most scholars concede that society in Roman Iron Age to Viking Age
Scandinavia was well organized, and that a process of state building was
under way. Less focus, however, has been put on warfare and military
tactics during this period. What was warfare really like in Norway and
Scandinavia in the years before, and during, the Viking Age? In this paper,
an attempt will be made to analyze the extent to which early Scandinavian
society was organized for warfare, and possible external influences on
Scandinavian tactics in the Roman Iron Age and up to the Viking Age/
early medieval period will be explored.

Los yacimientos olvidados: registro y musealización de campos de batalla is a project that aims to encompass all aspects of battlefield archaeology, in order to be a reference work in this study area. Therefore, a detailed historiographical study about this branch of archaeology has been made, from early origins until the present day, allowing us to gain a deeper understanding of the evolution of battlefield archaeology. Two methodologies, archaeological and museographical, are proposed for the treatment of this particular type of archaeological site. In order to prove the viability of both methodologies, a theoretical application has been carried out in two research examples from different periods, demonstrating both the project’s methodological validity and reinforcing our theories.

Two registers were made regarding battlefields ¬- one historical and another archaeological. The purpose of this was to catalogue all possible existing sites in the interior of the Iberian Peninsula from Roman times through to the Spanish Civil War, which will hopefully serve as a point of reference for future researchers. Through this book, people will be able to understand the great potential of Spanish battlefields and their heritage. Furthermore, Spain could be regarded as a very important country regarding battlefield archaeology.

Our article seeks to determine the functions of visual communication design through the lens of modern conflict and public archaeologies. The Battle of Aslıhanlar, which took place in the triangle of the villages of Çal Köy, Allıören, and Yüğlük in Kütahya from 29 to 30 August 1922, was the focus of our experimentation. Our archaeological survey project was carried out in 2013; interviews with local people, a review of the literature available and our observations of local myths and traditions that emerged after the war constitute the basis of our article. We categorized these sources for the project design in order to form a storytelling narrative, so that the viewer could participate in the process of conflict as well as the ongoing research. We foresaw three major challenges while categorizing this complex dataset: equivalence of visual language; variable outputs of the multi-dimensional research methods; and interactivity for creating a live social platform. We responded to thes...

Since 2012, the Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center in Mashantucket, Connecticut, in collaboration with the University of Connecticut, has carried out a research program to survey and document the battlefields of the Pequot War (1636-1637). The unique nature of the project has required the refinement of the long-standing field methods of battlefield archaeology. In this article, we argue that these techniques, while originally developed to explore sites of conflict, can be operationalized to locate 17th-century indigenous domestic sites. We describe this modified method and provide a site-specific case study to present its efficacy.

La aplicación del método arqueológico junto al empleo de herramientas tecnológicas como el detector de metales para el estudio de los campos de batalla contemporáneos, está permitiendo a los investigadores conocer y comprender el desarrollo de episodios bélicos recientes pero casi desconocidos.
El hallazgo, en pleno campo de batalla, del enterramiento de un soldado republicano, dio lugar a una amplia prospección arqueológica. Gracias a lo cual ha sido posible conocer en detalle algunas operaciones militares ocurridas en los alrededores de Lucena del Cid durante el verano de 1938.
Unos combates extraordinariamente violentos, que causaron a las tropas del general García-Valiño numerosos muertos y heridos y de los cuales, el autor de Espías y guerrilleros en la Sierra de Espadán, vuelve a sorprendernos al lograr documentar unos 3.500 objetos y casi dos centenares de estructuras relacionadas.
Parece increíble que después de 80 años, queden todavía por los montes de Castellón tantos restos materiales, y lo que es peor, tantos soldados enterrados de forma anónima e indigna.

The Participation of the Polish 1st Armoured Brigade of the Heroes of Westerplatte in the Fights on Kępa Oksywska (30 March–5 April 1945) Fights on Kępa Oksywska in the breaktrough of March and April 1945 were a continuation of the battle of Gdynia, which until the 29th March 1945 was liberated by troops of the Red Army. German troops defending the city withdrew Kępa Oksywska to take the opposition the Red Army, together with the trade tactical fighters. Adolf Hitler announced the Oksywska Peninsula „fortress” that had to be defended to the last soldier. This order was unenforceable because the defenders did not have sufficient stocks of ammunition and material resources. Therefore, the German commander of the 2nd Army decided to conduct the fight until the end of the preparations for the evacuation by sea of all soldiers and many civilians. The 19th Soviet Army from the composition of the 2nd Belorussian Front received the task to get Kępa Oksywska. Fights lasted from the 28th March to the 5th April 1945. Unsuccessfully Soviet troops tried to break through the German defenses. From the 29th March 1945, the Polish 1st Warsaw Armoured Brigade of the defenders of Westerplatte (1st Armoured Brigade) participated in combat operations. During the earlier battles in Pomerania, the 1st Brigade suffered heavy losses, which have not been fully completed. Therefore, support for the few Polish tanks did not have a major impact on the course of the war on Kępa Oksywska, and it was paid with 45 soldiers (killed, wounded and missing) and 12 tanks (destroyed or damaged). On the night from the 4th to 5th April 1945, German troops managed to carry out effective action to evacuate the soldiers and civilians from Oksywie to the Hel Peninsula. At the cost of large amounts of military equipment and property abandoned along the coast of the Baltic Sea. By the end of the 5th April 1945, troops of the 19th Army and the 1st Brigade occupied the entire area of Kępa Oksywska.


Участие 1-й Варшавской танковой бригады им. Героев Вестерплатте в боях за Оксивскую кемпу (30 марта–5 апреля 1945 г.) Бои нa Оксивской кемпе в марте и апреле 1945 г. являлись продолжением битвы за Гдыню, которая 29 марта 1945 г. была освобождена Красной Армией. После этого германские части отошли к Оксивской кемпе, чтобы вместе с тактическими соединениями уже там оказывать сопративление Красной Армии. Адольф Гитлер объявил Оксивский ARTYKUłY I ROZPRAWY полуостров „крепостью”, которую надлежало защищать до последнего солдата. Этот приказ невозможно было исполнить, поскольку оборонявшиеся там немцы не имели достаточного количества боеприпасов и материальных средств. Поэтому командующий германской 2-й Армии принял решение вести боевые действия до момента, когда закончиться подготовка к эвакуации морским путем всех солдат и многих гражданских лиц. Задача взятия Оксивской кемпы была возложена на советскую 19-ю Армию 2-го Белорусского фронта. Сражения продолжались с 28 марта пo 5 апреля 1945 г. Советские части безуспешно пытались прорвать германскую оборону. С 29 марта 1945 г. в боевых действиях принимала участие польская 1-я Варшавская танковая бригада им. Героев Вестерплатте. Во время прежних боев на Поморье бригада понесла ощутимые потери, которые не были в полной мере восполнены. Поэтому поддержка немногочисленных польских танков не повлияла значительно на ход битвы. Вместе с тем, потери вынесли 45 погибших, раненных и пропавших без вести и 12 подбитых и поврежденных танков. Ночью с 4 нa 5 апреля 1945 г. германские части сумели провести успешную эвакуацию на Хельский полуостров. Произошло это ценой большого количества оставленной на побережье техники и военного имущества. К концу 5 апреля 1945 г. войска 19-й Aрмии и польской бригады заняли всю Оксивскую кемпу.

Keywords: archaeophysiology, archaeology, physiology, physical performance, tactical athletes, panoply, armor, armour, ancient swordsmanship, battle, combat, combat stimulation, battle mode, Bronze Age, Homer’s “Iliad”, weapon use, sword, xiphos, spear, horse carriage, shield, helmet, bow, warrior, fighter, soldier, battle physiology, theatre of operations, battle environment, Greeks, Achaeans, Trojans, Trojan War, Mycenean civilization, history, marines, Greek Army, Hellenic Army, special forces, dietary, nutrition, battle psychology, reflexes, body temperature, target deflection, fatigue, glucose, visual stimulation, hearing stimulation, reaction time.
The purpose of this research is to study the manner of battle and the use of weapons by a Greek warrior who was fully armored during archaic times and more specifically in the Bronze Age (Trojan War period). The main question of the research was whether the "Dedra panoply" was useful battle equipment or was an artifact for use only in the rituals and celebrations of the time. Due to the originality of the research and the lack of precedent data, a new branch of science was required: the "Archeophysiology" ®, that is, the combination of archeology (through archaeological findings and ancient texts) and physiology (through the creation of specific physical performance protocols, manufacturing of equipment and taking measurements in a simulated combat environment). Measurements were required to be made, to assess the various factors affecting the human physiology of already trained and professional fighters (warriors), who are now identified as “tactical athletes”.

For the most realistic approach to the battle, noncommissioned officers and privates of the Hellenic Armed Forces (HAF) and in particular from the Special Forces (SF) of the Marines were used, who executed, a Trojan War-based combat protocol created by studying the Homeric Epic of the "Iliad" (Maronitiw D.N., 2016) (Asimoglou P., Petmezas S., Flouris A., Koutedakis Y.2, Fatouros I.2, Giakas I.2, Jamurtas AZ2, Wardle K. & D.3,2017). The creation of the battle protocol took into account: the morphology of the terrain, the environmental conditions, the time constraints of the different phases of the battle (transition - engagement - return), the respective geographical distances traveled by the warriors daily, as well as the different combinations of weapons and fighting techniques of the corresponding time period described in the Iliad (Petmezas S., Asimoglou P., Flouris A., Koutedakis Y.2, Fatouros I.2, Giakas I.2, Jamurtas A.2, Wardle K. & D.3, 2017).
The combat equipment used by the volunteers of the HAF consisted of a complete armor replica of the Mycenaean era, a helmet and replicas of the weapons of the era (shape-weight-materials-construction techniques). The weapons used in the various techniques of armor were: spear (throws – thrusts/close combat blows), Mycenaean sword 85 cm long (thrusts/slashing blows - cuts), Mycenaean bow (close range shots) and other materials found on battlefield, in our case medium /small stone (throws).
A study was also carried out and measurements were taken of the use of a two-horse battle carriage and its effect on the physiology of the user as well as on the nutrition and other habits of the ancient tactical athletes during a whole day in battle engagement. At the same time, measurements were performed of the effect of fatigue on warrior psychology, its effect on target accuracy and fighter’s reflexes (speed) using visual and auditory stimuli equipment.
A total of 13 healthy adult men volunteers (Hellenic Army Special Forces) (age 29.2 ± 7.9 years, height 172.7 ± 4.5 cm, weight 74.1 ± 6.8 kg) participated in the research. The physiology measurements performed throughout the protocol were: skin temperature, produced force (total and mean value) of blows in each different combination of battle techniques, stroke (target) deviation (total and mean value) of the hits in each different type of combat, the difference in the deviation of volunteers’ blows from the target center by type of combat, the subjective perception of warriors’ fatigue, blood glucose concentration, urine specific gravity and color at the beginning and end of the protocol, reaction time to visual and auditory stimuli throughout the protocol.
Results showed a positive low power correlation (r = 0.119, p <0.001) between skin temperature and protocol steps. The total force output of the volunteers’ blows in each different type of battle showed a statistically significant positive high force correlation (r = 0.802, p <0.001) between the total force produced and the blows numbers. The difference in mean power produced by battle type showed statistically significant changes [F (3, 503) = 18.6; p <0.001] by type of battle. Also, the analysis of the total deviation of the volunteer blows from the target in each different type of battle showed statistically significant changes in the total blow number deviation [F (3, 503) = 96.0; p <0.001] by type of battle. The difference in the deviation of volunteer blows from the target based on the type of battle did not show any statistically significant changes in the mean deviation of volunteer blows from the target (p> 0.05). The total force produced, the mean generated force, the total deviation of the blows from the target, as well as the mean deviation of the blows from the target during the different phases of the protocol in battle “1vs1” showed that the total produced force [F (30, 372) = 1.5; p = 0.047] decreased from start to the end of protocol. The total force produced, the mean produced force, the total stroke deviation from the target, and the mean deviation of the strokes from the target during the different phases of the protocol in the “chariot vs chariot” battle did not show statistically significant differences in some of the variables considered (p> 0.05) between the variables considered and the protocol stage. Subjective perception of volunteer fatigue showed a positive high force correlation (r = 0.603, p <0.001) which was statistically significant. The blood glucose concentration of the volunteers showed a statistically significant decrease in glucose concentration [F (7, 95) = 3.0; p = 0.007] which was statistically significant (r = -0.234, p = 0.017). Urine specific gravity analysis and urine color at the beginning and end of the protocol showed no statistically significant differences in any of the variables examined (p> 0.05). The same analysis showed a statistically significant positive correlation between urine specific gravity and urine color (r = 0.683, p <0.001). The reaction time to visual stimulus showed no statistically significant changes (p> 0.05). The reaction time to auditory stimuli showed an increase in reaction time which was judged to be close to statistical significance [F (7, 96) = 1.94; p = 0.07].
Through this research and the science of archeophysiology, it turned out that the particular type of armor used was useful (combat) warfare equipment and not only for ritual use. It was carried on the battlefield by important military agents (commanders/army chiefs) providing maximum protection to the warrior who wore it from the Bronze Age weapons throughout the battle. The similarity of archaic period battle equipment in form, weight and use, to its modern combat equipment, proves the functional perfection achieved by the ancestors of the Greeks some 3500 years ago, both in the manufacture of the equipment and in the manner of training the human body to fully utilize personal combat equipment.