Roman Gladiator Armor and Weapons
- The 27-inch-long gladius (from which the word 'gladiator' is derived) was the most famous of the gladiator swords, but more exotic swords such as the scythe-like sica and the single-edged acinaces cavalry sword were also used.
- Gladiators used spears for both thrusting and throwing, and supplemented them with multi-pronged tridents, or fascinas.
- Hand-made Roman bows and arrows were common in gladiator matches, along with slings and darts.
- Many gladiators carried a pugio (dagger) with them as a back-up weapon. These were well-built little weapons, but too small to be of use in anything but the closest of combat.
- Shields were essential to Roman gladiators, not only for personal defense, but also for battering opponents.
- While some 26 sub-types of gladiator armor were used in all, matches were usually arranged according to strengths and weaknesses. Agile, lightly armored gladiators would be matched against heavily-armored, slow-moving gladiators. Who wore which armor was based on weaponry. Gladiators using ranged weapons might only be armored with leg padding (fascia), arm wraps (manicae) and chain mail (thorax hamata). Gladiators armed with swords would be more heavily armored, wearing face-guards (Kalkriese), heavy helmets (Spangenhelmen -- borrowed from the Germanic tribes), and plate armor (lorica squamata). In general, most gladiator armor offered surprising freedom of movement, especially when compared with some of the heavy, bulky armor used throughout medieval times.