60 Second Celtic Chronicle: The Sack of Delphi
Posted on Sep 29th, 2009 by E P Wohlfart |
Welcome back for another instalment of Sixty Second Celtic Chronicle the short, fast paced video PodCast where I grossly oversimplify the complexities of Celtic archaeology and history. If I sound funny this week, it’s because I had an awful cold while recording.
If you for some reason have trouble viewing this video, you could always try visiting the PastPresenters.com YouTube Channel.
About the author: E P Wohlfart is a twenty-something freelance writer with a Classical Archaeology degree, a laptop and a maxed-out library card. Aside from administrating PastPresenters.com, which she started in 2008, she works with several historical publications and is a regular contributor at Suite101. 
There is a sword depicted in the movie “The 300″
It is carried by the character Leonidas.
Is there any basis in historical fact for the configuration
of this sword?
It seems not to reflect other simple swords of the period.
(Perhaps it is taken from the art in the comic book that inspired the movie?)
These links show examples of the sword in question:
http://www.trueswords.com/images/prod/best_300_sword3.jpg?osCsid=cf8ed4261df5f7b71714f68c6606482a
http://www.kultofathena.com/images/49202_l.jpg
I apologize if this inquiry is too far beneath you.
I realize it is a trivial question.
Hi John!
That’s a really interesting question. Definitely don’t apologise!
The answer would be yes and no. What you’ve got there looks kind of like a comic version of a Greek Kopis. The Kopis was more of a utilitarian blade, but it was sometimes used in warfare by cavalry against infantry. What’s funny here, though, is that it’s also sometimes used in depictions of the Persian wars (as is the setting of 300), but then used by the Persians rather than the Greeks (Perhaps to make them look more barbarian? It’s not a Persian weapon. Unfortunately I’m no expert on the topic).
Spartan hoplites are more likely to have used something like this.