252 ROMAN MAIL AND SCALE ARMOUR

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New discoveries in both mail and scale, as well as in hybrid forms that mixed the two, helps explain the development of these types of defense during the Roman period, their efficacy in battle and how they were manufactured and repaired.

Less glamorous than the Roman Army's instantly recognizable plate armor but much more versatile, mail and scale armor were used by both legionaries and auxiliaries throughout Rome's history. Developed by the Celts and quickly adopted by the Romans, mail armor was easy to make and required little maintenance. Scale was a much older form of armor, originating in the Near East during the second millennium BC. As with mail, it was used by both auxiliaries and legionaries, but like plate armor, it was much more fragile than mail. Both types of armour were also used by gladiators (principally as arm defenses).