Scale armour

Copper-alloy scale from scale cuirass, tinned, and with three holes pierced in it horizontally. It has a raised border, which is continued to form a frame for the three holes and a vertically-orientated central ridge.

Parallels for this type of scale are rare in the west, but a number of similar (although not identical) scales were found in the excavations at Masada. The Masada scales were proportionally taller, pierced by four holes (two pairs of two), and had a central ridge which ran the full length of the object, with no frame around the holes. Analysis showed them to have been cast out of bronze and brass, with a possibility that some at least were tinned. It is not clear whether the Masada scales were Roman, Jewish, or Roman re-used by the Jewish rebels.