Draco (military standard)
The Draco script (latin draco = " Dragon" ) was an ancient and medieval field characters in the form of a snake with a dragon's head, which originally dates back to the Central Asian horsemen.
Origin
The dragon also played in the mythology of Asian steppe peoples a role, specifically the Sarmatians, in which he ( as a winged serpent ) occupied a prominent position. The heavy Sarmatian armored lancers were often compared by ancient authors in their writings with dragons. The field character was also common among the Indians, Persians, Parthians, Scythians and Dacians. In the early Middle Ages, the standard was, inter alia, in the Franconian Ironshirts in use.
Function
It is believed that they were originally used for the numerous horse archers of the horsemen in the Asian steppes to the wind speed and wind direction readings. Otherwise, standards were a visual aid for the identification of troops associations and individual fighters in military operations (in particular for guidance on the battlefield ).
Use
In late antiquity the Roman army took over together with Asian mercenary or auxiliary troops among others the concept for the use of Kataphrakten, the Spangenhelm that Contus lance and the Draco standard, probably by the Dacians or Scythians. The trooper, who led the Draco standard with himself, was called Draconarius. In the 4th century AD, it was introduced in the Roman infantry. The usual among the Romans form of Draco standard consists of a long tube- shaped windsock red or multi-colored cloth that is attached to a metal dragon head with open mouth. A very well-preserved dragon head was found in the fort Niederbieber. It is made of silvered and partly gilded copper plate. He could be mounted on a simple wooden stick, but was usually mounted on a lance. Ammianus Marcellinus also describes a scene that is in the Constantine II surrounded by interwoven with purple threads dragon standards, stuck on gold and precious stones ( but probably only stones from glass) decorated spearheads. The dragons mouths were held directly into the wind, they should have given a hissing noise. This could have been generated by mounted inside metal slats or wires and intended to intimidate the enemy.
In addition to the Romans and the Byzantines Draco script used also:
- Dacians
- Getae
- Goths
- Slavs
- Huns
- Avars
- Lombards
- Bulgarians
- Franconia
- Rus
- Pechenegs
- Cumans ( Kipchaks )
In Britain the standard Draco and the dragon head symbol of the Celts and Anglo-Saxons continued after the deduction of the Roman army. This is perhaps due to the presence of Kataphrakten used as Sarmatian mercenaries along Hadrian explain (see Sarmatians and Arthurian legend). Some historians believe that the dragon in the crest of Wessex, Wales, and also in those derived from other Britannic ruling houses of such Draco standards.