Macedonian Kingdom Archives - Kotsanas Museum https://collection.kotsanasmuseum.com/en/places/μακεδονικό-βασίλειο-en/ Tue, 09 Apr 2024 10:09:32 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.1 The ditch-filling tortoise of Diades https://collection.kotsanasmuseum.com/en/exhibits/106055/ Tue, 09 Apr 2024 10:09:08 +0000 http://collection.kotsanasmuseum.com/exhibits/106055/ It was literally an “armoured” vehicle used in sieges for the leveling of ground and the backfilling of defensive ditches for the easier approach of other siege machines. It consisted of a wooden cage on wheels and a hipped roof covering approximately 120 square metres for the protection of the digging and ditch-filling crew. Its […]

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]]> It was literally an “armoured” vehicle used in sieges for the leveling of ground and the backfilling of defensive ditches for the easier approach of other siege machines. It consisted of a wooden cage on wheels and a hipped roof covering approximately 120 square metres for the protection of the digging and ditch-filling crew. Its exposed walls, like all the other war machines, were covered with iron sheets, fresh wickerwork, clay mixed with hair, and padded rawhide and lambskins (stuffed with vinegar-soaked straw or green seaweed) in order to neutralise incendiary arrows and to absorb the blow of stones launched by the enemy. An ingenious placement system of the axle wheel bearing allowed its forward, sideway and diagonal movement. On another tortoise, the digging tortoise, the front face was vertical to enable better contact with the wall and easier sabotage by the diggers.

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]]> The roofed ram of Diades https://collection.kotsanasmuseum.com/en/exhibits/106057/ Tue, 09 Apr 2024 10:09:24 +0000 http://collection.kotsanasmuseum.com/exhibits/106057/ It consisted of a cage on wheels with a fireproof double-pitched roof padded to absorb the blows from enemy missiles (as in the ditch-filling tortoise). It was crowned by a three-storey turret equipped with catapults on the upper level, while the lower levels held reservoirs of water for the extinguishing of possible fires. On its […]

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]]> It consisted of a cage on wheels with a fireproof double-pitched roof padded to absorb the blows from enemy missiles (as in the ditch-filling tortoise). It was crowned by a three-storey turret equipped with catapults on the upper level, while the lower levels held reservoirs of water for the extinguishing of possible fires. On its floor, there were ram-holders mounted on supporters (“kriodoche”), i.e., a series of cylindrical rollers upon which the battering ram moved easily with traction ropes on each side. The operators, who were positioned at both sides of the ram, pulled the ropes backwards and forwards, causing the ram to strike the enemy wall with great force. With the fluctuating inclination of the ram-holder, they managed to strike the wall on the desired target. The right side of the model has not been completed for better visual understanding.

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