Irregular Wars Wargaming

I knew that I wanted to build a nymphaion, a public fountain house, for my Antiochene suburb but I didn't know exactly how I was going to represent it. Then I found a great little article by Rick Bonnie and Julian Richard (2012) discussing two first century BC/AD nymphaiai from Magdala on the Sea of Galilee (Israel), birth place of Mary Magdalene, and Sagalassos in Pisidia (Turkey). The pictures below have been lifted from their article without permission; I hold no copyright over them. Remains of the  nymphaion at Magdala Plan of the nympaion at Magdala Reconstructed remains of the nymphaion at Sagalassos Plan of the nymphaion at Sagalassos Both nymphaiai were built to resemble a pi-shaped stoa, the standard civic space/shopping mall of the ancient Greek world. Seeing the style of them, the date, the geographic spread (the the south and to the northwest of Antioch respectively), I figured that they might just be the template I was looking for. Co...

A small update for my Antiocheia Mikros (Little Antioch) project. First off, this great isometric reconstruction of Roman Dura-Europos to give a little inspiration. This is a great image as it shows the sorts of domestic buildings that will bulk out most of my city. The staggered roof tops are just the sort of thing to stage stealthy missions and pursuits across. Keeping with a Dura theme, the first of my new buildings was inspired by the early third century synagogue at the city. Unfortunately I haven't been able to source a high resolution plan, but this one (to the left) will have to suffice. Room 1 is an open courtyard with a colonnade along two sides, room 2 is the hall of assembly. The synagogue itself was originally a house, modified to look like the plan shown probably in the late second or early third century, and then altered again in AD 244 into a larger, grander building. The building was excavated in 1932 and revealed some of the most spectac...

As part of my new project, I need to put together an ancient streetscape. Not being one to shrink from an interesting challenge, I spent much of today starting the construction work; the aim, to build a suburb of Late Hellenistic Antioch. I seldom have days when I can indulge so much but I'm still off work until next week, today Hotspur the Younger started at his new preschool and I happened to have a birthday which meant that Mrs Hotspur was happy enough to let me skulk around the house and play with sharp knives. I have spent several happy weeks in and around Antakya (modern Antioch) as part of mid-season breaks while digging in Syria so I have a real enthusiasm for this project. However modern Antioch, for all of its charms, is more than 10 metres above the ancient city due to successive earthquakes, floods and a couple of thousand years of continuous occupation. That means that while I have some great source photos to base my   streetscape on, none of it is reflective of the ...

...and may all your resolutions be good ones! On top of my other gaming interests and life in general, I am embarking on a new project for 2013 which I envisage will take me all of 2013. I'm not going to say too much just now, but it involves recent purchases from Xyston, Donnington and Baueda. I have just sieved through Young Hotspur's piggybank for as many coppers as I could lay my hands on (what he loses in coins, he'll make for in fun when he's older) and tomorrow evening I plan on purchasing about my weight in balsa wood. The following images have been quickly swiped of the interweb to act as inspiration...