Amazing Ancient Object of Mystery in History

reply to post by shells4u


Hi shells4u,

They are interesting objects aren't they.

You might be interested in reading a thread i authored back in February, it's my take on these things and might give you some clues (or might not!) or help you in your research.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

Caltrops?

Although, maybe a stylized version. Maybe sat on the Corp of Caltrops CO's desk... Like my CO had an inert Claymore on his desk...

You might be interested in reading a thread i authored back in February, it's my take on these things and might give you some clues

reply to post by MysterX


Thank you for directing me I am on my way there right now to read your thread...thanks!!!

reply to post by MysterX
Hats off to you Mr.x your thread blew me away!!! The theory of yours is awesome it really made my brain go WOW!!! I will tell you something that came to my mind immediately and that is this...I discovered as a child that if I relax my vision and squint my eyes in a certain way and in the right lighting I can see these moving particles like one can see in a microscope...And I have always worn glasses...Its hard to explain but it is what it is and so yes its very possible that these objects could very well be a man made tokens of ancient times that are a representation of pollen microbes.

Its one of these lol a earlie version fisher and price didn't invent it first lol.

reply to post by 35Foxtrot

Yes they would work perfectly for that...As a mom and grandma I have stepped on jacks that the kids have left on the floor...I refuse to buy them and am glad that they are not so popular a toy anymore, now days they are made with a softer plastic and not as pointy but back in the day they were made of a cheap metal and very pointy...OUCH!!! Those hurt as I can only imagine what a few of these little devils could do...

reply to post by shells4u


They are a little similar to the Chinese carved balls within balls.

Those are kind of a paragon skilled craft thing. Kind of a show-off sort of wood carving or stone carving example.

The elite seemed to enjoy having one around as a show piece, conversation piece.

reply to post by amraks
I am thinking this....lol...

reply to post by BO XIAN
If they had a little metal ball inside and when it rolled it made a sound they would make for the perfect cat toy...

First thoughts was that it looks like something you can throw at someone's face to cause significant damage.

Shot put anyone?

No, but in all seriousness the multiple holes in the formation could serve as easily accessible, swift grabbing points in battle.

No, but really, it's more than likely just a decorative object that broke off another, larger object so it appears to look like it's out of place and serves no real functional purpose.

reply to post by unb3k44n7


except that about 100 have been found (with variations in style and level of craftsmanship) and theres no evidence of that
so these things werent exactly rare but werent common either
the fact that they are spread out of a large area to me indicates its likely not a decoration because you tend to find similar decoration in concentrated pockets based on whatever was trending at the time
my guess would be that its some kind of tool used by a professional (possibly for some kind of measurements) which would explain why they are spread out and found in the kind of numbers they are

reply to post by sirhumperdink


There was also a cluster of about 14 or so of them found in military camps, amongst other various places.

Question: Why would you need more than 1 in a location such as a military camp if you were measuring something, such as rays from the sun to calculate specific dates? Why would the military, especially in that era of time, be invested in measuring rays from the sun from multiple vantage points? Would 1 not suffice to record a measurement in a given area? Why hundreds of the same object?

I'd stuff it with sticks and burn stuff in it.

Why would you need more than 1 in a location such as a military camp if you were measuring something

reply to post by unb3k44n7


This is an example of one speculation that was linked here in page1...

useful for ballistic to estimate distances. Dioptra were optical instruments, without lenses, used for measuring angles

a possible use of Roman Dodecahedra as rangefinders.

Or maybe they were used for bludgeoning the crap out of the enemy. They were fist-sized, right? They're usually found around military-type sites?

High-tech "stones".

The clues are -
- found here and there at unrelated sites but with one mass find at an old roman military camp
- no apparent standard size
- all have multiple sides with protrusions at faceted corners
- undecipherable markings although we can decipher the symbols of that era
- no records found related to these objects

My guess would be a "foot scratcher/massager".

my reasons are-
- probably used more at your field encampments
- large enough to be functional but small enough to be personal
- you roll it across the floor/ground with your foot for the desired effect
- just ornate markings, no reason to have any meaning to the markings
- wouldn't be such a thing that would be worth recording. An example- If I was Ralphie of Rome and had dry, sore, scratchy, stinky feet with crud growing on them because I wasn't bathing properly, I don't think it would be something I'd write home to mom about either.

Romans so it was used in war.
Land mines for cavalry, horse hoof shatters it and gets stuck in it, or at the least it maims and hobbles.
When not used can hold staffs of all sorts in camp, be used for setting tents etc, multi use military item.

reply to post by mikegrouchy


Dude! Even the Romans played D&D!

Or maybe they used to play dice out back of the senate...

The angle produced when sighting through two holes looks close to the Angle of Repose.

en.wikipedia.org...

"The angle of repose is sometimes used in the design of equipment for the processing of particulate solids. For example, it may be used to design an appropriate hopper or silo to store the material, or to size a conveyor belt for transporting the material. It can also be used in determining whether or not a slope (of a stockpile, or uncompacted gravel bank, for example) will likely collapse; the talus slope is derived from angle of repose and represents the steepest slope a pile of granular material will take. This angle of repose is also crucial in correctly calculating stability in vessels.

It is also commonly used by mountaineers as a factor in analysing avalanche danger in mountainous areas."

Stick that object in a shallow bowl of water and level it (purpose of the protrusions?) and you have a consistent angle.

So my guess, as others have offered, is either for their Engineers- Romans constantly built when on the march so they would have had many Engineers in the Auxilia. Angle of repose would be used for things like switchback roads or mounding earth for elevated forts.-or if not that then some type of range finder for their Artillery. Use that to adjust the Ballista and you will pretty consistently hit the same range.

Originally posted by jiggerj
reply to post by shells4u

 

Are we guessing? This object has five knobs upon which it can stand no matter which way it is placed on a table. There are twelve positions that coincide with the Roman calendar that switched to 12 months in a year in 700 BCE. In order to keep this new calender fresh in the minds of the citizens, these dodecahedra were designed so that the current month would be positioned at the top. How's that for a stretch of the imagination?

Perhaps it was an ornamental lampshade. Each circular hole could have a painted glass lens from colored glass. A candle inside would provide light. Or maybe it was just a plant holder.