Armilla. In general, any circlet of gold or silver which forms a bracelet for men or women, whether worn on the wrist, arm, or ankle. Bracelets worn by men often consisted of three or four massive bands of bronze, silver, or gold, and thus covered a considerable portion of the arm. Bracelets were worn by the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Medes, the Persians, the Celts (Fig. [42]), and the Gauls (Fig. [43]). The Egyptians in some instances employed ivory and porcelain in their manufacture.
Armillum, R. A kind of urceolus, or small pitcher for holding a particular kind of wine. It was among the number of the sacrificial vessels, and was well known from the Latin proverb: Anus ad armillum (an old woman returns to her bottle).
Armilustrium. A Roman festival for the purification of arms.
Arming Points. The “points” or ties of armour.
Armins. Cloth or velvet coverings for pikehandles.
Armory, Her. (1) Heraldry. (2) A list of names and titles with the arms belonging to them.
Fig. 44. Primitive Roman Armour.
Armour, Arms. In almost every deposit where prehistoric remains are buried, we find clubs, hatchets, arrows, hammers, or other arms, mostly, even in the stone age, carefully ornamented. The ancient Egyptians were armed with “the bow, spear, two species of javelin, sling, a short and straight sword, dagger, knife, falchion, axe or hatchet, battle-axe, pole-axe, mace or club, &c. Their defensive arms consisted of a helmet of plate, or quilted head-piece, a cuirass, or coat of armour made of metal plates, or quilted with metal bands, and an ample shield” (Wilkinson). Among the Greeks, the heavy-armed warrior wore the greaves, cuirass, with the mitra underneath, and the zone or cingulum above; his sword, ensis or gladius, hung on his left side, and the large round shield, sacus, aspis, clipeus or scutum, hung from his shoulder; his helmet, corys, cunea, cassis or galea; his spear, enkus, doru or hasta, or two spears. The defensive armour, the shield and thorax, were called hopla, and the man hoplites. The light-armed, psiloi, anoploi, gymnai, gymnetai, had a slighter covering of skins, or cloth, and fought with darts, stones, bows and arrows or slings. There were also the peltastæ, so called from their small shield pelte. All the above-mentioned parts of classical armour, and their modifications in that of mediæval times are described under their respective headings; as well as much of mediæval armour.
Arnis, Gr. and R. An expiatory festival held in honour of Linus and his mother Psamathê, the daughter of Crotopus, king of Argos. Various legends are extant regarding the origin of this festival, which was called Arnis from the sheep (ἀρνειὸς) that were sacrificed.