Quote from: Techno on 10 April 2019, 12:35:41 PM
Will.......Stop going on about Zouaves, and answer my question about the Iranian cavalry. 

Cheers - Phil

OK then

Iranian cavalry come from what was formerly Persia. they rode horses and carried a variety of sharp pointy things.   :)They were famous for fighting the Greeks. 

And Romans, Huns, Byzantines, Ayyubids, Moghuls....

Why does the word "monosyllabic" have so many syllables in it?

Quote from: Last Hussar on 11 April 2019, 12:15:25 AM
Why does the word "monosyllabic" have so many syllables in it?

To allow people with too much time on their hands to ponder that fact, rather than some other more unsavoury pastime. 

Quote from: Techno on 10 April 2019, 12:35:41 PM
Will.......Stop going on about Zouaves, and answer my question about the Iranian cavalry.  

Cheers - Phil

Quote from: Orcs on 10 April 2019, 10:32:38 PM
OK then

Iranian cavalry come from what was formerly Persia. they rode horses and carried a variety of sharp pointy things.   :)They were famous for fighting the Greeks.  

Quote from: FierceKitty on 10 April 2019, 11:17:22 PM
And Romans, Huns, Byzantines, Ayyubids, Moghuls....

Come on then guys, how much more useless info can we give Techno about Iranian cavalry?  

He will probably wish he never asked - although if the truth be known, he probably wishes that he never got involved with the Lunatics on this forum (myself included).   

Still hindsight is a wonderful thing!

Quote from: Orcs on 10 April 2019, 10:32:38 PM
OK then

Iranian cavalry come from what was formerly Persia. they rode horses and carried a variety of sharp pointy things.   :)They were famous for fighting the Greeks. 

That doesn't answer the question I asked Will, Mark.....But he's answered me now.
That, and the pretty picture I've already got, tells me everything I need to know. 

The lunatics on the forum ?

They help keep me sane. (Almost)

Cheers - Phil

That chap who played Gandalf was over that way in the old days. His cavalry unit (yes they still had them) was somewhat short of horses, as motorised transport was the "in thing". He tells of a sergeant of his who was totally devoted to his captain. The unit went out on exercise, and Gandalf told the NCO to stay in camp, because there was no horse for him.

Imagine Gandalf's surprse when the next day, 40 miles out in the desert the sergeant appears.

"Well", says Gandalf, "how did you get here."

"I ran, Ian" say the doughty.

I've heard of running a race, of running moonshine, of running rivers, running shoes, or running out of coffee, but never ere now of running an Ian. How does one do it?

Claws are out today FK.

Hmmmph...putting in that comma has spoiled the joke. Rotter.

Quote from: Techno on 11 April 2019, 06:46:36 AM
The lunatics on the forum ?

They help keep me sane. (Almost)

Cheers - Phil

Pah! They don't keep you sane ... they just lower the bar on what is considered sanity

In answer to wimp's rather rude question - Rare Steak, strong Larger and red wine and fast cars....

Anyway to answer Techno's question ...

Techno: I'm assuming we're talking Archaemenid. I'm also assuming we're talking Marathon to Platea.

In that case, what you do have to get right is the khaphut. It is quite distinctive. Some manufacturers get it a bit wrong and it looks a bit more pheenish-y - the Magister Miletum offering is a definite proto-pheenish.*

You can see the khaput quite clearly on the figure on the right. Being a big nebby, his is likely to have been brightly coloured and possibly jewel studded, but you get the idea? You will also notice why stirrups weren't necessary, as the rider just ran along with the horse.


Certainly a portion of Iranian horse would have a dunpher instead of a khaput, specially those from the mountains when the khaput is a bit impractical.

Here the dunpher isn't particularly well drawn, but you can compare with the khaput above to get the difference.


This may be a dunpher, or possibly an "Orchid"*** khaput. In 10mm it probably won't make a lot of difference, and you'd only really know from a left hand view.

If you're after Iranian horse, please make sure they are armed with bows, javelins and, please, please, please can we have a karkdit? I have a great picture that I'll scan and send to you ... they're the Semi-Cataphract  Utilising Babylonian Armour.****   


I trust this helps, Techno.



*Hawkins**says that Alexander the Great introduced the pheenish, but from where? It's not remotely Macedonian, and he was in Persia before India. I think it more likely that the pheenish was beginning to gain popularity in the Persian Empire before Alexander got there, possibly due to larger Anatolian horses being imported, and Alexander copied it, as he copied so much.
** See "Armies of the Persian Empire", Arms & Armour, 1998. pgs 48-50.
*** See Farris & Khan, "A Discussion of the Orchid Khaputs in the 5th Century BCE", Oxford University Press, 2012
**** If you do make a SCUBA figure, please make sure the horse has the correct snorkel       

I can see from FSN's post that I was right. Iranian cavalry ride horses with an assortment of sharp pointy things

That rock carving, however, is very Sassanid, and thus half a millennium later than the Achaemenid era. Of course, if you're the kind of gamer who'd use Henry V's archers for the Falklands campaign, this isn't an issue.

Quote from: paulr on 09 April 2019, 07:28:56 PM
That had me confused till I had a better look at the pictures 

And me - I was thinking ' There were Kiwis in the Union Army? Cool"

Quote from: FierceKitty on 12 April 2019, 01:13:08 AM
That rock carving, however, is very Sassanid, and thus half a millennium later than the Achaemenid era. Of course, if you're the kind of gamer who'd use Henry V's archers for the Falklands campaign, this isn't an issue.

Is it? Gosh. It's almost as if I just googled Archaemeniad Cavalry and randomly picked an image or three.

Do you find you uncalled for pedantry a big encumberance in social circumstances?   

Thanks for those pics, Nobby.....But I think I'm OK with the ref piccies I've got.

It was just the size of a 'bit of kit' that I've got to give one of the cavalry...and Will's answered that.

Cheers - Phil

Quote from: fsn on 12 April 2019, 06:42:37 AM
Is it? Gosh. It's almost as if I just googled Archaemeniad Cavalry and randomly picked an image or three.

Do you find you uncalled for pedantry a big encumberance in social circumstances?   

Google accepts your spelling of Achaemenid? Well, strike me pink.

Hello pink