A question I was recently asked concerned the re-use of kit in the Roman army. What happened to the kit when a soldier either left (e.g. retirement) or died? Well when I visited the Legion exhibition I came across this helmet which gives a good example.
You’d expect the Roman army to be efficient and the kit (e.g. the armour and weapons) of a legionary belonged to the legion. So when something like this occured the kit would be passed on to another legionary. This helmet is a great example. According to the information at the exhibition and on British Museum website it dates to the first century AD, found in London and on the neck guard are the names of four individuals. These are presumably its previous owners.
