RE: Glorantha Digest, Vol 11, Issue 152 from Silburn, Luke on 2005-05-13 (Glorantha Digest Vol 11)

From: Silburn, Luke <Luke.Silburn_at_logicacmg.com>
Date: Fri, 13 May 2005 10:51:28 +0100

Donald:
>>I don't think you can keep the low tech feel you describe unless you
>>exclude all the early medieval stuff as well - drop all the viking
>>analogies and merely allow technology up to the 1st or 2nd centuries
>>AD. That peak of Roman technology wasn't exceeded until the late
>>middle ages when gunpowder appears in europe.

You're arguing against yourself here surely? If early Imperial Rome was a technological peak that wasn't surpassed until the late medieval then you don't need to exclude the early medieval stuff. In any case I don't agree with that last assertion - the Romans had the 'soft' technologies (organisation, economic stability, communications, security for trade etc) which allowed them to to do things on an impressive scale but the sophistication of the actual technological solutions they deployed were nothing to write home about - stirrups, mold-board ploughs, an effective draft-harness, wheelbarrows, wind/water mills and many other things came into common use in Europe between Constantine and the Comnenii.

Regards
Luke

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End of Glorantha Digest, Vol 11, Issue 153