the hilt remained essentially the same. Like the earlier period, it was made with two layers of horn, wood or bone sandwiching the tang, each overlaid with a thin iron plate, which could either be solid, becoming thinner at both the guard and the pommel expansion, which was roughly trapezial in shape, or made of thin metal embossed to this shape. The hilt was often decorated with silver inlay. The hilt is 10 cm to 13 cm (4 in - 5 in) long overall and, though the grip is quite narrow, the presence of an expansion in the center of the grip provides for a very secure hold. In size, the pugio ranged from 18 cm to 28 cm (7 in to 11 in) long and 5 cm (2 in) or more in width. See also Roman military personal equipment Parazonium Notes Sources PUGIO, article in Smith, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'', online at ancientlibrary.com. MC Bishop and JCN Coulston - 'Roman Military Equipment (2nd Edition)', Armatura Press, 2006 I. Scott - 'Roman Military Daggers' in 'A Catalogue of Roman Iron Tools, Weapons and Fittings in the British Museum, 1985 J. Obmann - 'Studien zu Roemischen Dolchscheiden des 1. Jahrhunderts n. Chr.', Koelner Studien Zur Archaeologie Der Roemischen Provinzen, 2000 External links Roman Offensive Weapons: The Dagger / Pugio, Roman Legions site. Yahoo Group site devoted to PUGIO study with over 80 photos Ancient Roman legionary equipment Roman swords Daggers Military knives