I have never used action figures in my projects, I believe mainly because they are smaller than 1:12, which is my preferred scale, and also they tend to be rather ugly. But I knew I would never be able to make Roman soldiers from the kind of cheap dolls I purchase for upcycling, and these are wrong scale anyway. So I bought a set of Roman figures from ebay, trusting the seller's information about them being four inches tall. They were.
Apparently they are collectibles, randomly packed to encourage children to beg for more. So not all of them are Roman soldiers, some are gladiators, but I will have to live with it. I will do some research into who they really are. But I already have a favourite. Can you guess which?
The project became much more interesting with figures.
But their presence immediately made me realise that they needed more space. I had thought from start that I might add a bit of wall on both sides of the turret, since a turret is by definition not a solitary structure. Just a little bit of wall. Just enough for a warrior to be on it.
A fortification wall, whether Roman or medieval, consists of two elements: wall walk on which soldiers can stand and shoot at the attackers, and parapet, a narrow structure that protects the soldiers from attackers' arrows or projectiles. The wall walk should be on the level of the upper floor so that the doors lead onto it. In short, quite sophisticated engineering.
I obviously used cardboard, making a square box and attaching it to the side wall of the turret. I considered stripping the turret wall of stone masonry where the wall was to be attached and decided against it. Too much trouble, and the stones would certainly be damaged. The inner door, as I have made it, is in the wrong place in relation to the outer door, but I will leave it for the time being.
The parapet will be built, stone by stone, from craft cubes, just as I built the stone steps.
I started building the parapet first because I still haven't got enough egg cartons for the wall. I cut each cube in two, as uneven as possible, distressing them further and then painting, one by one, for colour variations.
To anticipate questions - yes, it took a long time. A very long time. Occasionally I get comments on my piece-by-piece work: "If you do it this way it will be quicker". But I don't want it to be quicker. I am not in a hurry. My marking is done, and it is far too hot for gardening. My room is cool and nice. Cutting and painting wooden cubes is peaceful and relaxing.
This obviously does not look natural, so once again, mock mortar.
That's better, isn't it? And better still after adding figures.
I think the figures really make a difference as they emphasise scale and generally make the scene livelier.
I won't show building the left wall step by step, because it was exactly the same.
In a close-up picture, you can see some details of stone masonry that, again, make it all look more natural.
And here are the warriors:
Now, while I am waiting for us to consume all those omelets and scrambled eggs to finish the side and back walls, I will resume interior decoration. Googling "Roman material culture" yields hundreds of hits.
Come back soon.
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