So, after looking at the designs we had already, Ryan and Eoin liked my idea of incorporating the spine into the world itself. One of my designs incorporated the base of the spine into the middle of the world, with the front and back parts of the spine as the wing like vertices around the base. When designing the original sketch I had looked at the flag of Rome, trying to replicate the shape of the bird crest.
The flag of Rome which my design actually is similar to. (Alternative History, 2016).
My original design.
I wanted to do a bit of research into the bones that I had incorporated myself (the ex biomedical science beginning to come through again).
The Sacrum and Coccyx
The base plate that I based my concept on is made up of the sacrum and coccyx. The sacrum is used for a variety of functions; locking the pelvis together, support of the spinal column, protection of the spinal nerves at the base and separation for child birth in the female body. (InnerBody, 2016). This gives quite a good metaphor to our world- Rome is the birth of civilization or reviewed as that.
A 360 degree view of the Sacrum. (Getty Images, 2016).
A labelled diagram of the Sarcrum and Coccyx. (Easynotecards.com, 2016).
I really like the appearance of the sacral foramina in the bone- these indents look like passages that could be used for transport or something. We decided to play further with this design itself, looking at the use of Roman armor in our designs.
Roman Armour
Roman armor was made from iron and attached to the body with leather straps. Different legions of the army wore different types of body protection. The heavy infantry (principes), front- line soldiers (hastati) and the veterans (trairii) wore a 20cm breastplate (a pectorale) and a single greave. Soldiers with a bit more cash would also wear chain mail shirts, but these were heavy to wear. Both the principes and hastati soldiers wore a bronze helmet adorned with a ring of purple or black feathers. This helmet was typically 45cm high and its function was to make the soldier appear a lot taller.
Senior officers would have dressed in a more Grecian style, with a muscled cuirass, helmet and greaves. He would also have worn a leather tunic with leather strips hanging from the shoulders and waist. To display his rank, the officer would have worn a sash knotted at the front of his uniform with the loose ends tucked into the sides.
There were three main types of body armor used by the Roman empire. The Lorica Hamata was a chain mail that was used at the beginning of the empires rise, but was too heavy to properly maneuver in. The Lorica Segmentata was a breast plate made up of layers of iron formed together. It was only in circulation for a brief time due to budgeting constraints. Finally, the last type, was the Loricae Squamatae. This translates as literally translated as ‘armor of feathers’ and was made of pieces of iron, steel or leather into a plate that resembled feathers. (Unrv.com, 2016).
When planning the armor itself I tried experimenting with different elements of Rome in the main body. However, the more characteristic architectural features would be used in the spine parts of the world.
Roman armor examples.
The designs below were based on the various elements of the city itself.
This one I experimented with the fashion knowledge that Rebecca had provided for us, including that of the Toga. I draped the fabric over the top of the armor itself as if a hidden shroud, like the invisibility cloak from Harry Potter.
The robe would act as some sort of force field. (GIPHY, 2016).
This next design, I looked at playing around with the armor look itself. I created a layered look like that in the Lorica Segmentata (above) but played with what the textures on the metal could look like. I pictured it rusted- maybe a mosh of different paintings and road signs, as if pulled together from anything.
Eoin had mentioned that in Rome, animals were used to indicate wealth and rank among gladiators. Snake and Lizard skins were used as the highest indication, and in this piece I wanted to try and create the shape of a snake/ lizard head hybrid. In Roman mythology, Lizards represent resurrection, which is the premise of our world. Rome rising from the ashes of the rest of the world. (Hennapage.com, 2016).
This was my final idea- the use of the Roman nature aspects apparent again. The daffodil was brought to Britain by the Romans and was given as a medicine. In Rome, it symbolised ‘Rebirth’ and was believed to have healing properties. This is like our planet itself, healing for the mistakes made on the polluted world below.
We all agreed the daffodil idea had the best aesthetics and incorporated a few more of the stereotypical Roman elements.
We next split the world into its three components- the two spines and main bulk. Eoin took the regal side to the world, Ryan the grim and I took the bulk. We’re going to break off, come up with some finalised ideas to incorporate it together. Tune in next time to see our progress…
References
InnerBody, (2016). Sacrum. [online] Available at: https://www.innerbody.com/image_skel05/skel14_spine.html [Accessed 19 Feb. 2016].
Getty Images, (2016). A full anti-clockwise rotation of the sacrum. Areas visible include…. [online] Available at: http://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/video/full-anti-clockwise-rotation-of-the-sacrum-areas-visible-stock-footage/857-114 [Accessed 19 Feb. 2016].
Easynotecards.com, (2016). Exercise 9 Flashcards | Easy Notecards. [online] Available at: http://www.easynotecards.com/notecard_set/13187#&ui-state=dialog [Accessed 19 Feb. 2016].
Alternative History, (2016). Roman empire flag.jpg. [online] Available at: http://althistory.wikia.com/wiki/File:Roman_empire_flag.jpg [Accessed 19 Feb. 2016].
Unrv.com, (2016). Legionary Weapons and Equipment. [online] Available at: http://www.unrv.com/military/legionary-weapons-equipment.php [Accessed 22 Feb. 2016].
Shop.royalarmouries.org, (2016). [online] Available at: http://shop.royalarmouries.org/images/detailed/0/Lorica_Segmentata_-_Corbridge_Type.jpg?t=1436352609 [Accessed 22 Feb. 2016].
Kultofathena.com, (2016). SNC294ZP – Chainmail Lorica Hamata – Butted Mild Steel – $159.95. [online] Available at: http://www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=SNC294ZP&name=Chainmail+Lorica+Hamata+-++Butted+Mild+Steel [Accessed 22 Feb. 2016].
S-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com, (2016). [online] Available at: https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/93/00/63/9300630151085c415584ce3f7464676d.jpg [Accessed 22 Feb. 2016].
GIPHY, (2016). Harry Potter GIF – Find & Share on GIPHY. [online] Available at: http://giphy.com/gifs/harry-potter-magic-J5lxA8X7kisRG [Accessed 22 Feb. 2016].
Hennapage.com, (2016). The Henna Page Journal. [online] Available at: http://www.hennapage.com/journal/issue_I/article_2/page2.html [Accessed 22 Feb. 2016].
dabbling.in.creativity. 
