The Sarmatians - one of the many nomadic groups to emerge from the great Eurasian Steppe - crossed the Don in about the 3rd century BC to displace their western neighbours, the Scythians, in the lands north of the Black Sea. Later they burst into Asia Minor and Rome's Danube provinces, becoming famous for the prowess of their lance-armed cavalry - first as enemies, and later as allies of Rome. They influenced Rome's adoption of heavy armoured cavalry, and in Roman service they were even posted to Britain. Drawing upon a wide reading of Classical authors and of Russian archaeological publications, this fascinating study is the first major English language attempt to reconstruct their armour, equipment and tactics.

·The Sarmatian peoples - Sauromatae, Iazyges, Roxolani, Aorsi, Siraces & Alani · The Sarmatians in Roman service · Offensive arms - lances, swords, archery gear · Defensive arms - body armour, helmets, shields, lassoes · Horses & horse equipment · Standards - the 'draco' · Military organisation · Tactics · Myth & legend

MARIUSZ MIELCZAREK, born in 1955, is currently Professor of Archaeology at Torun University, Poland. He has conducted expeditions to the Black Sea coast of the Ukraine in pursuit of research into Ancient Greek military history, and has published many scholarly articles and monographs on Scythian, Sarmatian and Greek arms and armour. RICHARD BRZEZINSKI is a historian and a leading expert on the military history of central and Eastern Europe, greatly admired for his primary research and painstaking work in archives in Sweden, Germany and Poland. He has previously written titles on Polish Armies 1569-1696 and the army of Gustavus Adolphus in Osprey's Men-at Arms series.
GERRY EMBLETON has been a leading illustrator and researcher of historical costume since the 1970s, and has illustrated and written Osprey titles on a wide range of subjects over more than 20 years. He is an internationally respected authority on 15th and 18th century costumes in particular. He lives in Switzerland, where since 1988 he has also become well known for designing and creating life-size historical figures for museums.