A figure that had always been on my To-Do list. Did a lot of reading on the standards and the men who carried them. Apparently, the various standards carried by Roman armies were not simply for show or purely utilitarian symbols to mark a rallying point in battle, or honorific emblems representing tradition or unit pride. Each unit’s standards were in fact venerated as deities that encapsulated the very spirit of the unit itself. It is no wonder that the loss or destruction of the standards was considered shameful and brought disgrace on the men, on the unit, and on Rome herself.
This scratchbuilt, kitbashed and weathered Signifier, has a modified headsculpt, repainted and whigged. The bearskin is completely scratchbuilt with a handmade bear head sculpted out of apoxy putty and mounted on faux fur skin (Yup... no animals were harmed in the making of this project). Bear teeth and claws are sculpted from apoxy putty, as was the personal pouch tied to the waist belt. Boots were also sculpted from apoxy putty. Lots of research went into this project, however any mistakes are solely mind.
Latest upload: 6 Sept 2022
Hi and welcome! These are the latest project uploads - what's been done is the weathering treatment on the cloak. I applied wet brushing with diluted black acrylic wash, carefully blending the edges with water before stroking on dark earth dust pigment for a dirty battlefront effect.
I've also uploaded some work-in-progress photographs of how the bearskin, boot and headsculpt modding were done at the bottom.
Headshot of Signifier with bearskin and 'wooden' fake teeth. I decided not to have fake eyes for the bear's head.
The signifier carries a signum (standard), composed of a number of philarae (disks), along with a number of other elements mounted on a pole, topped with a manus (human hand) image. The manus denoted the oath of loyalty taken by the soldiers. It sometimes included a representation of a wreath, probably denoting an honour or award. I sculpted the manus out of apoxy putty, and painted it in Vallejo metallic gold after attaching it to the wreath.
Previous upload: 4 Sept 2022
Previous upload: 3 Sept 2022
Drama-mama pose. That cloak has to be weathered from the looks of it.Will work on it.
Helmet sans bearskin.
The open palm hand, symbolic of the Roman emperor, was sculpted out of apoxy putty and painted gold with Vallejo metallic acrylic colours.
Bearskin work-in-progress images
Bear head sculpted from apoxy putty based on references. At one stage I thought I was sculpting the head of a 1/6 rodent! The finished sculpt was given a base coat of black acrylic, when dried layers of brown hues were applied in acrylic paint. The claws with paw pads were done at a later stage.
Brown faux-fur was acquired from the craft shop and cut to the size and shape of a bear rug. The painted head was glued on and then haired with brown mohair, trimmed to shape. The fur was then painted in dark brown in specific spots with acrylic paints. When dried, a toothbrush was used to brush and break up any kinks - see image at extreme right. Fur trimming was done in the final stage.
Sculpting the boots work-in-progress images
Boots were sculpted over the bolded feet in apoxy putty, painted with acrylics and sealed with clearcoat. The laces came from some label tag cords.
Headsculpt skin repaint and facial hair whigging work-in-progress images
Jason Stratham headsculpt was given a good makeover, with repainted eyes and a more rugged skintone and then weathered. I added the mohair for the eyebrows, moustache and beard.