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a c k n o w l e d g m e n t s Although the authors of this book are the principal investigators, over the past six years the Linothorax Project at the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay has involved large numbers of other people, and it has grown into an ongoing collaborative faculty-student research project. Among the participants have been dozens of undergraduate history students and members of the Ancient and Medieval History Club, a student organization. These students have voluntarily contributed their labor and ideas during all stages of the manufacture and testing of the reconstructions and sample patches. Their vital role in this research is gratefully acknowledged. While they received no credit or compensation for their efforts, we greatly appreciate their constant hard work and perpetual enthusiasm. Some of the especially active student contributors include Elizabeth Carlson, Gina Covert, Elijah Dufek, Alicia Engstrom, Maggie Gertz, Kyle Gorman, Michael Jacobs, Kurt Kuschel, Scott Leibbrandt, Jeramy Nitke, Lisa Noel, Abbie O’Toole, William Schwartz, Thomas Sutphin, and Shawn Wilcenski. A number of colleagues in various fields participated in these experiments and/ or offered helpful advice, including history professors Michael Bailey, Clif Ganyard , Joyce Salisbury, and Heidi Sherman; professor of textiles Alison Gates; and art conservator Tony Rajer. Thanks also to Jeff Brunner of the UWGB Interlibrary Loan office, who cheerfully and relentlessly tracked down innumerable obscure publications. Faculty members at other institutions who generously shared their expertise with us include Prof. Margarita Gleba, who graciously supplied us with a copy of her then-forthcoming article on linen-clad Etruscan warriors; Prof. Eero Jarva, who helpfully answered several of our email inquiries; Prof. Amy Cohen, who brought to our attention her research on linen theater masks and later was an amiable co-organizer of a workshop on linen in war and drama at the American Philological Association meetings in 2009; and, finally, the anonymous reader for viii Acknowledgments the Johns Hopkins University Press, who made many useful suggestions that have substantially improved the manuscript. Various historical reenactors and ancient military history enthusiasts have freely shared the knowledge that they have gained through their own experiments with constructing linen armor. Among these, we would especially like to recognize the fine craftsmanship and extensive practical knowledge of Korybantes, a group of Greek hoplite reenactors based in Athens. The armorer of the group, Dimitrios Katsikis, and their leader, Aliades Antonis, have offered many useful insights, particularly in regard to adding metal scales to the armor. Although we have not always come to the same conclusions, comparing ideas with them has always been fruitful. We gratefully recognize the contributions to our project of a number of community members. Experienced bow hunters Peter and Jeffrey Hillesheim served as expert archers for several of our test shoots, and master weavers Kati Meek and Sara von Tresckow provided much technical assistance. Sara not only was a font of invaluable advice about the practical aspects of growing and processing flax and of spinning and weaving linen, but she even supplied many of the handspun, handwoven linen samples used in our tests. We would also like to acknowledge the assistance of the Green Bay Police Department with ballistics testing. Johannes Wiebus and Jynx Productions filmed a short documentary about the project, and their high-speed cameras provided us with additional ballistics data. Similarly, we would like to thank the Discovery Channel for providing access to a ballistics gel dummy while filming a piece about our research. Acquisition of materials for the project was made possible by the generous support of the UWGB Research Council, which awarded the project two Grants for Integrating Research and Teaching and a Grant in Aid of Research. The text was completed while G. Aldrete spent two years at the Institute for Research in the Humanities at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, the first with a Solmsen Fellowship, and the second with an NEH Humanities Fellowship. We have presented aspects of our research at many conferences and public lectures, including regional American Institute of Archaeology lectures as well as several AIA/APA joint meetings, and would like to thank the enthusiastic audience members at these events in Milwaukee, Green Bay, Philadelphia, Anaheim, Ottawa, Santa Barbara , Phoenix, Williamsburg, Washington, D.C., and San Antonio for their helpful questions, comments, criticisms, and observations. As always, while many have contributed to this book, the opinions expressed are those of the authors alone, and any errors are ours as well...

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