In my post on the suspension system I was most concerned with what I see as evidence for the system - especially from the iconography. In this post I will introduce another carving, which, to my knowledge, haven’t been used in the discussion on roman wagon-construction.
The carving, as seen here on the left, is a small carving originally from Rome, but now in the Swedish nationalmuseum in Stockholm. It shows two persons driving a four-wheeled wagon in a city-area. Besides details of the buildings in the background and the traffic in the street, the carving has some interesting details on the wagon itself. Underneath the wagon, what might be two construction-details are visible: the axle between the rear wheels and an interesting part (detail on photo below) bending upwards, close to the front wheel, from underneath the wagon. The last wagon-part might be the wooden part of the suspension system, shown without the Gurthalter or ropes, but in the right place and
angle according to the reconstructions made of roman wagons.
Naturally a wagon this side would need more than one “wooden arm” to give the needed suspension, but this detail could indicate, that the carving is dealing with (rich?) people in an above average wagon. At least it is safe to state that the roman stone-worker, in this case, was concerned with details.
If the detail we see in this carving really is a part of the suspension system, we can add yet another carving to the iconographic material showing the Roman Suspension System, only this time - it is seen from an other angle..
