Please Identify this Persian Infantry

[Jacob]

So... the manufacturer lists these minis as being "Persian Levies in Persian Dress":



Which sort of Persians are these appropriate for?  Seleucids?  Sassanian?  Achmaenid?  Some other kind?

Also, how do they mix with the following:

Persian Guards/Kardakes Spearmen 
Levies in Eastern Dress and Median Dress
Paphlagonians
Takabara (aka Persian Peltasts)
Egyptian Spearmen
Phoencian Marines

and on the cavalry side, how about:

Arachosian, Paphlagonian and Bactrian light horse?
Scythian vs Parthian horse archers

As for the Persian cavalry, are Satrapal guards, regular cavalry, cavalry in linen armour and Persian colonist cavalry (with and without fillets) all contemporary?

... and finally... how about the Babylonian colonist cavalry?

...

Basically, do all the above troop types all fit togetherfor one particular period of Persians or does it cover several distinct time periods?

... I'm guessing this is a question mostly for Spellus, but if anyone else has something intelligent to say I'd appreciate it too

[CountDeMoney]

I dunno, but they're obviously historically accurate, as seen below.

[grumbler]

So... the manufacturer lists these minis as being "Persian Levies in Persian Dress":

Hard to tell from those figures, since we cannot tell their facing colors.  In general, though, if their grenadiers are in mitre caps, they are Achmaenid, if in shakos, Seleucids, and in bearskins, Sassanian. 

[HisMajestyBOB]

Quick! Use the Spellus Signal!

[Jacob]

I dunno, but they're obviously historically accurate, as seen below.

Good old 300.  But I don't want to battle semi naked Greeks, I want to fight Romans.

[Jacob]

Hard to tell from those figures, since we cannot tell their facing colors.  In general, though, if their grenadiers are in mitre caps, they are Achmaenid, if in shakos, Seleucids, and in bearskins, Sassanian.

That's why I like my fantasy and various "genre" sci-fi.  If I want mitre wearing Seleucids in steam powered tanks, I can have them.  But yeah, in a historical game I'll be laughed out of the room if field Seleucids in mitre caps.

[Jacob]

Quick! Use the Spellus Signal!

I did, didn't I?  I mean, it's right there in the thread title.

[Queequeg]

It would help a lot if I knew what weapon he was supposed to have.

[Queequeg]

If I had to guess, Median though.

[Jacob]

It would help a lot if I knew what weapon he was supposed to have.

They're intended to have any sort of spear.  So if I want I can give them long pikes or short spears or whatever.

What about all those other troop types... do they represent on coherent time period for the Persians, or are they from all over the place temporally speaking?

[Queequeg]

Hard to tell from those figures, since we cannot tell their facing colors.  In general, though, if their grenadiers are in mitre caps, they are Achmaenid, if in shakos, Seleucids, and in bearskins, Sassanian.

Sassanian Infantry was usually a bit heavier.  The stereotypical Sassanian infantryman was not all that different from the Roman, save maybe his big square shield for the Nizagan.

The dress looks early, I'd say probably pre-Parthian at the very least, almost certainly pre-Hellenistic.  I'd still probably guess Median, as I think the Persians went to less Bedouin-looking loose fitting clothes, at least for the regular infantry, pretty early. 

Again, if I could see a spear or (even better) a shield or a bow I'd be golden.

[Queequeg]

It would help a lot if I knew what weapon he was supposed to have.

They're intended to have any sort of spear.  So if I want I can give them long pikes or short spears or whatever.

What about all those other troop types... do they represent on coherent time period for the Persians, or are they from all over the place temporally speaking?

Well, I can safely say that Persian troops like that would not have fought the Romans, in all probability.  Parthia's infantry wasn't great, but by the time they were butting heads with the Romans they were starting to take cues from them and the local Greeks on non-missile infantry.  I guess, hypothetically, it could be a particularly poorly armed Nizagan from the Sassanian period, so if you add a Crescent on the shield and make it wood/metal instead of wicker, it might work. 

So I'd say it is either Archaemenid or Median, but beyond that my expertise is not that great.  I probably know more about Roman-Greek kit than Persian, mostly as almost all the books I have focus on the "West".

[Queequeg]

Upon further thought, I'm not totally sure that those clothes were practical for spearmen. 

Think about it.  They look like a bunch of 9 year old soon-to-be-drag-queens pretending to be Marilyn Monroe by dressing up in red drapes.  In melee , what are the odds that those clothes would be cut awkwardly, or worse yet, catch?  Can you even charge in a dress?  I can't really think of a single people that went into battle in a "kilt" that went that far past their ankles, as it would hinder movement.  The Bedu wear something like this but they are desert equestrian nomads, and that dress makes sense on a horse in the hottest, most God-forsaken bit of the planet.  It looks like maybe they took aristocratic dress and assumed they wore the same thing to battle, which would be kind of like the Persians depicting the Greeks going into battle in Togas (or in their capes, which ironically enough 300 does).

[Darth Wagtaros]

I dunno, but they're obviously historically accurate, as seen below.

Good old 300.  But I don't want to battle semi naked Greeks, I want to fight Romans.

Shouldn't you have Medean heavy cavalry then?

[Caliga]

Upon further thought, I'm not totally sure that those clothes were practical for spearmen. 

Think about it.  They look like a bunch of 9 year old soon-to-be-drag-queens pretending to be Marilyn Monroe by dressing up in red drapes.  In melee , what are the odds that those clothes would be cut awkwardly, or worse yet, catch?  Can you even charge in a dress?  I can't really think of a single people that went into battle in a "kilt" that went that far past their ankles, as it would hinder movement.  The Bedu wear something like this but they are desert equestrian nomads, and that dress makes sense on a horse in the hottest, most God-forsaken bit of the planet.  It looks like maybe they took aristocratic dress and assumed they wore the same thing to battle, which would be kind of like the Persians depicting the Greeks going into battle in Togas (or in their capes, which ironically enough 300 does).

Good point and I agree: I don't think this particular outfit would have worked at all in battle.  When I was doing reenacting I had to belt my tunic higher than its 'natural' hang because otherwise it would have caught on shit/tripped me up.