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((short description|Ancient pole weapon))
((More citations needed|date=February 2023))
[[Image:Tabriz_Sasanian_Plate_2.jpg|250px|thumb|right|[[Sassanian]] silver plate showing lance combat]]

The '''kontos''' (((lang-el|κοντός))) was the [[Greek language|Greek]] name for a type of long wooden [[cavalry]] [[lance]] used by the [[Ancient Iranian peoples|Iranians]], especially [[Achaemenid]] successors' cavalry, most notably ''[[cataphract]]s'' (''[[Grivpanvar]]'').  It was also used by the [[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] warriors of the south as a [[Pike (weapon)|pike]]. A shift in the terminology used to describe Sarmatian weapons indicates the ''kontos'' was developed in the early to mid-1st century AD from shorter [[spear]]-type weapons((Citation needed|date=April 2011)) (which were described using the generic terms for "spear"—''longhe'' or ''hasta''—by Greek and Roman sources, respectively), though such a description may have existed before the [[Battle of Carrhae]], in which Parthian cataphracts, in conjunction with light horse archers, annihilated a Roman army of over three times their numbers.

As shown by contemporary artwork, the kontos was about ((convert|4|m|0|abbr=on)) long, though longer examples may have existed; later Parthian and Sassanian clibanarii (Middle Persian: Grivpanvar) reportedly used kontoi of longer lengths; only highly trained cavalrymen such as those fielded by the Arsaco-Sassanian dynasties could have used such weapons.  It was reputedly a weapon of great power compared to other cavalry weapons of its time, described by Plutarch as being "heavy with steel" and capable of impaling two men at once.  Its length was probably the origin of its name, as the word ''kontos'' could also mean "oar" or "barge-pole" in Greek.  Thus, it had to be wielded with two hands while directing the horse using the knees; this made it a specialist weapon that required extensive training and excellent horsemanship to use. In addition, most Parthian cavalry (even possibly including cataphracts) carried bows, so this meant daily practice with the weapons.

The [[Roman Empire|Roman]]s adopted a variation of the ''kontos'' transliterated as '''''contus'''''. The Roman contus was also wielded two-handed. The later [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] ''kontarion'' was used by Byzantine cataphracts, from c. 1100 it was used single-handed couched under the armpit, as was the contemporary [[knight]]ly lance.

The Sasanian lance, known as '''''nēzak''''' ([[Middle Persian language|Middle Persian]]),<ref>[[Book Pahlavi]] spelling: nyck'</ref> used by the ''[[aswaran]]'' cavalry, was derived from the Parthian ''kontos''. The Parthian version was a ((convert|3.7|m|0|abbr=on)) lance featuring a sword-like iron-made blade ((convert|23.2|to|37.5|cm|0|abbr=on)) in length socketed onto the shaft.<ref>((cite book |last1=Farrokh |first1=Kaveh |last2=Karamian |first2=Gholamreza |last3=Maksymiuk |first3=Katarzyna |title=A Synopsis of Sasanian Mi litary Organization and Combat Units |date=2018 |publisher=Publishing House of Siedlce University of Natural Sciences and Humanities |isbn=978-83-62447-22-0 |page=30 |language=en))</ref>

The name is the stem of many words for cavalry lances in languages of the region, like ''gönder'' ([[Hungarian language|Hungarian]], meaning "Roman lance"), and ''quntariya'' (((lang-ar|قَنْطَرِيّة))).

==See also==
* [[Sarissa]]
* [[Xyston]]

==References==
((Reflist))

[[Category:1st-century introductions]]
[[Category:Lance]]
[[Category:Sarmatians]]
[[Category:Iranian warfare]]
[[Category:Ancient warfare]]
[[Category:Military history of the Sasanian Empire]]
[[Category:Military history of the Parthian Empire]]
[[Category:Greek words and phrases]]


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