spartan armor

The Spartan army stood at the center of the Spartan state, citizens trained in the disciplines and honor of a warrior society. Subjected to military drills since early manhood, the Spartans became one of the most feared military forces in the Greek world. At the height of Sparta's power – between the 6th and 4th centuries BC – other Greeks commonly accepted that "one Spartan was worth several men of any other state." According to Thucydides, the famous moment of Spartan surrender on the island of Sphacteria, off Pylos, in 425 BC, was highly unexpected. He wrote that "it was the common perception at the time that Spartans would never lay down their weapons for any reason, be it hunger, or danger."
Tradition states that the semi-mythical Spartan legislator Lycurgus first founded the iconic army. Referring to Sparta as having a "wall of men, instead of bricks," he proposed reforming the Spartan society to develop a military-focused lifestyle following "proper virtues" such as equality for the male citizens, austerity, strength, and fitness. A Spartan male's involvement with the army began in infancy when the Gerousia first inspected him. Any baby judged weak or deformed was left at Mount Taygetus to die since the Spartan society was no place for those who could not fend for themselves. (The practice of discarding children at birth took place in Athens as well.) Those deemed strong enough entered the agoge regime at the age of seven, which would require the young boys or Spartiates to undergo intense and rigorous military training. Their education focused primarily on fostering cunningness, practicing sports and war tactics, and also included learning about poetry, music, academics, and sometimes politics. Those who passed the agoge by the age of 30 achieved full Spartan citizenship.
The term "Spartan" became in modern times synonymous with simplicity by design. During classical times, "Lacedaemonian" or "Laconian" was used for attribution, referring to the region of the polis instead of one of the decentralized settlements called Sparta. From this derives the already ancient term "laconic," and is related to expressions such as "laconic phrase" or "laconophilia."

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