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Alan Wilkins read Classics at Cambridge University, specialising in ancient history and archaeology. He has excavated on Roman military and civilian sites in Britain and was a field assistant to Sir Ian Richmond. He has publishsed and field-tested updated reconstructions of the Roman army's catapults based on his revised versions of the Greek and Latin artillery texts and the latest archaeological finds of catapult parts. The giant 'ballista' featured in the BBC programme 'Building the Impossible' was based on his new edition of Vitruvius' Latin text.

Glossary; Introduction; Greek Origins; The menage of the new weapon; Caesar's artillery; The bolt-shooter: Accuracy and effects; Reconstructing the bolt-shooter; The new design: The metal-frame 'Cheiroballistra'; Artillery in action: Arrian's battle plan; Deciphering the manuscripts: Vitruvious' 'ballista'; The stone missles: range and effects; The one-arm and Hatra stone-throwers; Survival; The Roman achievement; Sources and references to artillery; Museums and sites