Illustrated Companion to the Latin Dictionary/Sarissa

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Rich, Anthony (1849). The illustrated companion to the Latin dictionary, and Greek lexicon. p. vi. OCLC 894670115. https://archive.org/details/illustratedcompa00rich. 

SARIS'SA (σάρισσα). A pike peculiar to the infantry of the Macedonian phalanx (Liv. ix. 19.), of prodigious length (Id. xxxviii. 7.), not less than 18 or 20 feet (Polyb. xviii. 12.), and of a similar description to the contus, only much longer (Veg. Mil. iii. 24.). A proximate notion of the general character and dimensions of this weapon, the longest and most ponderous of the class of spears in use amongst the ancients may be obtained by referring to the figure of the contus carried by Alexander at p. 200.