Gladiators

Although the vast majority of gladiators were male, a few—as this article explains—were female. Female gladiators fascinated and unsettled Roman spectators because they shared the “masculine” courage displayed by their male counterparts. Their stage names likened them to the Amazons and heroines of Greek myth.

Not all who fought in the Colosseum were gladiators. Some faced wild animals instead—and they had a different name. This explainer unpacks the role of the bestiarii, from trained fighters to condemned prisoners, and how their brutal battles became one of ancient Rome’s most feared and deadly forms of entertainment.

This mosaic, now displayed at the National Archaeological Museum in Madrid, is an excellent representation of the iconic retiarius/secutor match-up. The lower panel, chronologically first, shows the two fighters facing off under the watchful eyes of two referees. In the upper panel, one fighter has fallen. The caption reads: Astyanax vicit (“Astyanax won”). The symbol next to his opponent’s name indicates he was killed.

A press release about the discovery of a gladiator cemetery in York, England (Roman Eboracum). The cemetery, in use from the first to the fourth century, contained about 80 skeletons. Analysis of the bones indicated that most belonged to young men who were unusually tall and muscular. Many skeletons bore the marks of fatal wounds; one showed the imprint of a bite from a lion or bear.

This page explores what we know about gestures made by the crowd during gladiatorial matches. Spectators used a pollice verso (turned thumb) to signify a gladiator should be killed. It is unclear, however, which way that thumb was turned. Up is more likely than down. Alternatively, the thumb may have been jabbed toward the throat.

A page dedicated to the remarkable mosaics discovered at Nennig, near the border between Germany and Luxembourg. The mosaics, which date to the third century CE, decorated the atrium of a villa owned by a very wealthy man. They depict a series of scenes from the games - gladiators fighting, beasts with their trainers, and even the arena musicians. It’s likely they commemorate games given by the villa’s owner.

An article on the career of Spartacus, the gladiator responsible for the biggest slave revolt in Roman history. After breaking out of a school at Capua, Spartacus led an army of slaves that grew to 70,000 and defeated a Roman army sent against him. It took the combined efforts of Crassus and Pompey to subdue him. Ever since the Enlightenment, Spartacus has been regarded as an icon of resistance to slavery and oppression. The Romans, naturally, saw him in a less sympathetic light.

This is an ancient biography of Commodus, who reigned from 180 to 192 CE. Though the son of the philosopher-emperor Marcus Aurelius, Commodus (memorably played by Joaquin Phoenix in the movie Gladiator) is generally considered one of Rome’s worst rulers. The source linked here, the Historia Augusta, was written long after Commodus’ death and is partly fictional. It accurately reflects, however, the horror with which elite Romans regarded the emperor’s exploits in the arena.

This article describes the recent discovery at Pompeii of a fresco showing two gladiators locked in combat. The fresco was found in a cramped space under the stairs of a shop, leading archaeologists to conjecture that it decorated a cheap tavern (what the Romans called a caupona or taberna). Since Pompeii’s gladiator barracks were nearby, the tavern may have even catered to gladiators.

Sold into slavery and forced to be a gladiator, Spartacus ultimately took the fight outside the arena and revolted against the Romans. This article dives into the history of the rebel leader. Spartacus was originally from Thrace, a part of ancient Europe that included parts of modern-day Bulgaria, Turkey, and Greece. Exactly what led to his enslavement is unclear, but it likely involved ancient Rome's attempt to subjugate Thrace.