Female Gladiators?

[The Alexandrian]

I recently read about a combat between two female gladiators - Amazonia and Achillia, that took place in Britannia in the 1st Century AD. I am wondering if anyone has any additional information on female gladiators, their social origins, armament, and how common they may have been?

Thanks

[jvrjenivs]

Svenja Grosser did a nice article on Gladiatrices, which you can find on her website:
[url:1h4k9kqq]http://www.ludus-nemesis.eu/en/gladiatrices_en.html[/url]

[Robert Vermaat]

This topic has been discussed before. Have you used the search function before yoy posted?

For instance, look here and here.

[Medusa Gladiatrix]

Svenja Grosser did a nice article on Gladiatrices, which you can find on her website:
[url:1xdoceek]http://www.ludus-nemesis.eu/en/gladiatrices_en.html[/url]

Thanks Jurjen to point out my website. Very kind of you.

[Medusa Gladiatrix]

Further I submitted articles on this topic for two other Roman websites. You could read them when going to the following links:

http://www.societasviaromana.net/Colleg ... iatrix.php

http://www.unrv.com/culture/female-gladiator.php

[Gashford]

Hi there

I wrote this about 8 years ago, so it ma not reflect the latest finds as I have not stayed up to date but some of the references may be useful to you in your hunt.

The concept of professional female gladiators is a matter of great debate. For some it is a point of ridicule, for others it is simply an unknown facet of Rome's lethal games. It is the purpose of the essay to serve as an introduction to their historical existence and to give some of the evidence that supports their role within the sands of the arenas scattered throughout the Empire.
First Mention.

More often than not the Emperor Domitian is credited with the first use of female gladiators. Without doubt Domitian did use them, often having them fight against dwarves in elaborate shows for which he could embolden the Flavian hold as Rulers of Rome.

However, we can trace mention of females gladiators to a time prior to Domitian. Emperor Nero, under whom Domitian served, had a series of games arranged in 63AD, a full 18 years prior to Domitian taking the throne. At these games, according to Tacitus in Puteoli arranged by Patrobius, for Nero in honour of the visiting Tiridates, King of Armenian every sort of fighter fought, all Africans, and the event, included women.
Amazonia and Achillea.
The famous stone from Halicarnassus of two female gladiators. This is the primary image evidence for female gladiators.

A foremost piece of archaeology left of female gladiators today comes from Halicarnassus, currently held in the British Museum. The stone shows two female fighters with their names "Amazonia and Achillea" included with the two helmet less fighters. They stand opposite one another armed with swords and crouched behind scuta. At their feet are either their helmets or the head and shoulders of the watching crowd.. The inscription with them tells us that they were both allowed to walk free from the arena, presumably as a reward of their fighting ability although other possibilities present themselves this is the accepted standard for this inscription. The stone is currently dated between the First and Second Centuries AD, presumably because we know Emperor Severus declared female gladiators illegal in 200AD.

Of all the scant information left us about female gladiators this is one of the most compelling as it shows they fought against other females fighters and were taken seriously enough to have a large stone carved in their honour. It is in this stone that we can also find something of the Roman fascination for Greek legend. In the names of the two women we can find a parady of the Greek myth of Amazon being killed by Achilles.

Often, women fighters are considered the butt of jokes and much modern thought is given to the concept that the female fighter was considered a joke or a side piece by contemporary Romans. Although this may have been the case at certain events were they where made to fight against dwarves this stone alone proves that this was not always the case.

Book of Spectacles and other writings.

Due to the vast lack of imagery of the female gladiators most modern concepts of them come largely from the writings of contemporary authors.

Martial shows us something of women in his book 'On the Spectacles'. In this work he writes of the games given by Titus for the opening of the Flavian Amphitheatre 80AD. Although the work is obviously written for his patron, filled with sickly sweet words for the Emperor we can glean a lot from them on the subject of women. Juvenal writes:

"That warring Mars served you in arms unconquered suffices not, Caesar; Venus herself too serves. Of the lion laid low in Nemea's vasty vale, a deed renowned and worthy of Hercules, Fame used to sing. Dumb be ancient witness! For after all your shows, O Caesar, we declare that such things are wrought by woman's prowess now." Juvenal VI, VIb

In these few lines early in the work we can see that women were indeed involved in the combats of the festivities. However, their position in these writings talk of them more as venatores (animal fighters) rather than actual gladiators. The surrounding sections of the work are dedicated the to the various animal displays of the games. These displays normally played a larger role than that of the actual gladiator combats. It is because of the role of women, according to Martial, in heroic, legendary reenactment that Ludus Gladiatoria has a female fighting as a Greek character.

Petronius, in his work, mentions the essedaria. These women where gladiators that competed with men, the females however it seems fought from chariots in the manner of the Britons.

Juvenal (60-140AD), in his scathing attack upon women learning to fight in the Ludus gives us one of the greatest insights into the female gladiator.
"Who has not seen the dummies of wood they slash at and batter
Whether with swords or with spears, going through all the moves?
These are the girls who blast on trumpets in honour of Flora.
Or, it may be, they have deeper designs, and are really preparing for the arena itself. How can a woman be decent
Sticking her head in a helmet, denying her sex she was born with?
Manly feats they adore, but they wouldn't want to be men,
Poor weak things (they think), how little they really enjoy it!
What great honour it is for a husband to see, at an auction
Where his wife's effects are up for sale, belts, greaves,
Manica and plumes!
Hear her grunt and groan as she works at it, parrying, thrusting;
See her neck bent down under the weight of her helmet.
Look at the rolls of bandage and tape, so her legs look like tree trunks,
Then have a laugh for yourself after the practice is over,
Armour and weapons are put down, and she squats as she uses the vessel.
Ah, degenerate girls of the line of our praetors and consuls,
Tell us, whom have you seen got up in any such fashion,
Panting and sweating like this? No gladiators wench,
No tough stip-tease broad would ever so much as attempt it."
- - Juvenal.


Whatever interpretation we place upon Juvenals thoughts here there can be little doubt that female gladiators existed in his time for him to pull a this parallel upon and they seem to have been equally trained and armed as their male counter parts.
Emperor Severus.

For reasons currently unknown the female gladiator saw the end of their days in 200AD when the Emperor Severus banned them. Even though in years previous Severus had patroned contests with them in, he decided at this time they should be declared illegal.

All manner of reasons for this has been offered, the most favourable being that participation in gladiatorial training and possibly games had become so favourable among ladies of status that something had to be done. After all, it was only eight short years previous that the Antonine Dynasty had been ended with the death of Commodus. He had crossed a final taboo and was planning upon appearing in the garb of a Secutor at the Senate and proclaim himself Consul after having the Consuls Elect murdered.

Summary.


We can clearly see that in one form or another it is an inescapable fact that the female gladiator existed. Satire by its nature is based upon reflection of surrounding culture, praise of an Emperors benevolence is based upon the facts of the day for him to look back upon and be remembered in history and carvings where made only of note worthy subjects. In each piece of small evidence we have looked at we can gain an understanding that a larger picture existed, that female gladiators not only existed but were enjoyed both technically as fighters and as a seperate spectical.

A few final words on the recent female gladiator find in London that recieved a great amount of press coverage. It is the authors opinion based upon what he has read and seen on the television that it is doubtful this was a females gladiator. While it cannot be ruled out as a possibility the evidence seems very weak at its best that this was indeed a gladiator.

[Medusa Gladiatrix]

Hi there

I wrote this about 8 years ago, so it ma not reflect the latest finds as I have not stayed up to date but some of the references may be useful to you in your hunt.

The concept of professional female gladiators is a matter of great debate. For some it is a point of ridicule, for others it is simply an unknown facet of Rome's lethal games. It is the purpose of the essay to serve as an introduction to their historical existence and to give some of the evidence that supports their role within the sands of the arenas scattered throughout the Empire.
First Mention.

More often than not the Emperor Domitian is credited with the first use of female gladiators. Without doubt Domitian did use them, often having them fight against dwarves in elaborate shows for which he could embolden the Flavian hold as Rulers of Rome.

.

Hi Gashford,

I strongly suggest that you read my posts in this thread

<!-- l <a class="postlink-local" href="http://www.romanarmytalk.com/rat/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=3468&start=20">viewtopic.php?f=12&t=3468&start=20<!-- l

You wrote about it 8 years ago, but Steven Brunet wrote in 2005 about the misinterpretations of the translations about Domitian's spectacles. So keep yourself updated that you would not have had to repost your old post.

[Medusa Gladiatrix]

A few final words on the recent female gladiator find in London that recieved a great amount of press coverage. It is the authors opinion based upon what he has read and seen on the television that it is doubtful this was a females gladiator. While it cannot be ruled out as a possibility the evidence seems very weak at its best that this was indeed a gladiator.

Hello again Gashford,

It would have been very helpful for you if you had followed Jurjen's link to my website. But on this topic, if you don't want to read it all, just check out the last to pages on that topic. See the following links or just click on "contd." when you just follow the first link:

http://www.ludus-nemesis.eu/en/gladiatrices_2_en.html (commencing the third paragraph is about the London grave)
http://www.ludus-nemesis.eu/en/gladiatrices_3_en.html

[Gashford]

Thanks for the links, I will take a read later when I get some time, apologies if I have given you a sense of wasting your time, it was my hope that a couple of the references might be of use.

Kind regards

Graham

[Medusa Gladiatrix]

What angered me was that we had provided this thread with all relevant links, one of them being to your old post as well as well as to my posts where I summerize all literature etc. on this topic, and you that did not bother reading them first before repeating your out of date post here. I hope you will take your time to read all the links mentioned here and then you will recognize that I have thoroughly researched this topic.