Gladiatorial mosaics from Cos

[hoplite14gr]

Courtesy of a local friend

Enjoy!

[Longovicium]

Very nice - thank you! Do you know what date these are?

[hoplite14gr]

There is a 5th cent basilika near them but it is open to debate if they are from 4th cent A.D. or earlier.

Kind regards

[Statius]

Would love to see some close up's of this mosaic. Haven't seen them published in any of the standard Gladiatorial Reference books.

[Conal]

Courtesy of a local friend

Enjoy!

Any chance of posting so that I can download for reference please?

[Olaf]

I also found some pictures of the Gladiator Mosaic on Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/

But the Venator facing the bull with Scutum and Gladius is very interesting.
Most later Venatores are shown using spears, so a Venator fighting as a Scutarius without helmet is something extraordenary.

[hoplite14gr]

Please allow me to to correct my self.

The date accoreding to the Cos Island official website is 3rd A.D.

Conal and Mark please P.M. and I will sent you the photos though email

Kind regards

[Musivarius]

Thanks for posting these up, it's a real shame they can't just put a bit of wax on these mosaics so people could see how the colours really look. :?

[Paul Elliott]

The guy with the whip is wearing a (very) short 4thC style tunic, with long sleeves, double banded cuffs and short shoulder clavii.

[Statius]

The third J-peg has a photo of two Secutors/Provocators (?) fighting with scutum and gladius's and the figure furthest to the left appears to be wearing a Coif of some description! Very interesting indeed, never seen anyhing like that.

[Nathan Ross]

The guy with the whip is wearing a (very) short 4thC style tunic, with long sleeves, double banded cuffs and short shoulder clavii.

It looks almost as if the hem of the tunic is gathered up and tied between his legs, or at the back somehow. Maybe to keep his legs bare, for some reason?

the figure furthest to the left appears to be wearing a Coif of some description! Very interesting indeed, never seen anyhing like that.

Hmm, it does look like that. I may need to revise my belief that Romans never really wore coifs... hock:

[Statius]

The guy with the whip is wearing a (very) short 4thC style tunic, with long sleeves, double banded cuffs and short shoulder clavii.

It looks almost as if the hem of the tunic is gathered up and tied between his legs, or at the back somehow. Maybe to keep his legs bare, for some reason?

the figure furthest to the left appears to be wearing a Coif of some description! Very interesting indeed, never seen anyhing like that.

Hmm, it does look like that. I may need to revise my belief that Romans never really wore coifs... hock:

The only other reference I know of the Roman use of Coifs is the Ebenezer Frescos at Dura which are also dated to the 3rd Century. I certainly know of no other pictoral reference to a Gladiator or Gladiatorial class wearing a Coif. It is difficult to tell from the photos which material is portrayed and if the Coif is metal or organic.

Very interesting mosaics though!

[hoplite14gr]

I asked the person who provided the photos and studied fotos.

No "lines" showing "a form of quilting" on the coif

I err towards coif because it seems to me a very strange depiction of some type of helemet.

No info also on the condition of the colors or fading estimation.
That makes me wanting to avoid speculation on the material.

Kind regards

[john roberts]

In the Greek eastern part of the Empire several types of gladiator seem to have worn huge helmets with a heavy fabric "arming cap" beneath it. Often the lower edge of this padding can be seen beneath the brim of the helmet at back, giving the impression of a double neckguard. I think this gladiator has lost or discarded his helmet leaving on the coif-like arming cap.

[Nathan Ross]

The only other reference I know of the Roman use of Coifs is the Ebenezer Frescos at Dura which are also dated to the 3rd Century.

There's also an illustration in, I think, an illustrated manuscript of Vergil (group of standing soldiers - others could probably correct me on the source). But I've doubted in the past that either these or the men from the Dura fresco were intended to represent Romans. Not that I've got much more than gut instinct to inform me on that view!

John M Roberts's idea of an arming cap (sub-cassis?) seems quite convincing though.