05-07-2010, 03:50 PM
Quote: Actualy that does not seem to be the case, contrary to what certain movies and TV series do depict.
There were instances were untrained slaves, criminals and prisinors of war were killed in the arena in a speczacle that was supposed to mimiC mythological stories, and then there were the Naumachiae were whole see battles were reenacted on natural or artificial lakes, but trained gladiators always fought amongst themselves in mostly one on one fights.
( I haven't seen the Spartacus TV show yet)
As I understand Gladiatorial combat, a lot of the featured combatants were free men. As you and I both said, they were similar to modern sports heroes. That is not to say, however, that none of the premier combatants were slaves. It is my belief that the free Gladiators could agree or disagree with whom they fight. If most had a choice, they would likely choose to only fight one on one, minimizing variables. But a slave who has made a name as a Gladiator is still subject to his masters brokering of his skills. And while this slave master may not want to waste a good slave, maybe the money is right.
It is possible then that this type of gladiator may be forced to kill other slaves, Christians, lions, etc...
And I will agree strongly that TV and Movies do take liberties in this arena, often depicting all Gladiators as slaves. But who ever watches Hollywood films for historical accuracy? For example, a recently made WW2 film about Pearl Harbor features P51 Mustangs. Pearl Harbor was DEC 1941 and the P51 was not released until early 1944.
Anyway, my main point was: Perhaps the man in the "full plate" was never a featured gladiator in the first place, but a slave killed as spectacle by another, more revered slave. As it has been said, the Romans were known to favor mobility over protection, as well as hampering the mobility of their enemies. They would often hide or cover stakes in the earth on a pitched battlefield so that enemy soldiers, who often wore no shoes, would impale their feet and render themselves useless in the battle.
I think gladiators often wore little to no armor for the same reasons that people today watch NASCAR or boxing; the crowd wanted to see blood, crashes, a knockout. And by all accounts, these Dacian full plate wearers were pretty easy to overcome.
Justin
