Late Roman gladiators

[Robert Vermaat]

Could someone tell me if there any differences between early and Late Roman gladiators?
I'm especially interested in possible developments in fighting techniques, clothing, etc.
My only source so far is this mosaic from the Villa Borghese:

[Gashford]

Hi there

Just a quick reply at the moment as I am at work on lunch.

It is generally understood that the later professional gladiators where probably more armoured, generally, than those from the early Empire/late republic.

The easiest example of this is manica size and length. Shorter forearm coverings seem to have been the order of the day in the earlier forms through to the heavier strapped affairs shown in the example above three-four hundred years later.

Protection from the manica is often shown starting to come round the front of the chest, under arm and back.

The growth in armour and the funeral inscriptions are frequently used to help build on the idea that the later games where a lot more bloody than the earlier affairs.

Hope this helps as a starter for ten.

Graham

[Robert Vermaat]

Hi Graham,
Thanks, that's a good way to start off.

Protection from the manica is often shown starting to come round the front of the chest, under arm and back.

Is that possibly what the guy bottom right is wearing? There's something he wears over his tunic which covers just his breast.

The growth in armour and the funeral inscriptions are frequently used to help build on the idea that the later games where a lot more bloody than the earlier affairs.

What are these later funeral inscriptions actually saying?

[john m roberts]

As to the character Serpeninus, he's a venator and they usually didn't wear armor (there are exceptions, though.) It's probably just a design on his tunic. That's his back you're looking at, by the way.
However, it looks as if at this date the secutors and retiarii had developed into "light" and "heavy" classes. On this mosaic, where the secutor wears the traditional helmet and what appears to be a fabric manica, his opponent wears the traditional fabric manica and galerus. Where the secutor wears something like a murmillo helmet and a scale manica, his opponent also wears the scale manica. There is what looks like a very hevy gladiator in this mosiac, though he's not pictured above. He wears a murmillo helmet and shield, and what appears to be paired greaves and some sort o breastplate, a "Ridley Scott" gladiator if you will. The overall crudity of the mosaic makes it hard to distinguish details. It seems that Roman standards for mosaic work had fallen from the 1st-2nd century.

[Robert Vermaat]

It's probably just a design on his tunic. That's his back you're looking at, by the way.

Nope, I think not. Yes, it's his back, I should have used a diifferent word :wink:
But his tunic is a common Late Roman tunic, with broad clavi and large orbiculi. But his chest and back are covered by something made of a brown material, leather I suppose, which covers also his left shoulder/upper arm. It clearly leaves his right arm uncovered, for there the orbiculus is clearly seen. The clavi are clearly covered and no doubt go to his shoulders.
There is some sort of design on the back of this 'leather' cover, square devided into a black/white triangle.

[richard robinson]

Hi Robert,

Almost exactly two years later i find your enquiry.
if you spot this could please repost the link as I think thsi is one of my pet theories that you were exploring................


regardz

richard r

[Robert Vermaat]

The picture is gone, but this was a detail from the mosaic:



IIRC, this was the whole picture:

[richard robinson]

Ti saluto Robert.

My interpretation of the bi colour lozenge/ square is a a coupling of "true" bronze and a yellowish bronze- for decorative effect as well as protection. The plate you had pointed out would definitely help a little if a big cat was trying to push you down by putting its paws/claws over your shoulders

These plates, and the round one shown in the mosaic, are found elsewhere in this periods mosaics, usually on the front of the manica, by the armpit, fulfilling a similar role that a couter on a 14th/ 15th century harness did. Notably the retiarius "Licentivs"(?did i recall that correctly) has one a diamond one.

This interpretation stems from when i was making my attic helm and i attached a phosphor bronze brow plate onto a brass helm.It was only after this that I noticed that the colour scheme was very similar to the wall painings from the "Philip" tomb at vergina.

These mosaics also show a secutor wearing what could be a hood or shoulder pads. I have a theory that these "shoulder pads" were all that there may have been to some of the heavily theorised subarmoralis's.

Anyway, that's just the fun of it all-isn't it??

Regardz,

Richard R
MilesMinimus