Gladiator fights in the Colosseum in Rome (Flavian Amphitheatre), often recreated in movies and novels, are one of the most striking and famous chapters of the Roman Empire, whose fans will surely be surprised.
These bloody spectacles were held between two fighters or the gladiator would battle a wild beast - lions, tigers, elephants, and other animals - in the amphitheaters built throughout the empire to entertain ancient Roman society. They have been depicted in numerous documents, paintings, or reliefs, so it is well known how they were carried out. However, a team of scientists is presenting what they describe as the first direct evidence found in human remains of one of these animal shows this Wednesday. Interestingly, it has not been found in Italy but in the UK, specifically in a site in York.
It is the skeleton of a man who died between the ages of 26 and 35, and on whose bones they have discovered traces of bites from a large feline. The scientists from Maynooth University who authored this study believe it was a lion, as after three-dimensionally scanning the wounds on the pelvis caused by various animal species, they concluded that they were compatible with a bite from one of these felines.
As detailed in a study published in the journal PLoS One, the victim would have been a gladiator who was injured by one of these felines during a combat, as they also believe that the area currently occupied by the English town of York probably hosted an amphitheater that has not yet been discovered.
The Roman province of Britannia (Britannia in Latin) occupied about two-thirds of the current United Kingdom and existed between the 1st and 5th centuries (specifically, from 43 AD to 410 AD). The gladiator being presented today is one of the 82 bodies discovered between 2004 and 2010 at the Driffield Terrace site, which have undergone various analyses. This large cemetery was located on the outskirts of the Roman city of Eboracum (founded in 71 AD), and it is believed to have been used between 200 and 300 AD.
The analysis of the skeleton suggests that the subject of the study was a bestiarius, a type of fighter who faced beasts in Roman amphitheaters and could have been a slave or a volunteer. The dating of his remains, buried in a pit with two other individuals and covered by horse bones, indicates that he would have died about 1,800 years ago.
Although these combats held during the Roman Empire are well-documented, allowing for reliable details on how they were conducted, human remains of gladiators who participated in them are not abundant.
As explained to this newspaper by the study's lead, Tim Thompson, from Maynooth University, "previous studies had argued that in the York cemetery where this individual was recovered, there were several gladiators." Most of the young men buried there showed signs of having suffered trauma, they found many healed injuries, and had a strong build as a result of the training they had to undergo.
They have now been able to demonstrate that it was a gladiator cemetery, as in this particular skeleton, the effects of the bites from that large feline are visible. According to Thompson, they believe it is the first direct evidence of a gladiator who faced a large carnivore found not only in the UK but in any of the territories that made up the Roman Empire.
Previously, other hypotheses had been proposed about the 82 men buried at Driffield Terrace, such as them being soldiers or slaves: "However, the analysis of the skeleton and other aspects of the context support the gladiator hypothesis," the researcher emphasizes.
Why do you think human skeletons of gladiators who fought against large carnivores have not been found in Rome or Italy in general? we asked Thompson: "I think there are several reasons. Firstly, not all skeletons of those who lived in the past have been found, and if we think about the Roman period, only a very small percentage of the population were gladiators, so it is not surprising that we have not found many. Secondly, it can be difficult to confirm that the recovered skeletons belonged to real gladiators. Thirdly, skeletons can be damaged underground, so useful evidence may be lost over time," he explains.
As the researcher details, the forensic analysis of the gladiator has revealed that "the lion bite is peri-mortem," meaning it occurred at the time of death or near it. "There are no signs that the wound had healed at all. Additionally, the individual was also decapitated. It is most likely that he died during the spectacle," Thompson states, admitting that "it is difficult to know for sure." They have also discovered that this man had issues with the spine that could have been caused by back strain, and as a child, he suffered from malnutrition, from which he recovered.
According to Thompson, they have not found lion remains at the site. "We believe the lions were transported from Africa or other parts of the Roman Empire to York," he clarifies.
The researchers believe that gladiator competitions were held in Eboracum until the 4th century AD, perhaps because many high-ranking generals and politicians resided in the city, including Constantine, who was proclaimed emperor in 306 AD. The presence of distinguished Roman leaders in York would have required a corresponding social life, so they are not surprised that gladiator games were held here, or that there was such an extensive cemetery for them.
Although gladiators were sometimes sentenced to death, many were slaves trained for combat who often survived the fights, gaining fame and even their freedom. When a gladiator was in trouble, they could request the fight to be stopped, and their fate then depended on what the show's sponsor decided. This decision usually took into account the audience's reaction.
As the study's authors recall, the owners of the gladiators did not want them to die, as they were expensive athletes, not much different from today's football players, so the goal was for them to win so they could fight again. If they did not survive, they were often provided with gifts in death to serve them in the afterlife, a practice for which there are indications in the tombs of Driffield Terrace.
"We may never know what led this man to the arena where we believe he may have been fighting to entertain others, but it is striking that the first osteoarchaeological evidence of this type of gladiator combat [with animals] has been found so far from the Colosseum in Rome, which would have been the Wembley Stadium of the classical world," says David Jennings, director of York Archaeology.