Roman women were the silent wives, the mothers, the daughters, and the priestesses in the background. Even when they were queens, their voices came after the men around them. So what were the Roman women like? What kind of lives did women live in the Roman Empire? What kind of laws and policies did ancient …
Roman slaves were an ever-present and essential part of Roman society and its long history. Just as their functions in that society were multifarious – ranging from cooks, gardeners, builders, and gladiators – so were their regions of origin. Unlike in other periods of time, the race or ethnicity of slaves in ancient Rome was …
Roman gladiators were professional fighters who entertained audiences in the Roman Empire with their battles against other gladiators, wild animals, and criminals. Gladiatorial games were a popular form of entertainment in ancient Rome and were usually held in amphitheaters such as the great Colosseum in Rome. A bloody form of capital punishment to entertain the …
Love was irrelevant to the success of a marriage in Roman eyes.Marriage was there in order to provide children. Loved was a welcome thing, but by no means necessary. And in many ways it was seen as somewheat ridiculous. It diminished once ability for rational thought. And so being in love was not something to …
The symbolic bed enthroned in the atrium or tablinum of the Roman house was a reminder that the house was also intended to accommodate a woman destined to become a mother. Marriage really could either bring a wife into the household following a proper marriage ritual, or merely involved the couple living under the same …
If at first the games of the early Roman republic had religious significance, then later the ‘secular’ games were purely for entertainment, some lasting a fortnight. There were two kinds of games: ludi scaenici and ludi circenses. The theatrical Festivals(ludi scaenici) The ludi scaenici, the theatrical performances, were hopelessly overwhelmed by the ludi circenses, the …