By evoking Rome concepts such as democracy, civilization, splendor, empire usually appear instantly in our minds. Undoubtedly, the Roman society was a society that involved all these things, and many more, but even speaking of its wonderful cultureseldom do we stop to reflect Really on rawness his shows.
There is so much talk about Mesoamerican sacrifices, Spartan rudeness, or the diabolical Mongols, and the horrors that deliberately were carried out only to amuse to the Roman people. Perhaps this is the reason that turns Roman shows into one of the most bloody and horrible in history.
In general, there were three categories of shows.
1) The horse races were celebrated in the Circus Maximuscontinuously expanded from Julius Caesar and with a capacity of… ¡260,000 viewers!. Since the Flavians they disputed 100 races on the same day: both horses and charioteers were the object of immense popularity, not to say idolatry: wagers were four factions of spectators in which the public was divided, each with a color: blue, white, red Y green. Very similar to our current racetracks.
We have news of the successes of many charioteersfamous for their audacity, who died very young. Diocles was an exception: charioteer of the red faction, survived more than 3,000 winsat 1,462 in quadrigaand retired in the year 105, after kneading a fortune.
two) The capacity of theaters it did not allow such large crowds to be accommodated. However, his shows, which had something of our operas and ballets, attracted amateurs rather than popular audiences. They highlighted the pantomimesactors who mixed song and dance at the same time, and the pure and simple mime.
The repertoire of theaters it was not always kept in the classic, but it was mutating, if not degrading when some decadent emperors authorized ordeals Y tortures authentic, inflicted on those sentenced to death, as was seen in times of Nero, Domitianand other despots.
3) The lure of blood made people come to witness the combats of the amphitheater. They were numbersoriginally, offered in the funeral of a great character, but a show intended for simple fun from the year 105 BC. The amphitheater It had been built during the government of Cease. It became the largest monument in the city with the Coliseum enlarged by the Flavians for 50,000 viewers.
Some shows resembled today’s wild bullfights, but in them a huge number of bulls were killed. animals: the opening day of the Coliseum were sacrificed 5,000. The “demands” of the amphitheater caused the most ferocious animal species to become extinct in all the territories attached to the Empire.
The hoplomachy they did not deserve the name of “sport” either, since they were monstrous combats of gladiators professionals. Recruited among damned Y prisoners of war, and at some time between the slaves of a human trafficker master, also had some Freemenin a legal sense, those who misery or misfortune had pushed to accept such a sad profession.
Subjected to discipline and rigorous training, they became homicidal ex officio, and in case of repeated victories a great popularity. It was often the case of gladiator “accustomed”, that after having renounced his contract, he returned to the arena, feeling unable to lead another lifestyle.
Also offered to the eyes of that debased mass was the intermission of the condemned thrown to wild beastsin the arena, unarmed, where they were killed and torn to pieces, not necessarily in that order.
The shows of amphitheater united in the same level of lowliness the gladiators and the public that watched them. Some emperors knew this, and tried stop the killingsor at least draw the masses away from them, through Greek-style games, athletic contests, singing and poetry contests, but they had little success.
Sources:
Images: Wikipedia