Gladiators at Pompeii

Book excerpt: The ruins of Pompeii reveal more graphically than anywhere else in the Roman world the vital role that gladiators and gladiatorial combat played in society. The Vesuvian eruption not only sealed the oldest amphitheatre to survive from antiquity, but also grafitti, elaborate weaponry, stone monuments and paintings which all testify to the popularity of gladiators, several of which are known to us by name. In addition, the discovery of a training barracks allows us to locate physically the place of gladiators in the city. This book, now available in English translation, presents the evidence from Pompeii in full colour photographs, accompanied by reconstruction drawings and an informative text that takes us through the streets of Pompeii as the gladiators would have known it.