Venatio

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Bronze medallion depicting the fight between a man and a wild animal (venatio).

Venatio (

wild animals
.

History

Venatio was first introduced by Marcus Fulvius Nobilior, who celebrated his Greek campaign by hosting games where gladiators would fight lions and panthers.[1] He was possibly inspired by Alexander the Great's purported pastime of pitting lions against both men and dogs.[2]

Exotic wild beasts from the far reaches of the

bestiarius", or hunter of wild beast. Thousands of wild animals would be slaughtered in one day. During the Inaugural games of the Flavian Amphitheatre (80), about 9,000 animals were killed.[3]

Venatio, Gladiator and Lion in the Colosseum

Not all the animals were ferocious, though most were. Animals that appeared in the venatio included

Some of these animals were trained, and instead of fighting, performed tricks.

The treatment given to wolves differed from the treatment meted out to other large predators. The Romans generally seem to have refrained from intentionally harming wolves. For instance, they were not displayed in the venationes due to their religious importance to the Romans.[7]

Revered for its ferocity, the lion was extremely popular in venationes and gladiatorial shows. Thus the dictator

plebs
of Rome exotic animals they might never see otherwise.

During the reign of

Augustus Caesar the circus games resulted in the death of 3,500 elephants.[8]

Executions

Following the venatio in the order of daily events was the

ad bestias
(when the prisoner is left alone in the ring with one or more wild animals).

Roman emperors often sentenced serious criminals — who then became known as

bestiarii — to fatal encounters with the beasts in the Colosseum — an ancient "death sentence".[9] These were the lowest social class of participants in the games.[10]

See also

References

  1. ^ David Matz, Ancient Roman Sports, A-Z: Athletes, Venues, Events and Terms
  2. ^ E. Gordon Dickie M.D, Listen to the Animals
  3. .
  4. ^ Christesen, Paul;Kyle, Donald G.. (2013). Companion to Sport and Spectacle in Greek and Roman Antiquity, A. Wiley-Blackwell. Retrieved 5 December 2017, from http://www.myilibrary.com?ID=543132
  5. ^ Martin Wainwright (7 June 2010). "Scars from lion bite suggest headless Romans found in York were gladiators". The Guardian.
  6. ^ Mika Rissanen. "Was There a Taboo on Killing Wolves in Rome?". Quaderni Urbinati di Cultura Classica. Fabrizio Serra Editore. Retrieved 2016-03-28.
  7. .
  8. ^ The Bestiarius and the Ludus Matutinus
  9. ^ "Ad Bestias". Retrieved 2009-03-26.