Spartacus: The Gladiator (69 page)

optio
(pl.
optiones
): the officer who ranked immediately below a centurion; the second-in-command of a century.

palus
(pl.
pali
): a 1.82-m (6-ft) wooden post buried in the ground. Trainee gladiators and legionaries were taught swordsmanship by aiming blows at it.

peltast: a light infantryman of Greek and Anatolian origin. Thracian peltasts were feared because they were fierce fighters as well as expert missile-throwers. Apart from a shield, they usually fought unarmoured and, depending on their nationality, carried javelins and sometimes spears or knives. Their primary use was as skirmishers.

pelte
: the most distinctive feature of the peltast, a crescent-shaped shield most probably invented by the Thracians.

phalera
(pl.
phalerae
): a sculpted disc-like decoration for bravery which was worn on a chest harness over a Roman soldier’s armour.
Phalerae
were commonly made of bronze, but could be made of more precious metals as well.

Phrygian helmets: these originated in Phrygia, a region in Asia Minor. They had a characteristic forward curving crest.

pilum
(pl.
pila
): the Roman javelin. It consisted of a wooden shaft approximately 1.2 m (4 ft) long, joined to a thin iron shank approximately 0.6 m (2 ft) long, and was topped by a small pyramidal point. The range of the
pilum
was about 30 m (100 ft), although the effective range was probably about half this distance.

Pisae: modern-day Pisa.

Pompey Magnus, Gnaeus (106–48 BC): son of a leading politician, he fought at a young age in the Social War. He led three private legions to Sulla’s aid in the civil war, helping Sulla to gain power. In 77 BC, he was sent to Iberia as proconsul, his mission to defeat the rebel Sertorius.

Pontifex Maximus: the leading member and spokesman of the four colleges of the Roman priesthood.

praetors: senior magistrates who administered justice in Rome and in its overseas possessions such as Sardinia, Sicily and Spain. They could also hold military commands and initiate legislation. The main understudy to the consuls, the praetor convened the Senate in their absence.

Priapus: the Roman god of gardens and fields, a symbol of fertility. Often pictured with a huge erect penis.

Rhegium: modern-day Reggio di Calabria.

rudis
: the wooden
gladius
symbolising the freedom that could be granted to a gladiator who pleased a sponsor sufficiently, or who had earned enough victories in the arena to qualify for it. Not all gladiators were condemned to die in combat: far from it. Prisoners of war and criminals usually were, but slaves who had committed a crime were granted the
rudis
if they survived for three years as a gladiator. After a further two years, they could be set free.

sacramentum gladiatorum
: the solemn vow taken by gladiator recruits, which was more binding than any other oath in the Roman world. My version is very close to that given in historical texts.

Samnites: the people of a confederated area in the central southern Apennines. A warlike people, the Samnites fought three wars against Rome in the fourth and third centuries BC. They also backed Pyrrhus of Epirus and Hannibal against the Republic. Their fight against Sulla in the civil war was their last gasp. The large number of Samnite prisoners of war is thought to have given rise to the gladiator class.

scutum
(pl.
scuta
): an elongated oval Roman army shield, about 1.2 m (4 ft) tall and 0.75 m (2 ft 6 in) wide. It was made from three layers of wood, the pieces laid at right angles to each other; it was then covered with linen or canvas, and leather. The
scutum
was heavy, weighing between 6 and 10 kg (13–22 lbs).

Scythians: a fierce, nomadic people who lived to the north of the Black Sea. They were tattooed, warlike and superlative horsemen, who were widely feared, and whose women are reputed to have given rise to the legend of the Amazons. By the first century BC, however, their heyday was long gone.

Senate: a body of six hundred (historically, it had been three hundred, but Sulla doubled its number) of senators, who were prominent Roman noblemen. The Senate met in the Curia, and its function was to advise the magistrates – the consuls, praetors, quaestors etc. – on domestic and foreign policy, religion and finance. By the first century BC, its position was much weaker than it had ever been.

Sertorius, Quintus (
c
.126–73 BC): a prominent noble who allied himself to Cinna. He was given control of Spain in 83 BC, but proscribed a year or so later. His campaign against Rome was initially very successful, but his own defeats and those of his lieutenants in 76 BC cost him dearly, reducing his activities from then on to guerrilla warfare.

sestertius
(pl.
sestertii
): a silver coin, it was worth two and a half
asses
; or a quarter of a
denarius
; or one hundredth of an
aureus
. By the time of the late Roman Republic, its use was becoming more common.

sica
: a large curved sword used by Thracian cavalry in the first century BC. Sadly, little is known about this weapon, and it may have been similar to the
kopis
, or the traditional Thracian curved sword.

signifer
(pl.
signiferi
): a standard-bearer and junior officer. This was a position of high esteem, with one for every century in a legion. Often the
signifer
wore scale armour and an animal pelt over his helmet, which sometimes had a hinged decorative face piece, while he carried a small, round shield rather than a
scutum
. His
signum
, or standard, consisted of a wooden pole bearing a raised hand, or a spear tip surrounded by palm leaves. Below this was a crossbar from which hung metal decorations, or a piece of coloured cloth. The standard’s shaft was decorated with discs, half-moons, ships’ prows and crowns, which were records of the unit’s achievements and may have distinguished one century from another.

Silarus, River: modern-day River Sele.

Social War: this conflict took place between 91 and 87 BC, waged by Rome’s Italian allies against her supremacy. Many disgruntled Samnites took part. The war ended largely through the political concession of granting Roman citizenship to the enemy.

Styx, River: the river of the underworld, Hades.

subarmalis
: a garment worn under armour to protect the body from chafing. The singular term may actually be
subarmale
, but there is controversy over this.

summa rudis
: the official who maintained order in the gladiatorial arena.

Stygian: infernal, hellish – as of the River Styx.

Sulla Felix, Lucius Cornelius (
c
.138–78 BC): one of the most famous Roman generals and statesmen ever. He was a ruthless man who made himself dictator, caused civil wars and ultimately helped to weaken the Republic, yet he also strengthened the position of the Senate, and retired from public life rather than remain in power.

tablinum
: the office or reception area beyond the
atrium
. The
tablinum
usually opened on to an enclosed colonnaded garden.

Tanager, River: modern-day River Tanagro.

Thrace: an area in the ancient world spanning parts of Bulgaria, Romania, northern Greece and south-western Turkey. It was inhabited by more than forty warlike tribes.

Thurii: modern-day Sibari.

tiro
(pl.
tirones
): a gladiator recruit.

titanismos
: the name given by the Greeks to the Thracian war cry; it supposedly mimicked a cry to the Titans, the gods who preceded the Olympians: Zeus, Artemis et al.

Toutatis: a Gaulish god who is thought to have been worshipped as the protector of tribes.

Triballi: a Thracian tribe renowned for their savagery.

tribune: a senior staff officer within a legion; also one of ten political positions in Rome, where they served as ‘tribunes of the people’, defending the rights of the plebeians.

trireme: the classic Roman warship, which was powered by a single sail and three banks of oars. Each oar was rowed by one man, who was freeborn, not a slave. Exceptionally manoeuvrable, and capable of up to eight knots under sail or for short bursts when rowed, the trireme also had a bronze ram at the prow. Triremes had very large crews in proportion to their size. This limited their range, so they were mainly used as troop transports and to protect coastlines.

triumph: the procession to the temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline Hill of a Roman general who had won a large-scale military victory.

Venus: the Roman goddess of motherhood and domesticity.

Via Annia: a Roman road in northern Italy; also an extension of the Via Appia, which ran from Capua to Rhegium.

Via Appia: the main road from Rome to the south of Italy.

vilicus
: slave foreman or farm manager. Commonly a slave, the
vilicus
was required to make sure that the returns on a farm were as large as possible. This was most commonly done by treating the slaves brutally.

Vinalia Rustica: a Roman wine festival held on 19 August.

virtus
: a much-respected Roman virtue, associated with courage, honour and manliness.

Vulcan (or Vulcanus): a Roman god of destructive fire, who was often worshipped to prevent – fire!

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