ASCLEPIADES Posted July 17, 2007 Report Share Posted July 17, 2007 Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News June 26, 2007 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vercingetorix Posted July 17, 2007 Report Share Posted July 17, 2007 5 feet 5 inches tall ?? That totally changes my image of gladiators. And I thought I was short.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marcus Caelius Posted July 17, 2007 Report Share Posted July 17, 2007 Was Victor Mature really that short? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caldrail Posted July 17, 2007 Report Share Posted July 17, 2007 Jennifer Viegas, Discovery NewsJune 26, 2007 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pertinax Posted July 17, 2007 Report Share Posted July 17, 2007 Hmm , what exactly constitutes a "violent lifestyle"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docoflove1974 Posted July 17, 2007 Report Share Posted July 17, 2007 A couple of questions comes to mind...starting with the last point brought up by Caldrail: the vegetarian diet shocks me not only because of barbarians who are trained to be gladiators, but the issue of protein. I would think that protein-rich diets would be available--granted, not at the same rate as now, but to a degree--so that the gladiators could maintain their strength. I'm not saying they'd have beef every day, but I would think that there would be more protein in their diet? Either they ate a whole lot of legumes, or something's not quite right to me. Also, the alcohol issue: What other pain relievers would be used besides alcohol? Self-medicating, as it were, has been around as long as alcohol itself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ASCLEPIADES Posted July 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2007 Salve, guys! Cal... WOWWW. What an ordered and thorough commentary! BTW, I am one of those mewbies. The issue of hte height could have been biased (vg, because of the sample size). Maybe tall barbarians with linguistic problems would have been bad candidates for training. Whatever it means, I am sure a violent lifestyle has nothing to do with your growing potential. Contrary to common belief, vegetarian diets could be very high in protein. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Augusta Posted July 17, 2007 Report Share Posted July 17, 2007 5 feet 5 inches tall ?? That totally changes my image of gladiators. And I thought I was short.... Bring 'em on! No problem for this 5' 4" lady! Give me a 5' 5" vegetarian health-obsessed wimp to fight any day! On a more serious note, however - it did strike me when reading the excerpt above that there must have been quite a large percentage of the population whose diet was mainly vegetarian in any case! Wasn't meat a bit of a luxury? And do we know if this special diet was just pre-fight? Rather like today's footballers who are not allowed to drink Coke or have certain foods 2 days before the Saturday fixture etc? Any thoughts on this? And Caldrail - I think you and I have had a chat about the 'average Roman height' thing before. If the average height was 5' 4" - why did Suetonius go out of his way to say Augustus was a small man at 5' 7" ? I think these 'averages' are always a bit misleading. I mean - is the average taken of all Romans, male AND female, for instance? If so, including female height would no doubt have an effect on the mean height of all? Do we know if the skeletons of many gladiators have been found? Over to you, Caldrail, as our expert on the mean man machines! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klingan Posted July 17, 2007 Report Share Posted July 17, 2007 A couple of questions comes to mind...starting with the last point brought up by Caldrail: the vegetarian diet shocks me not only because of barbarians who are trained to be gladiators, but the issue of protein. I would think that protein-rich diets would be available--granted, not at the same rate as now, but to a degree--so that the gladiators could maintain their strength. I'm not saying they'd have beef every day, but I would think that there would be more protein in their diet? Either they ate a whole lot of legumes, or something's not quite right to me. The vegetarian diet was more or less universal during the ancient times. It wasn't just gladiators who ate just about nothing but vegetables, it was the same with the common people. Bread was the base diet and beans was very common. Meat was a delicates and for most people the best way to get some was to attend at religious ceremonies where the sacrifice was given to the attendants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DecimusCaesar Posted July 17, 2007 Report Share Posted July 17, 2007 Scientists at the University of Muenster in Germany announced earlier this month that they had also identified what could be one of the world's earliest training manuals Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caldrail Posted July 20, 2007 Report Share Posted July 20, 2007 (edited) [On a more serious note, however - it did strike me when reading the excerpt above that there must have been quite a large percentage of the population whose diet was mainly vegetarian in any case! Wasn't meat a bit of a luxury? And do we know if this special diet was just pre-fight? Rather like today's footballers who are not allowed to drink Coke or have certain foods 2 days before the Saturday fixture etc? No. The veggie diet wasn't concerned with protein, it was just that barley has the property of making men beefier, fatter, and encouraging muscle mass. The layer of fat was considered a good defense against minor sword cuts hence desirable for professional fighters. Gladiators had one opportunity to eat meat and that was the dinner the night before the fight, in which the lanista gave his men a send-off in great style. However, for those gladiators who were allowed to leave the barracks, there was nothing to prevent them eating take-aways with meat in them. What the lanista would have said when he found out is another matter! And Caldrail - I think you and I have had a chat about the 'average Roman height' thing before. If the average height was 5' 4" - why did Suetonius go out of his way to say Augustus was a small man at 5' 7" ? Roman measurements. And suetonious is referring to the idea that a leader must be a physically impressive person? Nonethless, remains dug up at pompeii and other places suggest that average roman height was 5'4" for men and a mere 5' for women. Sorry Augusta! But at least you may console yourself that your regal bearing is indeed above others! Do we know if the skeletons of many gladiators have been found? Over to you, Caldrail, as our expert on the mean man machines! yes. An entire graveyard at ephesus, containing more than 80 expired fighter. Edited July 20, 2007 by caldrail Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docoflove1974 Posted July 20, 2007 Report Share Posted July 20, 2007 Jeez...at 5'8, I would have been a giant! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Augusta Posted July 20, 2007 Report Share Posted July 20, 2007 Jeez...at 5'8, I would have been a giant! Hehe - and I could have tucked little Gus under my arm! Thanks for your erudite answers, as always, Caldrail. I knew they would be at your fingertips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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