THRAEX                                            HOPLOMACHUS                                          MURMILLO

Gladiator games were an important part of Roman culture, and even back at their time were despised and loved likewise by Romans. The first Roman games were, according to Livius, held in 264 BCE during a funerary ceremony. It is not clear whether the games, especially in the funerary context, were adapted from the Etruscans, where we have indeed ritual blood sacrifices in forms of duels attested through archaeological sources, or from the southern Italic tribes, where duels play an important part in representative art. The gladiatorial games became more and more popular, and even got their own architectural form, the amphitheatre, the first one in stone was erected in Pompeii. With a stronger influence of christianity the games were forbidden frequently, but to no avail, as it seems, until the last games were held, finally, around 450.

Gladiatorial reenactment has become more and more popular over the course of the last ten years, yet the only equipment avalable was not fit for mock-fights and was just remotely similar to the original findings, which derive mostly from the Gulf of Naples and were preserved through the vulcano-eruption of Mt. Vesuvius on the 24th of August 79 CE - or they were very expensive custom-made items. Our line of gladiator items is somewhere in between, we offer quite affordable, yet accurate objects in tinned steel, and in bronze for the better-to-do. We deliberately left away punched and chisselled decorations as can be found on most originals, not just to keep the price down, but also to allow for personalized designs. Apart from shield blanks, here you will get anything your gladiator´s heart desires! If you follow the links for the different gladiator types (armaturae) below, you will find all items necessary for a display of this armatura, plus some basic background information about each gladiator type.

Many gladiatorial games were given in that year, some unimportant, one noteworthy beyond the rest — that of Titus Flaminius which he gave to commemorate the death of his father, which lasted four days, and was accompanied by a public distribution of meats, a banquet, and scenic performances. The climax of the show which was big for the time was that in three days seventy four gladiators fought.

Livy, Annal for the Year 174 BC

Welcome to the Arena!                  Gladiator Catalogue Download

Now:

Choose your ARMATURA!!!

PROVOCATOR                                          SECUTOR                                              RETIARIUS

                       EQUES Helmet                                             ESSEDARIUS Helmet

                  AER/H/1505-BRZ- SPL                                     AER/H/1504-BRZ - SPL

Feather holder for the ESSEDARIUS-Helmet

                    GDFB/ACC/002

                   (one piece, brass)