From Etruscans and Romans to Modern Times - The Wise World Traveler: Becoming a Part of All that You Meet - page 54

ers beverages, and still others to look after their comfort—perfuming their bodies, washing
their feet, and attending to their sexual urges.
The more lavish the feast, the greater was its intended notoriety. Petronius Arbiter, in
his Satyricon (first century CE) leaves us an account of one such banquet. Dishes included
beef, testicles, kidneys, liver, sowbelly, lobster, geese, sausages, hare, fish, boar, a haunch
of bear, bacon, blackbirds baked in a pie, tarts, honey, apples, pears, and pomegranates,
plus generous servings of wine. [51] A contemporary writer calculates the cost of the banquet
for fifteen guests (excluding servers, perfumes, and entertainers) at 36.8 ounces of gold.
In early 2012 the price of gold was $1,612 per ounce. The total cost of this feast was thus
more than $57,000. [52]
“WE WHO ARE ABOUT TO DIE”
In a fresco at Pompeii titled “Vulcan's Worship,” the god of fire is busy hammering a
design into a gladiator's helmet. One day, the gladiator (swordsmen, from the Latin gladi-
us : sword) would wear that helmet or one like it in the Colosseum, where he would fight
for his life while 50,000 spectators cheered and jeered. When he fell, mortally wounded, as
most did, he would throw away his shield, raise a supplicating hand, and appeal for mercy.
If he fought well and bravely, the emperor might let him live to fight another day. But if
the crowd demanded his life, displaying a mass of down-turned thumbs, the emperor would
probably signal to his opponent, “Kill him!”
Gladiator contests were a favorite entertainment in the Colosseum. Gladiators came
from Rome's vast number of convicts and prisoners of war. A few volunteers entered the
lists, seeking fame and fortune. A gladiator received substantial training over an extended
period of time. His health was carefully tended; he dined on strength-building food, and
his wounds were well treated. In return, he was expected to entertain the crowd by fight-
ing to the death with bravery, skill, and cunning. [53] The contests began with the parade of
the gladiators, each in combat dress, marching around the Colosseum, each pausing before
the emperor, extending the traditional salute: “Hail Caesar. We who are about to die salute
you.”