Swords, Sandals and Sand
An oversight of the Gladiator Exhibition in Durham City.
SWORDS, SANDALS AND SAND.
THE Gladiators were the golden boys of the Roman Arena. Many of these highly trained and specialised fighting men became seriously rick if they survived. Others became highly sought after sex symbols, strong desired by respectable Roman matrons and aristocratic women.
Now the Gala Theatre in Durham City is staging an exhibition: Gladiators, a Cemetery of Secrets, which tells the story of these superstars.
It is based on evidence gathered from an archaeological dig in York. The site turned out to be part of a large cemetery on the outskirts of Eboracom (the Roman name for York) and just over the river from the fortress and depot of the elite 6th Legion.
Further investigations of the site of the 80 burials by archaeologists suggested that these might be the remains of a group of gladiators who had followed their violet profession during the Roman Occupation of York.
More analysis is revealing more about the lives and deaths of this group of professional fighting who made their reputations in a violent and often bloody world involving sword, shield, spear, trident, armour, nets, blood and sand.
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