grinner
04-06-2004, 05:46 PM
Gladiators chunky not hunky
From correspondents in Vienna
April 6, 2004
HOLLYWOOD has portrayed them as muscle-bound and handsome, but Austrian anthropologists have found evidence suggesting Roman gladiators were overweight vegetarians who bore scant resemblance to Russell Crowe.
Gladiators: Lean, mean killing machines they weren't
The scientists did tests on skeletons of two types of gladiator - the myrmillos and retiariae - found at the ancient site of Ephesus, near Selcuk in Turkey.
"Tests performed on bits of bone taken from the skeletons of some 70 gladiators buried at Ephesus seem to prove that they ate mainly barley, beans and dried fruit," said Karl Grossschmidt, of Austria's Institute of Archeology.
"This diet, which has been mentioned in the oral history, is rather sad but it gave the gladiators a lot of strength even if it made them fat."
The paleo-anthropologists from Austria relied on a method known as elementary microanalysis to determine what a human being ate during his lifetime. Using a sonar, they established the chemical concentrations in cells of bone samples from the skeletons.
This allowed the scientists to debunk another myth: that of the strappy Spartacus sandal sported in the arena. "The bone density is particularly high in samples taken from the feet, which would suggest that the gladiators fought with their bare feet in sand," scientist Fabian Kanz said.
He believes that gladiators would have "cultivated layers of fat to protect their vital organs from the cutting blows of their opponents".
In ancient Rome, the classical battle of gladiators usually pitted a myrmillo, armed with a sword, a helmet and a round shield, against the retiarius, who carried only a net and a dagger, or a samnite who wore a visor and a leather sheath on his right arm. They were mostly slaves who volunteered because sometimes the victor would be freed, or poor Romans who fought for pay.
The scientists are still carrying out tests, but if their initial findings are confirmed it would shatter the glamorous image of the men immortalised in films such as Spartacus, starring a young Kirk Douglas, and the more recent Gladiator with Australia's Crowe. link (http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,9199018%255E401,00.html)
From correspondents in Vienna
April 6, 2004
HOLLYWOOD has portrayed them as muscle-bound and handsome, but Austrian anthropologists have found evidence suggesting Roman gladiators were overweight vegetarians who bore scant resemblance to Russell Crowe.
Gladiators: Lean, mean killing machines they weren't
The scientists did tests on skeletons of two types of gladiator - the myrmillos and retiariae - found at the ancient site of Ephesus, near Selcuk in Turkey.
"Tests performed on bits of bone taken from the skeletons of some 70 gladiators buried at Ephesus seem to prove that they ate mainly barley, beans and dried fruit," said Karl Grossschmidt, of Austria's Institute of Archeology.
"This diet, which has been mentioned in the oral history, is rather sad but it gave the gladiators a lot of strength even if it made them fat."
The paleo-anthropologists from Austria relied on a method known as elementary microanalysis to determine what a human being ate during his lifetime. Using a sonar, they established the chemical concentrations in cells of bone samples from the skeletons.
This allowed the scientists to debunk another myth: that of the strappy Spartacus sandal sported in the arena. "The bone density is particularly high in samples taken from the feet, which would suggest that the gladiators fought with their bare feet in sand," scientist Fabian Kanz said.
He believes that gladiators would have "cultivated layers of fat to protect their vital organs from the cutting blows of their opponents".
In ancient Rome, the classical battle of gladiators usually pitted a myrmillo, armed with a sword, a helmet and a round shield, against the retiarius, who carried only a net and a dagger, or a samnite who wore a visor and a leather sheath on his right arm. They were mostly slaves who volunteered because sometimes the victor would be freed, or poor Romans who fought for pay.
The scientists are still carrying out tests, but if their initial findings are confirmed it would shatter the glamorous image of the men immortalised in films such as Spartacus, starring a young Kirk Douglas, and the more recent Gladiator with Australia's Crowe. link (http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,9199018%255E401,00.html)