Retiarii first appeared in the arena during the 1st century AD and had become standard attractions by the 2nd or 3rd century. Rare gladiator fights were staged over water; these may have given rise to the concept of a gladiator based on a fisherman. The light armour and lack of arms of the Retiarius may have been seen as a feminine symbol of effeminacy.
About Retiarius in brief
Retiarii first appeared in the arena during the 1st century AD and had become standard attractions by the 2nd or 3rd century. Rare gladiator fights were staged over water; these may have given rise to the concept of a gladiator based on a fisherman. Fights between differently-armed gladiators became popular in the Imperial period; the retiarius versus the scaly secutor developed as the conflict of a fisherman with a stylised fish. The gladiator’s lack of armour and his reliance on evasive tactics meant that many considered theretiarius the lowliest of the gladiator, an already stigmatised class. In addition to the symbolism inherent in such bouts, the lightly armoured retieminate was viewed as a counter-point to the heavily armoured man-versus-man. The light armour and lack of arms of the Retiarius may have been seen as a feminine symbol of effeminacy. Another type, the laquearius, fought with a lasso in place of a net but left his skin unarmoured and exposed, the lower skin left unarmour and the greater his status and power. The net-fighter had become one of the standard gladiator categories by the early Imperial period and remained a staple attraction until the end of thegladiatorial games in the 4th century CE. In the Roman world, the net-man was seen as one constantly moving and determined to escape the secutor’s fire, as well as the other determined to keep him in the ring.
The trident, as tall as a human being, permitted the gladiator to jab quickly and keep his distance. It was a strong weapon, capable of inflicting piercing wounds on an unprotected skull or limb. The dagger was reserved for when close combat or a straight wrestling match had to settle the bout. In some battles, a single gladiator was placed on a raised platform and given a supply of stones with which to repel his pursuers. For these situations, the light-armoured gladiator had to be protected by a belt or a belt of stones, which he used to shield his body from the secutores’ fire and to protect his head from the enemy’s blows. The retiius was considered the most effeminate and most disgraced, and thus established him as the most low, disgraced and disgraced gladiator. He was also seen as the effeminate and most effaced, thus perceived as a female symbol of feminine symbolism and effemacy, and the lowest of the low, and most defaced, gladiator class. The type is absent from the copious gladiator-themed reliefs dating to the 1th century found at Chieti and Pompeii. Nevertheless, graffiti and artifacts from Pompeii attest to the class’s existence by this time. Roman artwork, graffiti, and grave markers include examples of specific net-men who apparently had reputations as skilled combatants and lovers.
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This page is based on the article Retiarius published in Wikipedia (as of Nov. 05, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
