The murmillo (also sometimes spelled "mirmillo" or "myrmillo", pl. murmillones) was a type of gladiator during the Roman Imperial age. The murmillo-class gladiator was adopted in the early Imperial period to replace the early Gallus, named after the warriors of Gaul. As the Gauls inhabiting Italy had become well integrated with the Romans by the time of the reign of Augustus, it became undesirable to portray them as enemy outsiders;[dubious – discuss] the Gallus-class gladiator thus had to be retired.[1]
A murmillo defeating a thraex, depicted on a first- or second-century Roman canteen.Gladiator fighting a lion in the Colosseum
Gladius: Roman sword with a length of 64–81 cm and weight of 1.2-1.6 kg with a handle made of bone.
Scutum: Rectangular shield made of vertically connected wooden boards with a small bronze boss which protects the shield's handle.
Balteus: Leather belt with metal decorations and supplements. Similar to current boxing belts.
Manica: Segmented or scaled arm guard made of leather or some metal alloys. Manicae can also be mailed.
Cassis Crista: A large helmet with plume crest or horsehair, usually made of bronze, with an ornate 'grill' face visor. Usually based on the broad-rimmed Greek Boeotian helmet.
Ocrea: Shin guard/protector made of bronze, iron or other metals.
Fasciae: Thick soft padding on legs which are used to wear ocreas in order to prevent calluses and blisters.
The murmillo usually fought the thraex (Thracian) or hoplomachus, with whom he shared some of the equipment (notably arm guards and all-enclosing helmet, and the dangerous short sword). A number of ancient authors, including Valerius Maximus and Quintillian, assert that he also regularly fought the retiarius. It would certainly have been an unusual pairing, contrasting a heavily protected gladiator with a fast but lightly equipped one. It would have been rather appropriate however, to have the retiarius, depicting a fisherman, fighting a Murmillo depicting a fish or sea monster.[2] This pairing is disputed; visual depictions of murmillones usually show them fighting the thraex or hoplomachus rather than the retiarius.[3]: 237–238 n14 However, Channel 4's Time Team discovered in Wales a carved penknife handle depicting a retiarius and a murmillo fighting.[4]
The murmillo's fighting style was suited for men with strong arms and shoulders due to carrying the weight of the shield, sword and heavy helmet. As a result, murmillones were usually tall and always very muscular.[5] The murmillo depended on his strength and endurance to survive the battle against foes who were more suited to attacking. The tower shield gave him an edge in defence and the gladius enabled him to thrust and swing at his enemies when in close range. The murmillones were also trained to kick their enemies with the thick padding worn around their legs.
Examples of pairing murmillones with other gladiator types can be seen in frescoes and graffiti in Pompeii. In one well-preserved example, a murmillo named Marcus Atillus, who is credited with one match and one victory, is depicted standing over the defeated figure of Lucius Raecius Felix, a gladiator who is credited with 12 matches and 12 victories. His opponent is shown kneeling, disarmed and unhelmeted. The graffiti records that Felix survived the fight and was granted his freedom (manumission).[3]: 96–100
^"Gladiators: Back from were the Dead". DailyMotion. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
External linksedit
James Grout: Murmillo, part of the Encyclopædia Romana
Fresco of a murmillo and Thracian fighting, found in Pompei in 2019
January 01, 1970
murmillo, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, december, 2022, l. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Murmillo news newspapers books scholar JSTOR December 2022 Learn how and when to remove this message The murmillo also sometimes spelled mirmillo or myrmillo pl murmillones was a type of gladiator during the Roman Imperial age The murmillo class gladiator was adopted in the early Imperial period to replace the early Gallus named after the warriors of Gaul As the Gauls inhabiting Italy had become well integrated with the Romans by the time of the reign of Augustus it became undesirable to portray them as enemy outsiders dubious discuss the Gallus class gladiator thus had to be retired 1 A murmillo defeating a thraex depicted on a first or second century Roman canteen Gladiator fighting a lion in the Colosseum Contents 1 Equipment and armaments 2 Style 3 See also 4 References 5 External linksEquipment and armaments edit nbsp Modern re enactment of a murmillo The murmillo was armed with Gladius Roman sword with a length of 64 81 cm and weight of 1 2 1 6 kg with a handle made of bone Scutum Rectangular shield made of vertically connected wooden boards with a small bronze boss which protects the shield s handle Balteus Leather belt with metal decorations and supplements Similar to current boxing belts Manica Segmented or scaled arm guard made of leather or some metal alloys Manicae can also be mailed Cassis Crista A large helmet with plume crest or horsehair usually made of bronze with an ornate grill face visor Usually based on the broad rimmed Greek Boeotian helmet Ocrea Shin guard protector made of bronze iron or other metals Fasciae Thick soft padding on legs which are used to wear ocreas in order to prevent calluses and blisters Style edit nbsp Combat between a Murmillo and a Samnite The murmillo usually fought the thraex Thracian or hoplomachus with whom he shared some of the equipment notably arm guards and all enclosing helmet and the dangerous short sword A number of ancient authors including Valerius Maximus and Quintillian assert that he also regularly fought the retiarius It would certainly have been an unusual pairing contrasting a heavily protected gladiator with a fast but lightly equipped one It would have been rather appropriate however to have the retiarius depicting a fisherman fighting a Murmillo depicting a fish or sea monster 2 This pairing is disputed visual depictions of murmillones usually show them fighting the thraex or hoplomachus rather than the retiarius 3 237 238 n14 However Channel 4 s Time Team discovered in Wales a carved penknife handle depicting a retiarius and a murmillo fighting 4 The murmillo s fighting style was suited for men with strong arms and shoulders due to carrying the weight of the shield sword and heavy helmet As a result murmillones were usually tall and always very muscular 5 The murmillo depended on his strength and endurance to survive the battle against foes who were more suited to attacking The tower shield gave him an edge in defence and the gladius enabled him to thrust and swing at his enemies when in close range The murmillones were also trained to kick their enemies with the thick padding worn around their legs Examples of pairing murmillones with other gladiator types can be seen in frescoes and graffiti in Pompeii In one well preserved example a murmillo named Marcus Atillus who is credited with one match and one victory is depicted standing over the defeated figure of Lucius Raecius Felix a gladiator who is credited with 12 matches and 12 victories His opponent is shown kneeling disarmed and unhelmeted The graffiti records that Felix survived the fight and was granted his freedom manumission 3 96 100 See also editList of Roman gladiator typesReferences edit Wiedemann Thomas E J Emperors and Gladiators p 41 Routledge 1992 ISBN 0 415 00005 X Perkins Coren Sue Giles Supersizers Eat dailymotion Retrieved 26 November 2020 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link a b Futrell Alison 2006 The Roman Games A Sourcebook Oxford Blackwell ISBN 978 1 4051 1568 1 Time Team Channel 4 Retrieved 15 May 2017 Gladiators Back from were the Dead DailyMotion Retrieved 25 March 2017 External links editJames Grout Murmillo part of the Encyclopaedia Romana Fresco of a murmillo and Thracian fighting found in Pompei in 2019 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Murmillo amp oldid 1209147899, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
