Vintage Athletes - Part 6

 Ancient Rome

Yesterday we saw American troops enjoying an ancient Roman bath.  Today we get an idea of the people the baths were built for.  A mosaic in the Baths of Caracalla depicting Roman athletes has survived to show us what they looked like.

The Baths of Caracalla in Rome were public baths built by the emperor Caracalla and his successors in the early third century AD.  Today the baths are in ruins.  This is an artist's reconstruction of what the building once looked like.  When Penn Station was built in New York City, its architects, seeking to impress, modeled it after this room in the Baths of Caracalla.

Among the artworks in the building was a mosaic floor depicting Roman athletes.  Today, what is left of the mosaic (above) is in the Vatican Museums.

Here's the only athlete with a name, Iovinus Alumnus.  He's holding a palm frond and a crown, both symbols of victory.

The athlete on the right is wearing the victory crown.  The guy wearing a toga is an official, perhaps a referee, not an athlete.  Like the Greeks, Roman athletes were naked.

The athlete with the arrows is presumably an archer.  Note that all these athletes' faces are different, which suggests that they are all real people being depicted by the mosaic artist.

What is this guy holding?  Not a discus; that would be round.  Perhaps it's some kind of oblong ball, like a modern rugby ball.

This guy's hands and arms are wrapped, indicating that his sport may be pancratium (Greek pankration), a combination of boxing and wrestling somewhat like today's mixed martial arts.  He's holding up two fingers with his right hand, but with his left hand he seems to be giving us the middle finger, and on that note we end.