Damnatio ad bestias
Encyclopedia
Damnatio ad bestias was a form of capital punishment
in which the condemned were maimed on the circus arena
or thrown to a cage with animals, usually lion
s. It was brought to ancient Rome
around the 2nd century BC from Asia, where a similar penalty existed from at least the 6th century BC. In Rome, damnatio ad bestias was used as entertainment and was part of the inaugural games of the Flavian Amphitheatre
. In the 1st–3rd centuries AD, this penalty was mainly applied to the worst criminals and early Christians
(Latin: christianos ad leones, "Christians to the lions"). It was abolished in 681 AD.
was thrown to the lions by King Darius I for disobedience but miraculously escaped from death. The accusers of Daniel and their families were then subjected to the same treatment and maimed instantly.
The exact purpose of the early damnatio ad bestias is not known and might have been a religious sacrifice rather than a legal punishment, especially in the regions where lions existed naturally and were revered by the population, such as Africa and parts of Asia. For example, Egyptian mythology had a lion-like god, Amat
, who devoured human's souls, as well as other lion-like deities. There are also accounts of feeding lions and crocodiles with humans, both dead and alive, in Ancient Egypt
and Libya. The tradition of human sacrifice (including children) existed, for example, in Carthage
at the end of 4th century to the middle of the 2nd century BC, until the fall of the Carthaginian empire.
As a punishment, damnatio ad bestias is mentioned by historians of Alexander's campaigns. For example, in Central Asia, a Macedonian named Lysimachus
, who spoke before Alexander for a person condemned to death, was himself thrown to a lion, but overcame him with his bare hands and became one of Alexander's favorites. During the Mercenary War
, Carthaginian general Hamilcar Barca
threw prisoners to the beasts, whereas Hannibal forced Romans captured in the Punic Wars
to fight each other, and the survivors had to stand against elephants.
Lions were rare in Ancient Rome, and human sacrifice was banned there by Numa Pompilius
in the 7th century BC, according to legend. Damnatio ad bestias appeared there not as a spiritual practice but rather a spectacle. In addition to lions, other animals were used for this purpose, including bears, leopard
s, black panther
s and bull
s. It was combined with gladiatorial combat and was first featured at the Roman Forum
and then transferred to the amphitheaters.
, elephant
, wild boar, buffalo, lynx
, giraffe
, ostrich
, deer
, hare
, antelope
and zebra
. The first such staged hunting featured lions and panthers, and was arranged by Marcus Fulvius Nobilior in 186 BC at the Circus Maximus
on the occasion of the Greek conquest of Aetolia
. The Colosseum
and other circuses still contain underground hallways that were used to lead the animals to the arena.
in 146 BC. It was borrowed from the Carthaginians and was originally applied to such criminals as defectors and deserters in public, its aim being to prevent crime through intimidation. It was rated as extremely useful and soon became a common procedure in Roman criminal law. The sentenced were tied to columns or thrown to the animals, practically defenseless (i.e. objicĕre bestiis).
Some documented examples of damnatio ad bestias in Ancient Rome include the following. Strabo
witnessed the execution of the rebel slaves' leader Selur. The bandit Lavreol was crucified and then devoured by an eagle and a bear, as described by the poet Martial
in his Book of Spectacles. Such executions were also documented by Seneca (On anger, III 3), Apuleius
(The Golden Ass, IV, 13), Titus Lucretius Carus (On the Nature of things) and Petronius Arbiter (Satyricon, XLV). Cicero
was indignant that a man was thrown to the beasts to amuse the crowd just because he appeared ugly. Suetonius
wrote that when the price of meat was too high, Caligula
ordered prisoners, with no discrimination as to their crimes, to be fed to circus animals. Pompey
used damnatio ad bestias for showcasing battles and, during his second consulate (55 BC), staged a fight between heavily armed gladiators and 18 elephants.
The most popular animals were lions, which were imported to Rome in significant numbers specifically for damnatio ad bestias. Bears, brought from Gaul
and Germany, were less popular. Local municipalities were ordered to provide food for animals in transit and not delay their stay for more than a week. Some historians believe that the mass export of animals to Rome damaged wildlife in North Africa.
describes that during the first persecution of Christians under the reign of Nero
(after the Fire of Rome in 64), people were wrapped in animal skins (called tunica molesta) and thrown to dogs. This practice was followed by other emperors who moved it into the arena and used larger animals. Application of damnatio ad bestias to Christians was intended to equate them with the worst criminals, who were usually punished this way.
According to Roman law
s, Christians were:
Apart from these specific violations, Christians fell under special government edicts, which were published from 104 AD and targeted anyone who identified themselves as a Christian. Christians were made public scapegoats for any unexplained natural disasters, such as drought, famine, pestilence, earthquakes and floods.
The spread of the practice of throwing Christians to beasts was reflected by the Christian writer Tertullian
(2nd century). He wrote that Christians started avoiding theaters and circuses, which were associated with the place of their torture. The persecution of Christians ceased by the 4th century. The Edict of Milan
(313) gave them freedom of religion, though according to Holy Scripts, Theodosia of Tyre was thrown to lions in 303 and St. Vitus
in 307.
The sentenced was deprived of civil rights
; he could not write a will, and his property was confiscated. Exception from damnatio ad bestias was given to military servants and their children. Also, the law of Petronius
(Lex Petronia) of 61 AD forbade employers to send their slaves to be eaten by animals without a judicial verdict. Local governors were required to consult a Rome deputy before staging a fight of skilled gladiators against animals.
The practice of damnatio ad bestias was abolished in Rome only in 681 AD. It was used once after that in the Byzantine Empire
: in the 9th century, when a group of disgraced generals was arrested for plotting conspiracy against emperor Basil II
, they were imprisoned and their property seized, but the royal eunuch
who assisted them was thrown to lions. Also, a bishop of Saare-Lääne was sentencing criminals to damnatio ad bestias at the Bishop's Castle in modern Estonia
in the Middle Ages
.
in the Old Testament, lions devouring people are referred to as an instrument of divine wrath: in the 4th plague of Egypt
(according to one interpretation) wild animals flooded the cities and devoured Egyptians but not Jews. Among Christians, the death through damnatio ad bestias gradually ceased to be shameful and acquired a kind of honorable purification through martyrdom.
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
in which the condemned were maimed on the circus arena
Circus (building)
The Roman circus was a large open-air venue used for public events in the ancient Roman Empire. The circuses were similar to the ancient Greek hippodromes, although serving varying purposes. Along with theatres and amphitheatres, Circuses were one of the main entertainment sites of the time...
or thrown to a cage with animals, usually lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
s. It was brought to ancient Rome
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
around the 2nd century BC from Asia, where a similar penalty existed from at least the 6th century BC. In Rome, damnatio ad bestias was used as entertainment and was part of the inaugural games of the Flavian Amphitheatre
Inaugural games of the Flavian Amphitheatre
The inaugural games of the Flavian Amphitheatre were held in AD 80, on the orders of the Roman Emperor Titus, to celebrate the completion of the Colosseum, then known as the Flavian Amphitheatre . Vespasian began construction of the amphitheatre around AD 70, and it was completed by Titus...
. In the 1st–3rd centuries AD, this penalty was mainly applied to the worst criminals and early Christians
Early Christianity
Early Christianity is generally considered as Christianity before 325. The New Testament's Book of Acts and Epistle to the Galatians records that the first Christian community was centered in Jerusalem and its leaders included James, Peter and John....
(Latin: christianos ad leones, "Christians to the lions"). It was abolished in 681 AD.
Asia
One of the earliest accounts of damnatio ad bestias is a Bible story dated to the 6th century BC. Prophet DanielDaniel
Daniel is the protagonist in the Book of Daniel of the Hebrew Bible. In the narrative, when Daniel was a young man, he was taken into Babylonian captivity where he was educated in Chaldean thought. However, he never converted to Neo-Babylonian ways...
was thrown to the lions by King Darius I for disobedience but miraculously escaped from death. The accusers of Daniel and their families were then subjected to the same treatment and maimed instantly.
The exact purpose of the early damnatio ad bestias is not known and might have been a religious sacrifice rather than a legal punishment, especially in the regions where lions existed naturally and were revered by the population, such as Africa and parts of Asia. For example, Egyptian mythology had a lion-like god, Amat
Amat
Amat may refer to either of the following:* Joaquim Amat-Piniella , a Catalan writer and politician.* Manuel de Amat y Juniet, a Spanish military officer and Viceroy of Peru* Thaddeus Amat y Brusi a priest and Bishop of Los Angeles...
, who devoured human's souls, as well as other lion-like deities. There are also accounts of feeding lions and crocodiles with humans, both dead and alive, in Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
and Libya. The tradition of human sacrifice (including children) existed, for example, in Carthage
Carthage
Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
at the end of 4th century to the middle of the 2nd century BC, until the fall of the Carthaginian empire.
As a punishment, damnatio ad bestias is mentioned by historians of Alexander's campaigns. For example, in Central Asia, a Macedonian named Lysimachus
Lysimachus
Lysimachus was a Macedonian officer and diadochus of Alexander the Great, who became a basileus in 306 BC, ruling Thrace, Asia Minor and Macedon.-Early Life & Career:...
, who spoke before Alexander for a person condemned to death, was himself thrown to a lion, but overcame him with his bare hands and became one of Alexander's favorites. During the Mercenary War
Mercenary War
The Mercenary War — also called the Libyan War and the Truceless War by Polybius — was an uprising of mercenary armies formerly employed by Carthage, backed by Libyan settlements revolting against Carthaginian control....
, Carthaginian general Hamilcar Barca
Hamilcar Barca
Hamilcar Barca or Barcas was a Carthaginian general and statesman, leader of the Barcid family, and father of Hannibal, Hasdrubal and Mago. He was also father-in-law to Hasdrubal the Fair....
threw prisoners to the beasts, whereas Hannibal forced Romans captured in the Punic Wars
Punic Wars
The Punic Wars were a series of three wars fought between Rome and Carthage from 264 B.C.E. to 146 B.C.E. At the time, they were probably the largest wars that had ever taken place...
to fight each other, and the survivors had to stand against elephants.
Ancient Rome
Numa Pompilius
Numa Pompilius was the legendary second king of Rome, succeeding Romulus. What tales are descended to us about him come from Valerius Antias, an author from the early part of the 1st century BC known through limited mentions of later authors , Dionysius of Halicarnassus circa 60BC-...
in the 7th century BC, according to legend. Damnatio ad bestias appeared there not as a spiritual practice but rather a spectacle. In addition to lions, other animals were used for this purpose, including bears, leopard
Leopard
The leopard , Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion, and jaguar. The leopard was once distributed across eastern and southern Asia and Africa, from Siberia to South Africa, but its...
s, black panther
Black panther
A black panther is typically a melanistic color variant of any of several species of larger cat. Wild black panthers in Latin America are black jaguars , in Asia and Africa they are black leopards , and in North America they may be black jaguars or possibly black cougars A black panther is...
s and bull
Bull
Bull usually refers to an uncastrated adult male bovine.Bull may also refer to:-Entertainment:* Bull , an original show on the TNT Network* "Bull" , an episode of television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation...
s. It was combined with gladiatorial combat and was first featured at the Roman Forum
Roman Forum
The Roman Forum is a rectangular forum surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings at the center of the city of Rome. Citizens of the ancient city referred to this space, originally a marketplace, as the Forum Magnum, or simply the Forum...
and then transferred to the amphitheaters.
Terminology
Whereas the term damnatio ad bestias is usually used in a broad sense, historians distinguish two subtypes: objicĕre bestiis (to devour by beasts) where the humans are defenseless, and damnatio ad bestias, where the punished are both expected and prepared to fight. In addition, there were professional beast fighters trained in special schools, such as the Roman Morning School, which received its name by the timing of the games. These schools taught not only fighting but also the behavior and taming of animals. The fighters were released into the arena dressed in a tunic and armed only with a spear (occasionally with a sword). They were sometimes assisted by venators (hunters), who used bows, spears and whips. Such group fights were not human executions but rather staged animal fighting and hunting. Various animals were used, such as hyenaHyena
Hyenas or Hyaenas are the animals of the family Hyaenidae of suborder feliforms of the Carnivora. It is the fourth smallest biological family in the Carnivora , and one of the smallest in the mammalia...
, elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
, wild boar, buffalo, lynx
Lynx
A lynx is any of the four Lynx genus species of medium-sized wildcats. The name "lynx" originated in Middle English via Latin from Greek word "λύγξ", derived from the Indo-European root "*leuk-", meaning "light, brightness", in reference to the luminescence of its reflective eyes...
, giraffe
Giraffe
The giraffe is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest of all extant land-living animal species, and the largest ruminant...
, ostrich
Ostrich
The Ostrich is one or two species of large flightless birds native to Africa, the only living member of the genus Struthio. Some analyses indicate that the Somali Ostrich may be better considered a full species apart from the Common Ostrich, but most taxonomists consider it to be a...
, deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
, hare
Hare
Hares and jackrabbits are leporids belonging to the genus Lepus. Hares less than one year old are called leverets. Four species commonly known as types of hare are classified outside of Lepus: the hispid hare , and three species known as red rock hares .Hares are very fast-moving...
, antelope
Antelope
Antelope is a term referring to many even-toed ungulate species indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia. Antelopes comprise a miscellaneous group within the family Bovidae, encompassing those old-world species that are neither cattle, sheep, buffalo, bison, nor goats...
and zebra
Zebra
Zebras are several species of African equids united by their distinctive black and white stripes. Their stripes come in different patterns unique to each individual. They are generally social animals that live in small harems to large herds...
. The first such staged hunting featured lions and panthers, and was arranged by Marcus Fulvius Nobilior in 186 BC at the Circus Maximus
Circus Maximus
The Circus Maximus is an ancient Roman chariot racing stadium and mass entertainment venue located in Rome, Italy. Situated in the valley between the Aventine and Palatine hills, it was the first and largest stadium in ancient Rome and its later Empire...
on the occasion of the Greek conquest of Aetolia
Aetolia
Aetolia is a mountainous region of Greece on the north coast of the Gulf of Corinth, forming the eastern part of the modern prefecture of Aetolia-Acarnania.-Geography:...
. The Colosseum
Colosseum
The Colosseum, or the Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre , is an elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire...
and other circuses still contain underground hallways that were used to lead the animals to the arena.
History and description
The custom of submitting criminals to lions was brought to ancient Rome by two commanders, Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus, who defeated the Macedonians in 186 BC, and his son Scipio Aemilianus, who conquered the African city of CarthageCarthage
Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
in 146 BC. It was borrowed from the Carthaginians and was originally applied to such criminals as defectors and deserters in public, its aim being to prevent crime through intimidation. It was rated as extremely useful and soon became a common procedure in Roman criminal law. The sentenced were tied to columns or thrown to the animals, practically defenseless (i.e. objicĕre bestiis).
Some documented examples of damnatio ad bestias in Ancient Rome include the following. Strabo
Strabo
Strabo, also written Strabon was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born to an affluent family from Amaseia in Pontus , a city which he said was situated the approximate equivalent of 75 km from the Black Sea...
witnessed the execution of the rebel slaves' leader Selur. The bandit Lavreol was crucified and then devoured by an eagle and a bear, as described by the poet Martial
Martial
Marcus Valerius Martialis , was a Latin poet from Hispania best known for his twelve books of Epigrams, published in Rome between AD 86 and 103, during the reigns of the emperors Domitian, Nerva and Trajan...
in his Book of Spectacles. Such executions were also documented by Seneca (On anger, III 3), Apuleius
Apuleius
Apuleius was a Latin prose writer. He was a Berber, from Madaurus . He studied Platonist philosophy in Athens; travelled to Italy, Asia Minor and Egypt; and was an initiate in several cults or mysteries. The most famous incident in his life was when he was accused of using magic to gain the...
(The Golden Ass, IV, 13), Titus Lucretius Carus (On the Nature of things) and Petronius Arbiter (Satyricon, XLV). Cicero
Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
was indignant that a man was thrown to the beasts to amuse the crowd just because he appeared ugly. Suetonius
Suetonius
Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus, commonly known as Suetonius , was a Roman historian belonging to the equestrian order in the early Imperial era....
wrote that when the price of meat was too high, Caligula
Caligula
Caligula , also known as Gaius, was Roman Emperor from 37 AD to 41 AD. Caligula was a member of the house of rulers conventionally known as the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Caligula's father Germanicus, the nephew and adopted son of Emperor Tiberius, was a very successful general and one of Rome's most...
ordered prisoners, with no discrimination as to their crimes, to be fed to circus animals. Pompey
Pompey
Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, also known as Pompey or Pompey the Great , was a military and political leader of the late Roman Republic...
used damnatio ad bestias for showcasing battles and, during his second consulate (55 BC), staged a fight between heavily armed gladiators and 18 elephants.
The most popular animals were lions, which were imported to Rome in significant numbers specifically for damnatio ad bestias. Bears, brought from Gaul
Gaul
Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
and Germany, were less popular. Local municipalities were ordered to provide food for animals in transit and not delay their stay for more than a week. Some historians believe that the mass export of animals to Rome damaged wildlife in North Africa.
Execution of Christians
The use of damnatio ad bestias against Christians began in the 1st century AD. TacitusTacitus
Publius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
describes that during the first persecution of Christians under the reign of Nero
Nero
Nero , was Roman Emperor from 54 to 68, and the last in the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Nero was adopted by his great-uncle Claudius to become his heir and successor, and succeeded to the throne in 54 following Claudius' death....
(after the Fire of Rome in 64), people were wrapped in animal skins (called tunica molesta) and thrown to dogs. This practice was followed by other emperors who moved it into the arena and used larger animals. Application of damnatio ad bestias to Christians was intended to equate them with the worst criminals, who were usually punished this way.
According to Roman law
Roman law
Roman law is the legal system of ancient Rome, and the legal developments which occurred before the 7th century AD — when the Roman–Byzantine state adopted Greek as the language of government. The development of Roman law comprises more than a thousand years of jurisprudence — from the Twelve...
s, Christians were:
- Offenders of their Majesty (majestatis rei)
- For their worships Christians gathered in secret and at night, making unlawful assemblyUnlawful assemblyUnlawful assembly is a legal term to describe a group of people with the mutual intent of deliberate disturbance of the peace. If the group are about to start the act of disturbance, it is termed a rout; if the disturbance is commenced, it is then termed a riot.- Section 144 :Section 144 is a...
, and participation in such collegium illicitum or coetus nocturni was equated with a riot. - Refusal to honor images of the emperor by libationLibationA libation is a ritual pouring of a liquid as an offering to a god or spirit or in memory of those who have died. It was common in many religions of antiquity and continues to be offered in various cultures today....
s and incense
- For their worships Christians gathered in secret and at night, making unlawful assembly
- Dissenters from the state gods (άθεοι, sacrilegi)
- Followers of magic prohibited by law (magi, malefici)
- Confessors of a religion unauthorized by the law (religio nova, peregrina et illicita), according to the Twelve TablesTwelve TablesThe Law of the Twelve Tables was the ancient legislation that stood at the foundation of Roman law. The Law of the Twelve Tables formed the centrepiece of the constitution of the Roman Republic and the core of the mos maiorum...
).
Apart from these specific violations, Christians fell under special government edicts, which were published from 104 AD and targeted anyone who identified themselves as a Christian. Christians were made public scapegoats for any unexplained natural disasters, such as drought, famine, pestilence, earthquakes and floods.
The spread of the practice of throwing Christians to beasts was reflected by the Christian writer Tertullian
Tertullian
Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, anglicised as Tertullian , was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He is the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of Latin Christian literature. He also was a notable early Christian apologist and...
(2nd century). He wrote that Christians started avoiding theaters and circuses, which were associated with the place of their torture. The persecution of Christians ceased by the 4th century. The Edict of Milan
Edict of Milan
The Edict of Milan was a letter signed by emperors Constantine I and Licinius that proclaimed religious toleration in the Roman Empire...
(313) gave them freedom of religion, though according to Holy Scripts, Theodosia of Tyre was thrown to lions in 303 and St. Vitus
Vitus
Saint Vitus was a Christian saint from Sicily. He died as a martyr during the persecution of Christians by co-ruling Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian in 303. Vitus is counted as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers of the Roman Catholic Church....
in 307.
Penalty for other crimes
Roman laws, which are known to us through the Byzantine collections, such as Code of Theodosius and Code of Justinian, defined what criminals could be thrown to beasts (or condemned by other means). They included- Deserters from the army
- Those who employed sorcerersMagician (fantasy)A magician, mage, sorcerer, sorceress, wizard, enchanter, enchantress, thaumaturge or a person known under one of many other possible terms is someone who uses or practices magic that derives from supernatural or occult sources...
to harm others, during the reign of CaracallaCaracallaCaracalla , was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. The eldest son of Septimius Severus, he ruled jointly with his younger brother Geta until he murdered the latter in 211...
. This law was re-established in 357 AD by Constantius IIConstantius IIConstantius II , was Roman Emperor from 337 to 361. The second son of Constantine I and Fausta, he ascended to the throne with his brothers Constantine II and Constans upon their father's death.... - Poisoners; by the law of CorneliusLucius Cornelius SullaLucius Cornelius Sulla Felix , known commonly as Sulla, was a Roman general and statesman. He had the rare distinction of holding the office of consul twice, as well as that of dictator...
, patricians were beheaded, plebeians thrown to lions and slaves crucified - Counterfeiters, who could also be burned alive
- Political criminals. For example, after the overthrow and assassination of CommodusCommodusCommodus , was Roman Emperor from 180 to 192. He also ruled as co-emperor with his father Marcus Aurelius from 177 until his father's death in 180. His name changed throughout his reign; see changes of name for earlier and later forms. His accession as emperor was the first time a son had succeeded...
, the new emperor threw to lions both the servants of Commodus and Narcissus who strangled him – even though Narcissus brought the new emperor to power, he committed a crime of murdering the previous one The same punishment was applied to Mnesteus who organized the assassination of Emperor AurelianAurelianAurelian , was Roman Emperor from 270 to 275. During his reign, he defeated the Alamanni after a devastating war. He also defeated the Goths, Vandals, Juthungi, Sarmatians, and Carpi. Aurelian restored the Empire's eastern provinces after his conquest of the Palmyrene Empire in 273. The following...
. - PatricidePatricidePatricide is the act of killing one's father, or a person who kills his or her father. The word patricide derives from the Latin word pater and the Latin suffix -cida...
s, who were normally drowned in a leather bag filled with snakes (poena cullei), but could be thrown to beasts if a suitable body of water was not available - Instigators of uprisings, who were either crucified, thrown to beasts or exiled, depending on their social status
- Those who kidnapped children for ransom, according to the law of 315 by the Emperor Constantine the Great, were either thrown to beasts or beheaded.
Civil death
Civil death is a term that refers to the loss of all or almost all civil rights by a person due to a conviction for a felony or due to an act by the government of a country that results in the loss of civil rights...
; he could not write a will, and his property was confiscated. Exception from damnatio ad bestias was given to military servants and their children. Also, the law of Petronius
Petronius
Gaius Petronius Arbiter was a Roman courtier during the reign of Nero. He is generally believed to be the author of the Satyricon, a satirical novel believed to have been written during the Neronian age.-Life:...
(Lex Petronia) of 61 AD forbade employers to send their slaves to be eaten by animals without a judicial verdict. Local governors were required to consult a Rome deputy before staging a fight of skilled gladiators against animals.
The practice of damnatio ad bestias was abolished in Rome only in 681 AD. It was used once after that in the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
: in the 9th century, when a group of disgraced generals was arrested for plotting conspiracy against emperor Basil II
Basil II
Basil II , known in his time as Basil the Porphyrogenitus and Basil the Young to distinguish him from his ancestor Basil I the Macedonian, was a Byzantine emperor from the Macedonian dynasty who reigned from 10 January 976 to 15 December 1025.The first part of his long reign was dominated...
, they were imprisoned and their property seized, but the royal eunuch
Eunuch
A eunuch is a person born male most commonly castrated, typically early enough in his life for this change to have major hormonal consequences...
who assisted them was thrown to lions. Also, a bishop of Saare-Lääne was sentencing criminals to damnatio ad bestias at the Bishop's Castle in modern Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
.
Notable victims
- Ignatius of AntiochIgnatius of AntiochIgnatius of Antioch was among the Apostolic Fathers, was the third Bishop of Antioch, and was a student of John the Apostle. En route to his martyrdom in Rome, Ignatius wrote a series of letters which have been preserved as an example of very early Christian theology...
(107 AD, Rome)
- Germanicus and 10 Christians from AlaşehirAlasehirAlaşehir, in Antiquity and the Middle Ages known as Philadelphia , i.e. " brotherly love" is a town and district of Manisa Province in the Aegean region of Turkey. It is situated in the valley of the Kuzuçay , at the foot of the Bozdağ...
(mentioned in the description of the martyrdom by PolycarpPolycarpSaint Polycarp was a 2nd century Christian bishop of Smyrna. According to the Martyrdom of Polycarp, he died a martyr, bound and burned at the stake, then stabbed when the fire failed to touch him...
of Smyrna) - Saint GlyceriaSaint GlyceriaSaint Glyceria — early Christian saint, Roman virgin.She was forced to pay tribute to a stone statue of Jupiter but it was destroyed while she stood before it. The virgin was imprisoned for this, then sentenced to be torn apart by wild animals. She, however, was not torn apart...
(141 AD, Trayanopolis, Thrace) - Martyr Euphemia. Whereas lions refused to maim her, and licked her feet, a bear mortally wounded her.
- Perpetua and Felicity, Satur and their relatives (203 AD, presumably Carthage)
Miraculously survived
- Ab early description of escape from the death by devouring is in the story of DanielDanielDaniel is the protagonist in the Book of Daniel of the Hebrew Bible. In the narrative, when Daniel was a young man, he was taken into Babylonian captivity where he was educated in Chaldean thought. However, he never converted to Neo-Babylonian ways...
in the Book of DanielBook of DanielThe Book of Daniel is a book in the Hebrew Bible. The book tells of how Daniel, and his Judean companions, were inducted into Babylon during Jewish exile, and how their positions elevated in the court of Nebuchadnezzar. The court tales span events that occur during the reigns of Nebuchadnezzar,...
(ca. 2nd century BC). - The Greek writer ApionApionApion , Graeco-Egyptian grammarian, sophist and commentator on Homer, was born at the Siwa Oasis, and flourished in the first half of the 1st century AD....
(1st century AD) tells the story of a slave Androcles (during the CaligulaCaligulaCaligula , also known as Gaius, was Roman Emperor from 37 AD to 41 AD. Caligula was a member of the house of rulers conventionally known as the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Caligula's father Germanicus, the nephew and adopted son of Emperor Tiberius, was a very successful general and one of Rome's most...
's rule) who was caught after fleeing his master and thrown to a lion. The lion spared him, which Androcles explained by saying that he pulled a thorn of the paw of the very same lion when hiding in Africa, and the lion remembered him. - Paul (according to apocryphaApocryphaThe term apocrypha is used with various meanings, including "hidden", "esoteric", "spurious", "of questionable authenticity", ancient Chinese "revealed texts and objects" and "Christian texts that are not canonical"....
s and the medieval legends, based on his note "when I have fought with beasts at Ephesus", 1 Corinthians, 15:32) - Archelaus (during DiocletianDiocletianDiocletian |latinized]] upon his accession to Diocletian . c. 22 December 244 – 3 December 311), was a Roman Emperor from 284 to 305....
's rule) - St. BlandinaBlandina-Martyrdom:In the summer of 177, Irenaeus, bishop of Lyon, witnessed an increasing hostility to Christians in his own city. First they were prohibited from entering public places such as the markets and the baths. Then, when the provincial governor was outside the city, the mob broke loose....
(177 AD, Lyon) – a Christian martyr and a slave thrown to lions together with 48 other Christians. Their relics are buried in Lyon. - Saint EustaceSaint EustaceSaint Eustace, also known as Eustachius or Eustathius, was a legendary Christian martyr who lived in the 2nd century AD. A martyr of that name is venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic Church, which, however, judges that the legend recounted about him is "completely fabulous." For that reason...
(114 AD, Rome) - Martyr Eleutherius of Constantinople (HadrianHadrianHadrian , was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138. He is best known for building Hadrian's Wall, which marked the northern limit of Roman Britain. In Rome, he re-built the Pantheon and constructed the Temple of Venus and Roma. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian was a humanist and was philhellene in...
's rule, Rome) - Tatiana of RomeTatiana of RomeSaint Tatiana was a Christian martyr in 3rd century Rome during the reign of Emperor Alexander Severus. She was a deaconess of the early church....
(226 AD) - Saint TheclaTheclaThecla was a saint of the early Christian Church, and a reported follower of Paul the Apostle. The only known record of her comes from the apocryphal Acts of Paul and Thecla, probably composed in the 2nd century.-Biography:...
(Antioch). Leon became her attribute in iconography - Saint Vitus (303 AD)
- Vasily New (9th century, Byzantium) – was sentenced for sorcery, not for Christianity
- Rabbi Chaim ibn AttarChaim ibn AttarChaim ben Moses ibn Attar also known as the Ohr ha-Chaim after his popular commentary on the Pentateuch, was a Talmudist and kabbalist; born at Meknes, Morocco, in 1696; died in Jerusalem, Israel July 7, 1743. He was one of the most prominent rabbis in Morocco.In 1733 he decided to leave his native...
- Harald Hardrada – strangled the lion and fled from ConstantinopleConstantinopleConstantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
during his Wandering in the East. - An anecdotal escape is reported in the biography of Emperor GallienusGallienusGallienus was Roman Emperor with his father Valerian from 253 to 260, and alone from 260 to 268. He took control of the Empire at a time when it was undergoing great crisis...
(in the Augustan HistoryAugustan HistoryThe Augustan History is a late Roman collection of biographies, in Latin, of the Roman Emperors, their junior colleagues and usurpers of the period 117 to 284...
). A man was caught after selling the emperor's wife glass instead of gems. Gallienus sentenced him to face lions, but ordered to that a caponCaponA capon is a rooster that has been castrated to improve the quality of its flesh for food.-History:The Romans are credited with inventing the capon. The Lex Faunia of 162 BC forbade fattening hens in order to conserve grain rations. In order to get around this the Romans castrated roosters, which...
rather than a lion be let into the arena. The emperor's herald then proclaimed "he has forged, and was treated the same". The merchant was then released.
Perception of damnatio ad bestias in religion
In addition to the story of the unsuccessful execution of DanielDaniel
Daniel is the protagonist in the Book of Daniel of the Hebrew Bible. In the narrative, when Daniel was a young man, he was taken into Babylonian captivity where he was educated in Chaldean thought. However, he never converted to Neo-Babylonian ways...
in the Old Testament, lions devouring people are referred to as an instrument of divine wrath: in the 4th plague of Egypt
Plagues of Egypt
The Plagues of Egypt , also called the Ten Plagues or the Biblical Plagues, were ten calamities that, according to the biblical Book of Exodus, Israel's God, Yahweh, inflicted upon Egypt to persuade Pharaoh to release the ill-treated Israelites from slavery. Pharaoh capitulated after the tenth...
(according to one interpretation) wild animals flooded the cities and devoured Egyptians but not Jews. Among Christians, the death through damnatio ad bestias gradually ceased to be shameful and acquired a kind of honorable purification through martyrdom.
Literature
- Tommaso CampanellaTommaso CampanellaTommaso Campanella OP , baptized Giovanni Domenico Campanella, was an Italian philosopher, theologian, astrologer, and poet.-Biography:...
in his utopia , "The City of the SunThe City of the SunThe City of the Sun is a philosophical work by the Italian Dominican philosopher Tommaso Campanella. It is an important early utopian work.The work was written in Italian in 1602, shortly after Campanella's imprisonment for heresy and sedition...
" suggests using damnatio ad bestias as a form of punishment. - Bernard ShawGeorge Bernard ShawGeorge Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism, in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism, his main talent was for drama, and he wrote more than 60...
. Androcles and LionAndrocles and the Lion (play)Androcles and the Lion is a 1912 play written by George Bernard Shaw.Androcles and the Lion is Shaw's retelling of the tale of Androcles, a slave who is saved by the requited mercy of a lion. In the play, Shaw portrays Androcles to be one of the many Christians being led to the Colosseum for torture... - Henryk SienkiewiczHenryk SienkiewiczHenryk Adam Aleksander Pius Sienkiewicz was a Polish journalist and Nobel Prize-winning novelist. A Polish szlachcic of the Oszyk coat of arms, he was one of the most popular Polish writers at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, and received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1905 for his...
. Quo VadisQuo Vadis (novel)Quo Vadis: A Narrative of the Time of Nero, commonly known as Quo Vadis, is a historical novel written by Henryk Sienkiewicz in Polish. Quo vadis is Latin for "Where are you going?" and alludes to the apocryphal Acts of Peter, in which Peter flees Rome but on his way meets Jesus and asks him why he... - Lindsey Davis. Two for the Lions. A novel of life in Ancient Rome, series Marcus Didius FalcoMarcus Didius FalcoMarcus Didius Falco is the central character and narrator in a series of novels by Lindsey Davis. Using the concepts of modern detective stories , Davis portrays the world of the Roman Empire under Vespasian...
Music
- Ottorino RespighiOttorino RespighiOttorino Respighi was an Italian composer, musicologist and conductor. He is best known for his orchestral "Roman trilogy": Fountains of Rome ; Pines of Rome ; and Roman Festivals...
, The Roman Triptych, fragment Circene: Christian martyrs in the arena. - Polish blackened death metal band BehemothBehemoth (band)Behemoth is a Polish blackened death metal band from Gdańsk, formed in 1991. They are considered to have played an important role in establishing the Polish extreme metal underground, alongside bands such as Vader, Decapitated, Vesania and Hate....
: the song Christians to the Lions - American death metalDeath metalDeath metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
band Morbid AngelMorbid AngelMorbid Angel is an American death metal band based in Tampa, Florida. UK music magazine Terrorizer ranked one Morbid Angel album in its “Top 40 greatest death metal albums”, with their 1989 debut Altars of Madness appearing at number 1...
: the song Lion's Den
Film
- Fights against wild animals in the arena of the Roman Colosseum were displayed in Gladiator (2000)Gladiator (2000 film)Gladiator is a 2000 historical epic film directed by Ridley Scott, starring Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Ralf Möller, Oliver Reed, Djimon Hounsou, Derek Jacobi, John Shrapnel and Richard Harris. Crowe portrays the loyal Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius, who is betrayed...
and other films.