Workmen discover body of 'huge' gladiator who was 'stabbed six times and thrown out with the rubbish'



Tall, powerfully-built and with a killer instinct he would have been a fearsome sight - especially if you were a gladiator facing him in the ring.

Archaeologists do not know his name but are convinced the remarkable discovery of the Roman gladiator's bones in York provide a clear clue of where the amphitheatre was in the city.

Back when he was fighting for his survival in the ring 1,600 years ago, York was the Roman capital of the north and the ground underneath the Yorkshire Museum has long been thought of as the prime location for the site.

The skull of the gladiator found during the refurbishment of the Yorkshire Museum being held by its curator Andrew Morrison. He was very tall for a Roman, standing at 5ft 10in, and of muscular build. The average height for people living at that time was 5ft 3in

York was the Roman capital of the north and the ground underneath the Yorkshire Museum has long been thought of as the prime location for the site

The amphitheatre in York would have been similar to the one seen in the 2000 film Gladiator which featured Russell Crowe as a bloodthirsty warrior

MORTAL COMBAT: WHERE THE EDITOR'S DECISION WAS FINAL

Few gladiators survived more than ten matches and the average age of those killed in the arena was 28. The person who presided over the games was called the editor. He could be the emperor, a senator, or other political figure and made the final decision about the fate of the gladiators in the arena. However, since the games were to curry public favour, the editor had to pay attention to the wishes of the audience. The common belief that the crowd gave the thumbs up and thumbs down to express whether the gladiator should live is wrong. Instead, the crowd would then turn their thumbs to the side to indicate he should be killed or press their forefinger and thumb together to express mercy.

To make sure the loser wasn’t pretending to be dead, an attendant dressed as Mercury would touch him with a hot iron wand. If they were still alive, another attendant, dressed as Charon, would hit him with a mallet.

Female gladiators were rare. However, Emperor Domitian (AD81 to 96) particularly enjoyed watching women gladiators fighting male dwarves. In 200AD, Emperor Septimius Severus stopped women being used as gladiators when it became socially unacceptable. If a gladiator repeatedly survived the arena and lived long enough to retire, they were given a symbolic wooden training sword, or rudis, as a token of their freedom. People believed that the warm blood of a butchered gladiator could cure epilepsy and impotence and that a bride whose hair had been parted by the spear of a defeated gladiator would enjoy a fertile married life.

Gladiators were trained to fight with different weapons. The retiarius used a trident and a net. They would attempt to catch their opponent in the net and then stab them with the trident.

Paegniarii used whips, clubs, and shields which were fixed to their left arms with straps. Even when they had won their freedom, the lucrative life of the gladiator still appealed: rudiarii were gladiators who had won their freedom but chose to remain fighting in the arena.

The amphitheatre would have been similar to the one seen in the 2000 film Gladiator which featured Russell Crowe as a bloodthirsty warrior.

The remains of the British gladiator were found just 30cm below the foundations of the museum by builders carrying out refurbishment works.

He was very tall for a Roman, standing at 5ft 10in, and of muscular build. The average height for people living at that time was 5ft 3in.

Analysis of the bones, shows that the skeleton was once a powerful, athletic man who was stabbed at least six times in a fatal attack - including a powerful sword blow to the back of the head.

Because of the way his body was found without hint of burial ceremony experts believe he could have been a disgraced or defeated gladiator who was then literally thrown out with the rubbish after his savage death.



Experts at York Osteoarchaeology have now concluded the man was aged between 36 and 45.

Andrew Morrison, head curator of the Yorkshire Museum, said: 'This was a huge man for the Roman period who died a violent and bloody death.



'The physical evidence reveals he was a swordsman and that his body was literally dumped with the rubbish - there was no hint that he had been buried in a ceremonial way.

'But what is really interesting to us is that he was found in this area, which is not associated with Roman burials and that many believe could be where York's amphitheatre was located.

'It is far from certain but it could well be the case that this man was a disgraced gladiator who was brutally killed and then left to rot.'

The skeleton was found in January by builders carrying out work on the museum a foot below the foundations, during a £2million refit.

Because it is also a key medieval site, the precinct of St Mary's Abbey, excavation at the location has been limited and meant that the Museum Gardens remains one of the few untouched areas in the city large enough to house the amphitheatre.

The scientists discovered that he would have been a very muscular man, with lesions in his vertebrae suggesting spinal stress, possibly through lifting heavy loads.



They also found the man met a most barbaric end. There are six blade injuries on the skeleton which, because there are no signs of healing, must have been delivered at death.

Malin Holst, director of York Osteoarchaeology, said: 'A wound is recognisable as one side is sharp and smooth and the other edge is rough.'

She added: 'To work out his age we looked at the degeneration of his joints and wear to his teeth.

'You can tell height by measuring a long bone like a thigh or shin bone. We knew he was muscular as the bones were shapely.



Experts have eliminated other sites in the city that may have housed the amphitheatre and think this could be a highly significant discovery, as the area is large enough to have accommodated a massive arena.

The remains are now on public display at the museum.

Experts are able to determine the height of the gladiator by measuring a long bone such as a shin bone

The remains of the British gladiator were found just 30cm below the foundations of the museum by builders carrying out refurbishment works



