01-10-2006, 12:55 AM
Once again, we don't know much for sure. According to Plutarch, the gladiators who broke out from the ludus of Batiatus near Capua had only kitchen knives and spits when they made their break, and that they looted a wagonful of weapons being taken to a nearby town for the games. They exchanged these for military arms at the first opportunity.
The gladiator barracks at Pompeii yeilded a large number of items of armor and some weapons, but it is probable that this was not a school (except at Rome, gladiatorial schools were usually located outside the towns, not in them). Hence the term "barracks" used for the facility at Pompeii. It was probably the place where the gladiators stayed and trained when they were in town for the munera. So it is likely that the arms and weapons belonged to the town. Whether this system prevailed elsewhere in the empire is guesswork.
The gladiator barracks at Pompeii yeilded a large number of items of armor and some weapons, but it is probable that this was not a school (except at Rome, gladiatorial schools were usually located outside the towns, not in them). Hence the term "barracks" used for the facility at Pompeii. It was probably the place where the gladiators stayed and trained when they were in town for the munera. So it is likely that the arms and weapons belonged to the town. Whether this system prevailed elsewhere in the empire is guesswork.
Pecunia non olet
