Newly Found Pompeii Drawings Suggest Children Watched Brutal Gladiator Fights
An archeological site in Pompeii has uncovered children’s stick figure drawings depicting gladiator battles, indicating that even young Roman youth attended such violent shows. These drawings offer a glimpse into the ancient Roman culture where children as young as five or seven witnessed these brutal spectacles.
Pompeii, famously destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, has yielded these nearly 2 millennia old charcoal drawings in a recent excavation. The sketches show armed fighters facing off with beasts in the background, likely boars, and have provided valuable insights into childhood in ancient Rome.
Archaeologists believe that exposure to such violence at a tender age could have had a profound impact on the young minds. Similarly, the drawings bear a striking resemblance to what children today might create, offering a timeless connection to the past.
Moreover, the discovery also included other frescoes depicting mythological scenes and the city’s own amphitheater where gladiator fights and animal hunting shows were popular entertainment for both nobles and commoners. This find sheds light on the daily lives and experiences of the ancient Romans.
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