Roman Animal Hunts

Venatores and Venationes in Ancient Rome.

Mar 23, 2009 Grant Sebastian Nell

The Roman penchant for witnessing violent, gory death was not restricted to combats between gladiators or the public execution of criminals.

Thousands of animals perished in animal hunts known as venationes. These would usually be the first act in a day of entertainment, followed by executions and ending with the munus, the gladiatorial combats.

Animals were imported from all over the Empire. Practically no beast was safe: elephants, bears, bulls, lions, leopards, tigers, giraffes, monkeys, camels, antelope, crocodiles and ostriches all featured in the games. The capture and export of wild animals was big business in ancient Rome, with specialised people undertaking the job.

Venatores

A man who hunted animals in the arena was called a venator, distinct from bestiarii or trainers (although the term bestiarii was also used to denote criminals condemned to die ad bestium, or at the claws and fangs of beasts).

Venatores were specially trained for the task and usually fought without armour, sometimes naked. They usually belonged to an agency and were hired out to the sponsors of games. The mortality rate amongst venatores was understandably high, and they were never held in the same esteem as gladiators.

Venationes

The Romans devised various methods of dispatching animals in the arena. Considerable effort was put into creating scenery reflecting the native environment of the animals involved. They might be hunted on horseback, with lances, or fought on foot with swords and shields. Animals also fought against each other - elephant fights were especially popular, and records show that bulls were sometimes pitted against bears or rhinoceroses.

Some animals managed to survive their fights and were given names, becoming favourites with the crowd just like gladiators. Some names that have come down to us are Crudelis (merciless) and Omicida (man-killer).

An arena full of enraged, terrified wild beasts posed a problem as far as the safety of the audience was concerned. The wall around the Colosseum’s arena had ivory rollers and special nets were strung along it’s length to prevent animals getting through.

The wholesale butchery of wild animals in the arena was colossal. Thousands of beasts might die in a single event. The stench of blood and sheer racket must have been overpowering. Disposing of the carcasses also presented a problem, and, judging from the amount of bones discovered in the drains of the Colosseum, it is believed that many carcasses were simply dumped there.

Animal carcasses were also butchered for public consumption or used to feed other creatures.

Venationes conveyed the image of Rome’s total mastery of the world, even of nature itself. Some idea of the amount of animals slaughtered for public amusement can be gained from the fact that Rome practically denuded North Africa of wild game. Certain species, such as the Nubian Lion and small North African Elephant, never recovered and ultimately became extinct.

Source:

Colosseum Rome’s Arena of Death, Peter Connolly BBC Books, 2003

The copyright of the article Roman Animal Hunts in Ancient History is owned by Grant Sebastian Nell. Permission to republish Roman Animal Hunts in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.