The Empire's Physician: Prosperity, Plague, and Healing in Ancient Rome

 The Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at New York University is sponsoring the virtual exhibit "The Empire's Physician: Prosperity, Plague, and Healing in Ancient Rome" (ancient medicine and health as seen through the eyes of Galen). Their exhibit can be explored here:  

https://galen.nyu.yourcultureconnect.com/e/home

Image: Votive relief depicting Asclepius healing a patient in her sleep, with Hygieia standing behind the god. Greek, ca. 400–350 BCE. Marble. Temple of Asclepius (Asclepieion), Piraeus, near Athens. H. 42 cm; W. 79 cm. Archaeological Museum of Piraeus: MP 405. Photo: Sites & Photos / Art Resource, NY.

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Lorica Segmentata

Despite the armor being commonly associated with the Romans, lorica segmentata-type armor was used by other civilizations before the Romans. The armor was used by the Parthians and possibly the Dacians, Scythians, or Sarmatians before the Romans used it. Some sets of armor similar to the lorica segmentata dating back to the 4th century BCE have been found in archaeological sites located in the steppe. 

Although, the exact time in which the Romans adopted the armor remains unknown, some say it was after Crassus' defeat at Carrhae in 53 BCE. Others say the armor was adopted in 21 CE after the Revolt of Julius Sacrovir and Julius Florus. One form of the armor was used as early as 9 BCE because the soldiers at the Battle of Teutoberg Forest wore it.  

Around the middle of the third century CE lorica segmentata fell out of favor with the Roman army. Some scholars point to soldiers wearing the lorica segmentata depicted on the Arch of Constantine, a monument erected in 315 CE. However, it has been argued that these depictions are from an earlier monument by Marcus Aurelius, from which Constantine incorporated portions into his Arch.

The question as to precisely who used the armor is also debated. On Trajan's Column, auxilia are generally shown wearing mail, cuirasses, and carrying oval shields. Legionaries are uniformly depicted wearing the lorica segmentata and carrying the curved rectangular shield. On this basis, it has been supposed that lorica segmentata was exclusively used by legionaries and praetorians. However, the discovery of parts of the lorica segmentata at areas where auxiliary soldiers would have been stationed implies that auxiliary troops used the lorica segmentata as well. It is entirely possible, though, that the reason behind the presence of the lorica segmentata in these areas could be because these areas had a small amount of legionaries stationed there, too.  So, the common viewpoint is that soldiers' attire on Trajan's column is stereotyped in order to distinguish clearly between different types of troops. 

Bronze statuette of a legionary (foot soldier), perhaps a praetorian guard, 2nd century CE. The soldier wears a tunic, with an outer skirt of leather straps, and on his upper body, lorica segmentata. He is also wearing strapped sandals, breeches, and a crested helmet.  Courtesy of the British Museum.

Closeup of Legionnaire wearing lorica segmentata serves a carroballista (cart-mounted field artillery) on Trajan's Column, 113 CE, sculpture attributed to Apollodorus of Damascus, photo by Conrad Cichorius (1896) courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

 

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Living well in the Roman Empire

 As thou intendest to live when thou art gone out,...so it is in thy power to live here.  Marcus Aurelius.  Meditations.  Book 5.

Images: Some of my images from Hadrian's Villa taken way back on my first visit to Italy in 2005. All images licensed with Creative Commons Attribution courtesy of Mary Harrsch (Required).

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Fish and Fishing in the Roman World

In her paper, "Fish and Fishing in the Roman World," Annalisa Marzano of the University of Reading observes:

"On the whole, fishermen in antiquity had a low social status and although fishing could be the topic of literary works, of mosaics in elite dwellings, and a recreational activity, the ordinary men who engaged in large-scale fishing and supplied the many fish-salting establishments of the Roman world remain almost invisible. It seems very likely that the same individuals engaged both in fishing and salting the fish, but to date we do not have definite evidence. There are only few surviving attestations of groups of fishermen from the Roman Mediterranean. Some clearly refer to proper collegia, which seemed to have worked in collaboration with the fishmongers, who sold only fresh fish. Others were business partnerships (societates) formed in order to operate large-scale fishing, and, possibly, also fish-salting operations."

Sought after fish that could command high prices were large specimens of bass, sea bream, mullet, and gilthead while anchovies and smaller fish species were considered affordable by people of modest means. Marine fish was, generally, more sought after than freshwater fish and, in terms of status and monetary value, fresh fish was superior to preserved fish. In a meal consisting of more than one dish, preserved fish was mainly consumed as appetiser, while fresh fish could be either the main dish or, especially for small types of fish, also feature among the appetisers.

Of course location played an important role in whether fresh fish was readily available or preserved fish was more often part of a Roman's meal.   Sewer analysis from Herculaneum, primarily a port city, indicate consumption of fresh seafood across social strata. However, for inland agricultural laborers, Marcus Aurelius in a letter to his friend Fronto points out that, at least on one of his imperial estates,  small preserved sardines, boiled beans, and onions were the foods eaten by the agricultural laborers.  Salted fish was also served to ship crews, as attested to in an excavation of sixty small vessels in the Rhône at Arles, and to the Roman army.

Culinary "fashion" also changed over time. During the Republican period, a sturgeon was prized because it was a non-Mediterranean species. It subsequently went out of fashion for a time until it was once more considered worthy of an emperor's table.  The social value of fish as a gift also seemed to be disputable. Martial ridicules a social climber named Papylus, who tries to impress people by sending gifts of fresh mullets and oysters, while he dines on much simpler fare at home.  In contrast, a military verteran named Tiberius Bellenus Gemellus selected a gift of fresh fish and one artaba (about 27 liters) of olives for an Egyptian official whose favor he wished to gain.

To read more of Marzano's paper that appeared in the Journal of Maritime Archaeology:

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11457-018-9195-1

Image:  Bollard with a Fisherman, early 5th century CE, Late Roman or Byzantine, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  This young fisherman, wearing a tunic and boots, stands before a weighted bollard, used to tie large boats to a wharf. With a net cast over his shoulder, he holds a rudder in his left hand. The cleat itself, used to secure a line from a boat, is formed by two fingers protruding from the bollard. Image courtesy of the museum (digitally enhanced).

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The dark side of early Saturnalia

  Give to others readily, and cherish good hopes.  Marcus Aurelius. Meditations. Book 1.

Image: Month of December from the Chronography of 354 with Saturnalian dice on the table and a mask (oscilla) hanging above by the 4th century CE calligrapher Filocalus.  

Although Saturnalia is usually remembered for festivities, gift giving, and, in the ancient Roman world, role reversal between slaves and their masters, there was a less benevolent aspect of the chthonic god, Saturn that connected him to the underworld and its ruler Dis Pater also known as Pluto.  Ten days of gladiatorial events were presented by quaestors throughout December and early Christian critics of the 3rd century CE, in their anti-pagan campaigns, claimed the primeval Saturn had at one point before the establishment of the Republic, demanded sacrificial male victims (virorum victimis).  It was said, though, that when Hercules visited Italy, the civilizing demigod insisted that the practice be halted and the ritual reinterpreted. Instead of heads to Dis Pater, the Romans were to offer effigies or masks (oscilla).  Figurines (sigillaria) exchanged as gifts were also thought to represent token substitutes.

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The River of Forgetfulness

Near is thy forgetfulness of all things, and near the forgetfulness of thee by all. Marcus Aurelius.  Meditations.  Book 7.

Lethe, the river of forgetfulness, is one of the five rivers of the Greek underworld. The other four are Acheron (the river of sorrow), Cocytus (the river of lamentation), Phlegethon (the river of fire) and Styx (the river that separates Earth and the Underworld). According to Statius, it bordered Elysium, the final resting place of the virtuous. Ovid wrote that the river flowed through the cave of Hypnos, god of sleep, where its murmuring would induce drowsiness. The shades of the dead were required to drink the waters of the Lethe in order to forget their earthly life. In the Aeneid, Virgil (VI.703-751) writes that it is only when the dead have had their memories erased by the Lethe that they may be reincarnated.

Amongst authors in antiquity, the tiny Lima river between Norte Region, Portugal, and Galicia, Spain, was said to have the same properties of memory loss as the legendary Lethe River, being mistaken for it. In 138 BCE, the Roman general Decimus Junius Brutus Callaicus sought to dispose of the myth, as it impeded his military campaigns in the area. He was said to have crossed the Lima and then called his soldiers from the other side, one by one, by name. The soldiers, astonished that their general remembered their names, crossed the river as well without fear. 

Image: Sleep and his half-brother death, 1874, by John William Waterhouse, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

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All things take place by change

Observe constantly that all things take place by change, and accustom thyself to consider that the nature of the Universe loves nothing so much as to change the things which are and to make new things like them. For everything that exists is in a manner the seed of that which will be.  Marcus Aurelius.  Meditations.  Book 4.

Image:  Mosaic of Tyche, of Beit She'an, ancient Scythopolis, in the northern district of Israel, wearing a crown with the town's walls, and holding a Cornucopia, with a Phoenix tree in it.  The site was originally settled during the Late Neolithic and Early Chalcolithic periods and continued during the Bronze Age.  During the 15th century BCE the site was conquered by Pharaoh Thutmose III and became an Egyptian military and administration center. But Beit She'an was destroyed during  the Assyrian conquest of the Levant by Tiglath-Pileser III in 732 BCE.   During the Hellenistic Period, the site was reoccupied by Scythian mercenaries who settled there as veterans, hence the name change to Scythopolis.  After Pompey made Judea part of the Roman empire in 63 BCE, Beit She'an was again rebuilt by Gabinius and became the leading city of the Decapolis.  The city flourished under the "Pax Romana", as evidenced by high-level urban planning and extensive construction, including the best preserved Roman theatre of ancient Samaria, as well as a hippodrome, a cardo and other trademarks of the Roman influence.  Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor Yuvalif.  Image digitally adjusted for perspective.

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Roman gaming and learning not to sweat the small stuff

Almost every day, I try to share a meaningful quote from the ancient sources such as this one from Marcus Aurelius:

Remember that the attention given to everything has its proper value and proportion. For thus thou wilt not be dissatisfied, if thou appliest thyself to smaller matters no further than is fit.  Marcus Aurelius.  Meditations.  Book 4.

While looking for artwork to illustrate it, I stumbled across this picture and was amazed.  Although I've seen Roman dice, knucklebones, and Romans of all ages playing these games of chance, I've never seen one of these gaming "towers" before!

Roman gaming tower image courtesy of the Rheinisches Landesmuseum, Bonn, Germany and Wikimedia Commons. I increased the size of the image with AI software.

This dice tower was found in Germania Inferior near the modern villages of Vettweis and Froitzheim, dating back to the fourth century, specifically around the time of Emperor Constantine.  As well as ornately carved pinnacles and dolphins, the tower contains text reading in translation: ‘Victory over the Picts, the enemies have been defeated, play in safety!’ (sort of the Roman version of 'not suitable for small children).

Along the back is the phrase ‘vtere felix vivas’ which can be translated as ‘use this and live with luck/happiness’ or more loosely ‘live happy and play well’. The tower is designed to eliminate the effects of loaded dice and prevent cheating in a gambling environment. According to the Rheinisches Landesmuseum in Bonn, Germany the top of the dice tower is open, allowing for the introduction of dice, and it contains three levels of projecting baffles which would produce random motion in the dice as they fell through the tower. The dice would then emerge at the base of the tower via a miniature flight of steps. The dice, while emerging, would ring three bells which formerly hung above the exit. (One of these bells survived intact).

"You can almost imagine the situation: a bunch of wealthy and influential Romans lose a lot of money in a provincial gambling house and suspect the proprietors of cheating (after all, why would they be more honest than modern casino-owners?). Faced with a scandal, the gambling house decides to invest in a number of elaborate devices to secure their reputation by supposedly eliminating these foul practices." - Alex Shaw,  https://earlyworks.weebly.com/roman-games-2.html

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The elevation of mind through examination

For nothing is so productive of elevation of mind as to be able to examine methodically and truly every object which is presented to thee in life. Marcus Aurelius. Meditations. Book 3.

This quote made me think of Pliny the Elder whose passion to examine things around him seemed boundless, so much so that it eventually cost him his life during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE.

Image: One of the Xanten Horse-Phalerae located in the British Museum with the inscription formed from punched dots: PLINIO PRAEF EQ; i.e. Plinio praefecto equitum, "Pliny prefect of cavalry". It may have been issued to every man in Pliny's unit. The figure is the bust of the emperor courtesy of Wikimedia Commons contributor Telemon.

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The Roman viewpoint on old age

We ought to consider not only that our life is daily wasting away and a smaller part of it is left, but another thing also must be taken into the account, that if a man should live longer, it is quite uncertain whether the understanding will still continue sufficient for the comprehension of things, and retain the power of contemplation which strives to acquire the knowledge of the divine and the human.  Marcus Aurelius.  Meditations.  Book 3.

Image:  Bronze Male Portrait from the House of the Citharist in Pompeii 1st century CE.  Portraits of aged Romans showed a ruthless adherence to the realistic features of old age, such as wrinkles, folds of loose, flabby skin, sunken cheeks, blemishes and balding heads. Old age was emphasized, even exaggerated. It is notable that the majority of the old men appear solemn, which was indicative of the gravitas of age.  The portraits revealed how these old people wanted to be seen and the depiction of old age is deliberate. These portraits suggest worthiness and dignified behaviour. Facial expression was seen as an expression of character and these portrait busts therefore gave moral judgements. The stern and serious-looking faces, with their exaggerated wrinkles and folds, were suggestive of years of hard work and experience. These old men seem comfortable with their age. Only the old who lived up to societal expectations could expect reverence. These old men looked as if they had done their duty and had rightfully earned their status and respect.

Rome’s competitive society was extremely conscious of glory and public status. Having a role to play in society provided an old man with this status, which in turn would nourish his self-confidence and self-esteem. Public distinction and worthiness had associations with dignity (dignitas), a highly desirable virtue in Roman ideology, commanding reverence and respect. For this reason, some old men were keen to promote a self-image of gravity, sobriety and virtuousness. - This is a brief quote from an excellent article on old age in Rome by Dr. Karen Cokayne of the University of Reading. I found it quite comprehensive with fascinating anecdotes.

https://www.brlsi.org/events-proceedings/proceedings/25020

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Exercising the legions in the Marcomannic Wars

Image by mharrsch via Flickr

Equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius
outside the Capitoline Museums in Rome

By every honorable expedient they [Hadrian, Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius] invited the friendship of the barbarians; and endeavored to convince mankind that the Roman power, raised above the temptation of conquest, was actuated only by the love of order and justice. - Edward Gibbon, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

When I read this statement claiming Marcus Aurelius was essentially benevolent towards the barbarians, I can't help but remember the opening battle scenes in Gladiator and the observation by the emperor that he had been at war almost continuously for the past 20 years.  To be exact, Gibbon is referring to Hadrian and the two Antonines but I can't believe Gibbon would mean Lucius Verus and not Marcus Aurelius.  Gibbon goes on to acknowledge that there were some minor hostilities on the frontiers but they merely served to exercise the legions.  This leaves the severity of conflicts during the reign of Marcus Aurelius a matter of interpretation I guess.  A war with the Parthians was already in progress when Marcus Aurelius ascended to the purple followed by the Marcomannic Wars that are said to have lasted most of the rest of Aurelius' life.  Perhaps Gibbon was anxious to portray Marcus Aurelius as the ideal philosopher king, probably a viewpoint shared by other 18th century historians who offered up a copy of his "Meditations" as proof.


In reality, however, the Marcomannic Wars were not as benign as we are led to believe.  In the first Marcomannic War, one of the Germanic leaders, Ballomar, crossed the Danube and won a decisive victory over a force of 20,000 Roman soldiers near Carnuntum.  The Germanic force followed that victory with the ravage of Noricum, the obliteration of Opitergium (Oderzo) and the siege of Aquileia. This was the first time hostile forces had entered Italy since 101 BC, when Gaius Marius defeated the Cimbri and Teutones.

Image by mharrsch via Flickr

Scenes of the Marcomannic Wars are

depicted on the column of Marcus Aurelius

near the Pantheon in Rome.

I particularly like this video comprised of  a distillation of the ferocious scenes of one such battle of the Marcommanic Wars depicted in Gladiator even though Hans Zimmer's fantastic music has been replaced with another artist's soundtrack.


By the time Marcus Aurelius put down the revolt and signed a treaty in 175 CE, the barbarians had to surrender over 100,000 Roman prisoners they had captured in their various escapades.  These numbers seem to indicate a far more extensive involvement than a skirmish that merely "exercised" the legions.  Perhaps Gibbon is seduced by the fact that thousands of Marcomanni subsequently were enlisted as Roman auxiliaries (another requirement of the treaty) so Marcus Aurelius is perceived as having offered the hand of friendship even after the Marcommani engaged is such widespread destruction.  

Related articles

• Emperors of Rome: Marcus Aurelius (rogueclassicism.com)

      

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Drug Use Among Ancient Civilizations: Everybody musta got stoned

Portrait bust of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius at the
Palazzo Altemps in Rome, Italy.
Photo by Mary Harrsch © 2009

Historical resource article by Mary Harrsch © 2008

I found this article not only fascinating from a scholarly perspective but an interesting indictment of the modern approach to classical study.

Some of us wondered in geometry class how Pythagoras came up with his famous theorem regarding the relationship between the hypotenuse and the remaining two sides of a right triangle. Madison author David Hillman has a theory about the ancient Greeks that may grate on a few nerves in the classical studies world. It comes down to this: Maybe Pythagoras was smoking something.

"Everyone," attests Hillman, "was using drugs, from farmers up to [Roman emperor] Marcus Aurelius."

Hillman's new book, The Chemical Muse: Drug Use and the Roots of Western Civilization, takes a closer look at the use of drugs by the ancient Greeks and Romans.

"The early Greek philosophers who inspired the mental revolution that influenced the birth of democracy were the biggest drug-using lunatics of them all," attests Hillman. "Seriously, they were much more like medicine men than philosophers. So not only did democracy spring up in a drug-using culture, but its roots lie in a drug-using, shamanistic, intellectual movement. I think it's perfectly safe to say: 'No drugs, no democracy.'"

But Hillman says this tradition of drug use has largely been written out of history by scholars and historians, who have brought their own moral perspectives to the texts.
At his home on Madison's southwest side, Hillman displays a 22-volume collection of Galen, a second-century physician who represents the pinnacle of the Greek medical tradition begun by Hippocrates. Only a fraction of it has ever been put into English, enough to fill about three trade paperbacks. Passages show Galen prescribed opium to Marcus Aurelius for his headaches — and that, over time, the strength of his "prescription" gradually increased. 

Hillman also uncovered examples of virgins being given a mild narcotic on their wedding nights. He argues that the typical classicist — on whom the rest of us rely for English translations — don't read or can't understand these texts. 

"There is an entire work regarding drugs used for gynecology," he says. "Do you think a classicist knows the difference between a drug that's meant to close the cervix and why that's important and a drug that's meant to open it and why that is important for, say, a prostitute? No." 

Academic resistance to claims about ancient drug use outside of medical practice are not new. Carl Ruck, a tenured classical studies professor at Boston University, endures what he calls "official silence" over similar claims. 

In 1978, when Ruck collaborated with the late Albert Hofmann — the discoverer of LSD — and R. Gordon Wasson, a mycologist, to write The Road to Eleusis: Unveiling the Secrets of the Mysteries, the idea that an important Greek ritual and secret initiation involved ingestion of a psychoactive chemical potion was extremely controversial. 

"Classical antiquity is a construct of modern scholarship," says Ruck. "We've made them into something they weren't really. Scholarship has chipped away at it. Suddenly, after the feminist movement, people became aware that women had a strange role in [ancient] society. There are frescos showing people having opium parties. [Classicists] don't want to admit Greeks had this kind of experience." Ruck looked for deeper meanings in metaphor patterns and wondered if wine was one way of freeing the psyche. He began to suspect that the Eleusinian Mysteries were about more than just wine. 

"It is well known they drank something," says Ruck. "We have the formula of what they drank. That wasn't prohibited. The exact formula was intricate and not well known to regular people. They drank and they saw something." 

Such ideas haven't sparked outrage; rather, they've occasioned silence. 

"There's no great dialogue going on," says Ruck. "People don't come up to me and try to refute what I'm saying. They just don't mention it." 

Ruck says he published a book that was available for free online for a month. Ruck sent a link to his colleagues on the East Coast. No one contacted him. He published an article in New England Classical Journal regarding a drug-initiation ceremony in pre-Christian Rome. It was peer reviewed, yet no one ever talked to him about it.- MUCH more from The Daily Page

Technorati Tags: drugs, narcotics, ancient medicine, recreational drug use, Greek, Roman, Galen, Marcus Aurelius, Ovid, David Hillman, classics, dissertation,

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Tomb of Marcus Aurelius' Favorite General uncovered near Rome

"Italian archaeologists have discovered the tomb of the ancient Roman hero believed to have inspired Russell Crowe's character in the hit movie "Gladiator," Rome's officials announced on Thursday at a press conference.

Marble beams and columns, carvings and friezes first emerged from the Roman soil during construction work to build a residential complex in Saxa Rubra, not far from the headquarters of Rai, Italy's state-run television station.

According to Cristiano Ranieri, an archaeologist who led the excavation at the site, the huge fragments belonged to a monumental marble tomb built on the banks of the Tiber River at the end of the second century A.D.

Further excavation revealed a huge marble inscription that declares the tomb belonged to Marcus Nonius Macrinus, a general and consul who achieved major victories in military campaigns for Antoninus Pius, the Roman emperor from 138 to 161 A.D., and Marcus Aurelius, emperor from 161 to 180 A.D.

Born in Brescia in northern Italy in 138 A.D., Macrinus was one of the emperor's favorite men (his villa on the shores of Lake Garda is currently under excavation). He was consul in 154 A.D. and proconsul of Asia in 170 to 171 A.D (consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates in Ancient Rome).

The life of Marcus Nonius Macrinus is believed to have inspired the fictional character Maximus Decimus Meridius in Ridley Scott's film. In the movie, Meridus, also a general and a favorite of Marcus Aurelius, fell from grace after the emperor's death and ended up in exile in North Africa — to return as a gladiator and take revenge.

"We know that the area was subjected to frequent floods in ancient times. Just like Pompeii, a disaster helped preserve the monument. After a particularly strong flood, the mud from the river basically sealed the collapsed marble blocks," Rossi said.

While the construction work for the residential complex has been halted, Rome's officials plan to first reassemble the tomb in a 3-D model, and then fully reconstruct it as the centerpiece of a public archaeological display now underway in the area." ...More

Technorati Tags: Macrinus, Rome, Marcus Aurelius, tomb, burial, archaeology, Roman Empire, commander, consul,

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