Animalia in spectaculis. Animales, fieras y bestias en espectáculos romanos

Abstract

There are many aspects of daily life in ancient Rome that we still do not know, even more those with animals involved. My dissertation studies every aspect of the Roman spectacles featuring animals, the bloody aspects yes but also everything surrounding its appearance on the arena: the capture, the transport from the original capture territory, the housing in the city where they were going to participate in a spectacles, the care they required, the different spectacles they appear in, the uses of their dead bodies after removed from the arena... The Roman spectacles were a great show that Rome celebrated for the amusement of its inhabitants but for the general public those displaying animals always had been overshadowed by the ones with gladiators and even the Theatre displays, however this study shows that they were always the second favourite in the Empire.