Editing Gladiator (section)

==The games==
===Preparations===
[[File:Nennig Roman Villa and Mosaics - 51134951379.jpg|thumb|right|200px|A duel, using whip, cudgel and shields, [[Roman mosaic|mosaic]] from a [[Roman villa]] at [[Nennig]], Germany]]
Gladiator games were advertised well beforehand, on billboards that gave the reason for the game, its editor, venue, date and the number of paired gladiators (''ordinarii'') to be used. Other highlighted features could include details of ''venationes'', executions, music and any luxuries to be provided for the spectators, such as an awning against the sun, water sprinklers, food, drink, sweets and occasionally "door prizes". For enthusiasts and gamblers, a more detailed program (''libellus'') was distributed on the day of the ''munus'', showing the names, types and match records of gladiator pairs, and their order of appearance.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|pp=85, 101, 110}}. Based on fragmentary Pompeian remains and citing of Pliny's ''Historia Naturalis'', 19.23–25.</ref> Left-handed gladiators were advertised as a rarity; they were trained to fight right-handers, which gave them an advantage over most opponents and produced an interestingly unorthodox combination.<ref name="Coleman">{{cite web|last=Coleman|first=Kathleen|title=Gladiators: Heroes of the Roman Amphitheatre|work=BBC|date=17 February 2011|access-date=21 April 2017|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/gladiators_01.shtml}}</ref>

The night before the ''munus'', the gladiators were given a banquet and opportunity to order their personal and private affairs; Futrell notes its similarity to a ritualistic or sacramental "last meal".<ref>Plutarch. ''Moral Essays'', 1099B (fully cited in {{harvnb|Futrell|2006|pp=86–87}}): "Even among the gladiators, I see those who...find greater pleasure in freeing their slaves, and commending their wives to their friends, than in satisfying their appetites."</ref> These were probably both family and public events which included even the ''noxii'', sentenced to die in the arena the following day; and the ''damnati'', who would have at least a slender chance of survival. The event may also have been used to drum up more publicity for the imminent game.<ref name="Potter and Mattingly, 313">{{harvnb|Potter|Mattingly|1999|p=313}}.</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=86}}. Gladiatorial banquet on mosaic, El Djem.</ref>

===The ''ludi'' and ''munus''===
Official ''munera'' of the early Imperial era seem to have followed a standard form (''munus legitimum'').<ref>{{harvnb|Welch|2007|p=23}}; {{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=84}}.</ref> A procession (''pompa'') entered the arena, led by [[lictors]] who bore the [[fasces]] that signified the magistrate-''editor'''s power over life and death. They were followed by a small band of trumpeters (''tubicines'') playing a fanfare. Images of the gods were carried in to "witness" the proceedings, followed by a scribe to record the outcome, and a man carrying the palm branch used to honour victors. The magistrate ''editor'' entered among a retinue who carried the arms and armour to be used; the gladiators presumably came in last.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=85}}. See ''[[pompa circensis]]'' for the similar procession before games were held in the circus.</ref>
[[File:Mosaique Zliten.jpg|thumb|left|upright|250px|Musicians with trumpet (''tuba''), [[water organ]] (hydraulis), and horns [[Cornu (horn)|(''cornua'')]], from the [[Zliten mosaic]]]]
The entertainments often began with ''venationes'' (beast hunts) and ''bestiarii'' (beast fighters).<ref>Sometimes beasts were simply exhibited, and left unharmed; see {{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=88}}.</ref> Next came the ''ludi meridiani'', which were of variable content but usually involved executions of ''noxii'', some of whom were condemned to be subjects of fatal re-enactments, based on Greek or Roman myths.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=91}}.</ref> Gladiators may have been involved in these as executioners, though most of the crowd, and the gladiators themselves, preferred the "dignity" of an even contest.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|pp=94–95}}. Futrell is citing Seneca's ''On Providence'', 3.4.</ref> There were also comedy fights; some may have been lethal. A crude Pompeian graffito suggests a burlesque of musicians, dressed as animals named ''Ursus tibicen'' (flute-playing bear) and ''Pullus cornicen'' (horn-blowing chicken), perhaps as accompaniment to clowning by ''[[List of Roman gladiator types|paegniarii]]'' during a "mock" contest of the ''ludi meridiani''.<ref>{{harvnb|Wisdom|McBride|2001|p=18}}. Author's drawing.</ref>

===Armatures===
The gladiators may have held informal warm-up matches, using blunted or dummy weapons—some ''munera'', however, may have used blunted weapons throughout.<ref>{{harvnb|Carter|2004|pp=43, 46–49}}. In the Eastern provinces of the later Empire the state ''archiereis'' combined the roles of ''editor'', Imperial cult priest and ''lanista'', giving ''gladiatoria munera'' in which the use of sharp weapons seems an exceptional honour.</ref> The ''editor,'' his representative or an honoured guest would check the weapons (''probatio armorum'') for the scheduled matches.<ref>Marcus Aurelius encouraged the use of blunted weapons: see Cassius Dio's ''Roman History'', [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/72*.html#p51 71.29.4].</ref> These were the highlight of the day, and were as inventive, varied and novel as the ''editor'' could afford. Armatures could be very costly—some were flamboyantly decorated with exotic feathers, jewels and precious metals. Increasingly the ''munus'' was the ''editor'''s gift to spectators who had come to expect the best as their due.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|pp=99–100}}; {{harvnb|Wiedemann|1992|p=14}}.</ref>
<gallery mode="packed" heights="200px">

Image:Roman myrmillones gladiator helmet with relief depicting scenes from the Trojan War from Herculaneum 1st century CE Bronze 01.jpg|[[Murmillo]] gladiator helmet with relief depicting scenes from the Trojan War; from [[Herculaneum]]
Image:Roman gladiator helmet found in the gladiator barracks in Pompeii 1st century CE.jpg|Helmet found in the gladiator barracks in Pompeii
Image:Roman gladiator helmet from Herculaneum Iron 1st century CE.jpg|Iron gladiator helmet from Herculaneum
Image:Gladiator helmet found in Pompeii and richly decorated with scenes of Greek mythology, Gladiators – Death and Triumph at the Colosseum exhibition, Museum und Park Kalkriese (9618142634).jpg|Gladiator helmet found in Pompeii, with scenes from [[Greek Mythology]]
Image:Antica roma, elmo con cresta, I-III secolo ca.jpg|Helmet from 1st–3rd century
Image:Ornate pair of gladiator shin guards depicting a procession of Bacchus from the gladiator barracks in Pompeii 01.jpg|Ornate gladiator shin guards from Pompeii
Image:Gladiator shin guard depicting the goddess Athena from the gladiator barracks in Pompeii 1st century CE.jpg|Shin guard depicting the goddess Athena
Image:Gladiator shin guard depicting Venus Euploia protectress of seafarers sitting on a ship shaped like a dolphin from Pompeii 1st century CE.jpg|Shin guard depicting [[Venus (mythology)#Epithets|Venus Euploia]] (Venus of the "fair voyage") on a ship shaped like a dolphin
Image:Heart-shaped spear head found in the gladiator barracks in Pompeii 1st century CE.jpg|Heart-shaped spear head found in the gladiator barracks in Pompeii
</gallery>

===Combat===
Lightly armed and armoured fighters, such as the [[retiarius]], would tire less rapidly than their heavily armed opponents; most bouts would have lasted 10 to 15 minutes, or 20 minutes at most.<ref>{{harvnb|Potter|Mattingly|1999|p=313}}</ref> In late Republican ''munera'', between 10 and 13 matches could have been fought on one day; this assumes one match at a time in the course of an afternoon.<ref name="Potter and Mattingly, 313" />

Spectators preferred to watch highly skilled, well matched ''ordinarii'' with complementary fighting styles; these were the most costly to train and to hire. A general ''[[melee]]'' of several, lower-skilled gladiators was far less costly, but also less popular. Even among the ''ordinarii'', match winners might have to fight a new, well-rested opponent, either a ''tertiarius'' ("third choice gladiator") by prearrangement; or a "substitute" gladiator (''suppositicius'') who fought at the whim of the ''editor'' as an unadvertised, unexpected "extra".<ref>{{harvnb|Kyle|2007|pp=313–314}}</ref> This yielded two combats for the cost of three gladiators, rather than four; such contests were prolonged, and in some cases, more bloody. Most were probably of poor quality,<ref>Dunkle, Roger, ''Gladiators: Violence and Spectacle in Ancient Rome'', Routledge, 2013, pp. 69–71; Dunkle is discussing the use of a ''suppositicius'' (a substitute used only at need, probably to prolong a particular scheduled fight) and a ''tertiarius'', citing Petronius for the latter as offering a poor quality bout.</ref> but the emperor [[Caracalla]] chose to test a notably skilled and successful fighter named Bato against first one ''supposicitius'', whom he beat, and then another, who killed him.<ref name="Dunkle_2013_p70-71">Dunkle, Roger, ''Gladiators: Violence and Spectacle in Ancient Rome'', Routledge, 2013, pp. 70–71</ref> At the opposite level of the profession, a gladiator reluctant to confront his opponent might be whipped, or goaded with hot irons, until he engaged through sheer desperation.<ref name="Fagan" />

[[File:Astyanax vs Kalendio mosaic.jpg|thumb|Mosaic at the [[National Archaeological Museum of Spain|National Archaeological Museum]] in [[Madrid]] showing a [[retiarius]] named Kalendio (shown surrendering in the upper section) fighting a [[secutor]] named Astyanax. The Ø sign by Kalendio's name implies he was killed after surrendering.]]
Combats between experienced, well trained gladiators demonstrated a considerable degree of stagecraft. Among the cognoscenti, bravado and skill in combat were esteemed over mere hacking and bloodshed; some gladiators made their careers and reputation from bloodless victories. Suetonius describes an exceptional ''munus'' by Nero, in which no-one was killed, "not even ''noxii'' (enemies of the state)."<ref name="Fagan">{{cite book | last = Fagan | first = Garrett | year = 2011 | title = The Lure of the Arena: Social Psychology and the Crowd at the Roman Games | publisher = Cambridge University Press | pages=217–218, 273, 277| isbn = 978-0521196161}} Fagan speculates that Nero was perversely defying the crowd's expectations, or perhaps trying to please a different kind of crowd.</ref>

Trained gladiators were expected to observe professional rules of combat. Most matches employed a senior [[referee]] (''summa rudis'') and an assistant, shown in mosaics with long staffs (''rudes'') to caution or separate opponents at some crucial point in the match. Referees were usually retired gladiators whose decisions, judgement and discretion were, for the most part, respected;<ref>Though not always: the gladiator Diodorus blames "murderous Fate and the cunning treachery of the ''summa rudis''" for his death, not his own error in not finishing off his opponent when he had the chance: see Robert, Gladiateurs, no. 79 = SgO 11/02/01</ref> they could stop bouts entirely, or pause them to allow the combatants rest, refreshment and a rub-down.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=101}}; based on mosaics and a Pompeian tomb relief.</ref>

Ludi and ''munera'' were accompanied by music, played as interludes, or building to a "frenzied crescendo" during combats, perhaps to heighten the suspense during a gladiator's appeal; blows may have been accompanied by trumpet-blasts.<ref>The gravestones of several musicians and gladiators mention such modulations; see Fagan, pp. 225–226, and footnotes.</ref><ref name="Coleman"/> The [[Zliten mosaic]] in Libya (circa 80–100 AD) shows musicians playing an accompaniment to provincial games (with gladiators, ''bestiarii'', or ''venatores'' and prisoners attacked by beasts). Their instruments are a long straight trumpet (''[[Lituus|tubicen]]''), a large curved horn (''[[Cornu (horn)|Cornu]]'') and a [[water organ]] (''hydraulis'').<ref>{{harvnb|Wiedemann|1992|pp=15–16}}.</ref> Similar representations (musicians, gladiators and ''bestiari'') are found on a tomb relief in [[Pompeii]].<ref>{{harvnb|Wiedemann|1992|p=15}}. Wiedemann is citing Kraus and von Matt's ''Pompei and Herculaneum'', New York, 1975, Fig. 53.</ref>

===Victory and defeat===
{{See also|Pollice verso}}
A match was won by the gladiator who overcame his opponent, or killed him outright. Victors received the palm branch and an award from the ''editor''. An outstanding fighter might receive a laurel crown and money from an appreciative crowd but for anyone originally condemned ''ad ludum'' the greatest reward was manumission (emancipation), symbolised by the gift of a wooden training sword or staff (''rudis'') from the ''editor''. Martial describes a match between [[Priscus (gladiator)|Priscus]] and [[Verus (gladiator)|Verus]], who fought so evenly and bravely for so long that when both acknowledged defeat at the same instant, [[Titus]] awarded victory and a ''rudis'' to each.<ref>Martial. ''Liber de Spectaculis'', 29.</ref> Flamma was awarded the ''rudis'' four times, but chose to remain a gladiator. His gravestone in [[Sicily]] includes his record: "Flamma, ''[[secutor]]'', lived 30 years, fought 34 times, won 21 times, fought to a draw 9 times, defeated 4 times, a [[Syria (Roman province)|Syrian]] by nationality. Delicatus made this for his deserving comrade-in-arms."<ref>{{harvnb|Kyle|2007|p=112}}. Kyle is citing Robert.</ref>

A gladiator could acknowledge defeat by raising a finger (''ad digitum''), in appeal to the referee to stop the combat and refer to the ''editor'', whose decision would usually rest on the crowd's response.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=101}}</ref> In the earliest ''munera'', death was considered a righteous penalty for defeat; later, those who fought well might be granted remission at the whim of the crowd or the ''editor''. During the Imperial era, matches advertised as ''sine missione'' (usually understood to mean "without reprieve" for the defeated) suggest that ''missio'' (the sparing of a defeated gladiator's life) had become common practice. The contract between ''editor'' and his ''lanista'' could include compensation for unexpected deaths;<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=141}}.</ref> this could be "some fifty times higher than the lease price" of the gladiator.<ref>M. J. Carter, "Gladiatorial Combat: The Rules of Engagement", ''The Classical Journal'', Vol. 102, No. 2 (Dec. – Jan. 2006/2007), p. 101.</ref>
[[File:Gladiator mosaic of a retiarius from Leptis Magna Libya 1st century CE.jpg|thumb|Mosaic showing a wounded gladiator in [[Leptis Magna]], [[Roman Libya]], 1st century AD]]
Under Augustus' rule, the demand for gladiators began to exceed supply, and matches ''sine missione'' were officially banned; an economical, pragmatic development that happened to match popular notions of "natural justice". When Caligula and Claudius refused to spare defeated but popular fighters, their own popularity suffered. In general, gladiators who fought well were likely to survive.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|pp=144–145}}. Futrell is citing Suetonius's ''Lives'', "Augustus", 45, "Caligula", 30, "Claudius", 34.</ref> At a Pompeian match between chariot-fighters, Publius Ostorius, with previous 51 wins to his credit, was granted missio after losing to Scylax, with 26 victories.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=85}}. This is evidenced on a roughly inscribed libellus.</ref> By common custom, the spectators decided whether or not a losing gladiator should be spared, and chose the winner in the rare event of a standing tie.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=101}}.</ref> Even more rarely, perhaps uniquely, one stalemate ended in the killing of one gladiator by the ''editor'' himself.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=102}} (The evidence is on a stylised mosaic from Symmachus; the spectators praise the ''editor'' for "doing the right thing").</ref><ref name="Barton 2728">{{Cite journal|last=Barton|first=Carlin A.|date=1989|title=The Scandal of the Arena|jstor=2928482|journal=Representations|issue=27|pages= 27, 28, note 33|doi=10.2307/2928482}} (subscription required)</ref> In any event, the final decision of death or life belonged to the ''editor'', who signalled his choice with a gesture described by Roman sources as ''[[pollice verso]]'' meaning "with a turned thumb"; a description too imprecise for reconstruction of the gesture or its symbolism. Whether victorious or defeated, a gladiator was bound by oath to accept or implement his editor's decision, "the victor being nothing but the instrument of his [editor's] will."<ref name="Barton 2728"/> Not all ''editors'' chose to go with the crowd, and not all those condemned to death for putting on a poor show chose to submit:
<blockquote>
Once a band of five ''[[retiarius|retiarii]]'' in tunics, matched against the same number of ''[[secutores]]'', yielded without a struggle; but when their death was ordered, one of them caught up his trident and slew all the victors. [[Caligula]] bewailed this in a public proclamation as a most cruel murder.<ref>Suetonius. ''Lives'', "Caligula", 30.3.</ref>
</blockquote>

===Death and disposal===
A gladiator who was refused ''missio'' was despatched by his opponent. To die well, a gladiator should never ask for mercy, nor cry out.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=140}}. Futrell is citing Cicero's ''Tuscullan Disputations'', 2.17.</ref> A "good death" redeemed the gladiator from the dishonourable weakness and passivity of defeat, and provided a noble example to those who watched:<ref>{{harvnb|Wiedemann|1992|pp=38–39}}.</ref>

<blockquote>
For death, when it stands near us, gives even to inexperienced men the courage not to seek to avoid the inevitable. So the gladiator, no matter how faint-hearted he has been throughout the fight, offers his throat to his opponent and directs the wavering blade to the vital spot. (Seneca. ''Epistles'', 30.8)</blockquote>

Some mosaics show defeated gladiators kneeling in preparation for the moment of death. Seneca's "vital spot" seems to have meant the neck.<ref>{{harvnb|Edwards|2007|pp=66–67}}.</ref> Gladiator remains from Ephesus confirm this.<ref>{{harvnb|Curry|2008}}. Marks on the bones of several gladiators suggest a sword thrust into the base of the throat and down towards the heart.</ref>
[[File:GladiatorFeldflasche.jpg|thumb|A flask depicting the final phase of the fight between a ''[[murmillo]]'' (winning) and a ''[[thraex]]'']]
The body of a gladiator who had died well was placed on a couch of [[Libitina]] and removed with dignity to the arena morgue, where the corpse was stripped of armour, and probably had its throat cut as confirmation of death. The Christian author [[Tertullian]], commenting on ''ludi meridiani'' in Roman [[Carthage]] during the peak era of the games, describes a more humiliating method of removal. One arena official, dressed as the "brother of Jove", [[Dis Pater]] (god of the underworld) strikes the corpse with a mallet. Another, dressed as [[Mercury (mythology)|Mercury]], tests for life-signs with a heated "wand"; once confirmed as dead, the body is dragged from the arena.<ref>By Tertullian's time, Mercury was identified with Greek [[Hermes#Epithets|Hermes psychopompos]], who led souls into the underworld. Tertullian describes these events as examples of hollow impiety, in which Rome's false deities are acceptably impersonated by low and murderous persons for the purposes of human sacrifice and evil entertainment. See {{harvnb|Kyle|1998|pp=155–168}}.</ref>

Whether these victims were gladiators or ''noxii'' is unknown. Modern pathological examination confirms the probably fatal use of a mallet on some, but not all the gladiator skulls found in a gladiators' cemetery.<ref>{{harvnb|Grossschmidt|Kanz|2006|pp=207–216}}.</ref> Kyle (1998) proposes that gladiators who disgraced themselves might have been subjected to the same indignities as ''noxii'', denied the relative mercies of a quick death and dragged from the arena as carrion. Whether the corpse of such a gladiator could be redeemed from further ignominy by friends or ''familia'' is not known.<ref>{{harvnb|Kyle|1998|pp=40, 155–168}}. ''Dis Pater'' and Jupiter Latiaris rituals in Tertullian's ''Ad Nationes'', 1.10.47: Tertullian describes the offering of a fallen gladiator's blood to [[Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter Latiaris]] by an officiating priest—a travesty of the offering of the blood of martyrs—but places this within a ''munus'' (or a festival) dedicated to Jupiter Latiaris; no such practice is otherwise recorded, and Tertullian may have mistaken or reinterpreted what he saw.</ref>

The bodies of ''noxii'', and possibly some ''damnati'', were thrown into rivers or dumped unburied;<ref>{{harvnb|Kyle|1998|p=14 (including note #74)}}. Kyle contextualises Juvenal's ''panem et circenses''—bread and games as a sop to the politically apathetic plebs (Satires, 4.10)—within an account of the death and ''damnatio'' of [[Sejanus]], whose body was torn to pieces by the crowd and left unburied.</ref> Denial of funeral rites and memorial condemned the shade (''manes'') of the deceased to restless wandering upon the earth as a dreadful ''[[lemures|larva'' or ''lemur]]''.<ref>Suetonius. ''Lives'', "Tiberius", 75. Suetonius has the populace wish the same fate on [[Tiberius]]'s body, a form of ''damnatio'': to be thrown in the Tiber, or left unburied, or "dragged with the hook".</ref> Ordinary citizens, slaves and freedmen were usually buried beyond the town or city limits, to avoid the ritual and physical pollution of the living; professional gladiators had their own, separate cemeteries. The taint of ''infamia'' was perpetual.<ref>{{harvnb|Kyle|1998|pp=128–159}}.</ref>
[[File:Borghese gladiator 1 mosaic dn r2 c2.jpg|thumb|center|550px|Part of the [[Gladiator Mosaic]], displayed at the [[Galleria Borghese]]. It dates from approximately 320 AD. The Ø symbol is the theta nigrum ("black [[theta]]") or theta infelix ("unlucky theta"), a [[Symbols of death|symbol of death]] in Greek and Latin [[epigraphy]].<ref>Its name  was coined in the modern era, by [[Theodore Mommsen]]: in the Roman military, it marked the death of a soldier. See {{cite journal |last=Mednikarova  |first=Iveta |title=The Use of Θ in Latin Funerary Inscriptions |journal=Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik|volume=136 |date=2001 |pages=267–276 |jstor=20190914 }}</ref>]]

===Remembrance and epitaphs===
Gladiators could subscribe to a union (''collegia''), which ensured their proper burial, and sometimes a pension or compensation for wives and children. Otherwise, the gladiator's ''familia'', which included his ''lanista'', comrades and blood-kin, might fund his funeral and memorial costs, and use the memorial to assert their moral reputation as responsible, respectful colleagues or family members. Some monuments record the gladiator's career in some detail, including the number of appearances, victories—sometimes represented by an engraved crown or wreath—defeats, career duration, and age at death. Some include the gladiator's type, in words or direct representation: for example, the memorial of a retiarius at Verona included the engraving of a trident and sword.<ref name="FIGHTING FOR IDENTITY 2000">{{cite journal|last1=Hope|first1=Valerie|title=Fighting for identity: The funerary commemoration of Italian gladiators|journal=Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies|date=January 2000|volume=44|issue=S73|pages=93–113|doi=10.1111/j.2041-5370.2000.tb01940.x}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|pp=133, 149–153}}. The single name form on a gladiator memorial usually indicates a slave, two a freedman or discharged ''auctoratus'' and, very rare among gladiators, three (''"[[Roman naming conventions|tria nomina]]"'') a freedman or a full Roman citizen. See also [http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/roman_names.html vroma.org] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110112012042/http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/roman_names.html |date=12 January 2011 }} on Roman names.</ref> A wealthy editor might commission artwork to celebrate a particularly successful or memorable show, and include named portraits of winners and losers in action; the Borghese [[Gladiator Mosaic]] is a notable example. According to Cassius Dio, the emperor [[Caracalla]] gave the gladiator Bato a magnificent memorial and State funeral;<ref name="Dunkle_2013_p70-71"/> more typical are the simple gladiator tombs of the Eastern Roman Empire, whose brief inscriptions include the following:
<blockquote>
"The familia set this up in memory of Saturnilos."<br />
"For Nikepharos, son of Synetos, Lakedaimonian, and for Narcissus the secutor. Titus Flavius Satyrus set up this monument in his memory from his own money."<br />
"For Hermes. Paitraeites with his cell-mates set this up in memory".<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=149}}. Futrell is citing Robert, #12, #24, and #109.</ref>
</blockquote>
[[File:Mosaico (HR) (24558899630).jpg|thumb|Mosaic depicting the fight between two gladiators named Simmachius and Maternus, 3rd century AD]]
Very little evidence survives of the religious beliefs of gladiators as a class, or their expectations of an afterlife. Modern scholarship offers little support for the once-prevalent notion that gladiators, ''venatores'' and ''bestiarii'' were personally or professionally dedicated to the cult of the Graeco-Roman goddess [[Nemesis (mythology)|Nemesis]]. Rather, she seems to have represented a kind of "Imperial [[Fortuna]]" who dispensed Imperial retribution on the one hand, and Imperially subsidised gifts on the other—including the ''munera''. One gladiator's tomb dedication clearly states that her decisions are not to be trusted.<ref>Nemesis, her devotees and her place in the Roman world are fully discussed, with examples, in Hornum, Michael B., ''Nemesis, the Roman state and the games'', Brill, 1993.</ref> Many gladiator epitaphs claim Nemesis, fate, deception or treachery as the instrument of their death, never the superior skills of the flesh-and-blood adversary who defeated and killed them. Having no personal responsibility for his own defeat and death, the losing gladiator remains the better man, worth avenging.<ref>Garrett G. Fagan, ''Gladiators, combatants at games'', Oxford Classical Dictionary online, Jul 2015 {{doi|10.1093/acrefore/9780199381135.013.2845}}: "This refusal to concede honest defeat in the face of superior skill again speaks to professional pride and a certain braggadocio that is still operative today in combat sports."[http://classics.oxfordre.com/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199381135.001.0001/acrefore-9780199381135-e-2845] (accessed 2 April 2017)</ref>
<blockquote>
"I, Victor, left-handed, lie here, but my homeland was in Thessalonica. Doom killed me, not the liar Pinnas. No longer let him boast. I had a fellow gladiator, Polyneikes, who killed Pinnas and avenged me. Claudius Thallus set up this memorial from what I left behind as a legacy."<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=149}}. Futrell is citing Robert, #34.</ref>
</blockquote>

===Life expectancy===
[[File:Funerary inscription of the gladiator Q Vettius Gracilis (Nîmes, Mus Arch).jpg|thumb|upright|Inscription from Nîmes commemorating the ''thrax'' Quintus Vettius Gracilis, died age 25, born in [[Hispania|Roman Spain]]]]
A gladiator might expect to fight in two or three ''munera'' annually, and an unknown number would have died in their first match. Few gladiators survived more than 10 contests, though one survived an extraordinary 150 bouts;<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=145}}</ref> and another died at 90 years of age, presumably long after retirement.<ref>{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=144}}</ref> A natural death following retirement is also likely for three individuals who died at 38, 45, and 48 years respectively.<ref name="FIGHTING FOR IDENTITY 2000"/> George Ville, using evidence from 1st century gladiator headstones, calculated an average age at death of 27, and mortality "among all who entered the arena" at 19/100.<ref name="Futrell 2006 144">{{harvnb|Futrell|2006|p=144}}. Futrell is citing George Ville.</ref> Marcus Junkelmann disputes Ville's calculation for average age at death; the majority would have received no headstone, and would have died early in their careers, at 18–25 years of age.<ref>{{harvnb|Junkelmann|2000|p=145}}.</ref> Between the early and later Imperial periods the risk of death for defeated gladiators rose from 1/5 to 1/4, perhaps because ''missio'' was granted less often.<ref name="Futrell 2006 144"/> Hopkins and Beard tentatively estimate a total of 400 arenas throughout the Roman Empire at its greatest extent, with a combined total of 8,000 deaths per annum from executions, combats and accidents.<ref>{{harvnb|Hopkins|Beard|2005|pp=92–94}}.</ref>