Flamma
Flamma ("the Flame") was a gladiator from the Roman province of Syria.
History
[edit]Flamma's gravestone, located in Sicily, is the only known source recording his life and achievements. The gravestone's epitaph reads, in Latin:
Flamma sec(utor) vix(it) ann(is) XXX
pugna <vi>t XXXIIII vicit XXI
stans VIIII mis(sus) IIII nat(ione) Syrus
hui<c> Delicatus coarmio merenti fecit.[1]
This translates to:
Flamma, secutor. He lived 30 years.
He fought 34 times, won 21 times,
drew 9 times, and was spared 4 times. Syrian by birth.
Delicatus made (this tomb) for a worthy comrade-at-arms.[1]
The epitaph identifies Flamma as a secutor, or "chaser," a class of gladiator who wore heavy armor and fought with sword and shield.[2][3] Secutors generally fought retiarii, lightly-armored gladiators whose weapons were the trident and net.[2][3] The number of fights Flamma engaged in is higher than most gladiators. Many have lower numbers like Purricina Iuvenus (ILS 5107) who fought 5 times or Glaucus of Modena (ILS 5121) who fought 7 times. According to his epitaph, Flamma fought 34 times and won 21 of his matches.[4]
It is a common misconception that Flamma was offered his freedom four times but refused in order to remain a gladiator.[5][6] Gladiators were occasionally granted the rudis, a wooden sword that symbolized their freedom.[7] Flamma's epitaph, however, does not state that he was ever granted the rudis. Instead, it states that he was granted missus four times.[8][9] Missus, or missio, was the mercy granted to a gladiator after he surrendered. When missio was denied, the defeated gladiator was executed in the arena by the victor.[8]
Details of Flamma's death are unknown.
Popular Culture
[edit]Flamma is featured in episode six of the 2025 National Geographic documentary Gladiators: Warriors of the Ancient World.[10]
References
[edit]- 1 2 Fagan, Garrett G. (2011). The Lure of the Arena: Social Psychology and the Crowd at the Roman Games. Cambridge University Press. p. 323. ISBN 9780521196161.
- 1 2 Edmondson, Jonathan; Keith, Alison, eds. (2008). Roman Dress and the Fabrics of Roman Culture. Toronto, Canada: University of Toronto Press. pp. 115–116. ISBN 978-0-8020-9319-6.
- 1 2 Kohne, Eckart; Ewilgleben, Cornelia, eds. (2000). Gladiators and Caesars: The Power of Spectacle in Ancient Rome. Berkeley and Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press. pp. 61, 59. ISBN 9780520227989.
- ↑ Carter, Michael (2003). "Gladiatorial Ranking and the "SC de Pretiis Gladiatorum Minuendis" (CIL II 6278 = ILS 5163)". Classical Association of Canada. 57 (1/2): 83–114. doi:10.2307/3648490. JSTOR 3648490. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
- ↑ Hanel, Rachael (2007). Gladiators. The Creative Company. ISBN 978-1-58341-535-1.
- ↑ Institute, Bathroom Readers' (2012-08-15). Uncle John's Bathroom Reader History's Lists. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-60710-664-7.
- ↑ Matz, David (1991). Greek and Roman Sport: A Dictionary of Athletes and Events from the Eighth Century B.C. to the Third Century A.D. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan. pp. 86, 89. ISBN 9780899505589.
- 1 2 Dunkle, Roger (2013). Gladiators: Violence and Spectacle in Ancient Rome. London and New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group. ISBN 9781317905202.
- ↑ Kirkland, James H., ed. (1915). Horace: Satires and Epistles. Chicago, New York, and Boston: Benj. H. Sandborn & Co. p. 243.
- ↑ "Watch Gladiators: Warriors of the Ancient World Season 1 Episode 6 Flamma and the Death of the Games Online". National Geographic. Retrieved 2026-05-19.