Ancient Roman Pastimes

The ancient Romans had always been spectacular when it comes to culture, tradition and way of life. For ages, they had always drawn the world’s attention through their amazing Empire and magnificent and powerful army.

There were also very intellectual philosophers in ancient Rome who had great impact on what science is today. They propounded lots of philosophies which really helped in so many fields today and had also helped technology develop faster.

Science like mathematics, astronomy and philosophy were produced by the ancient Roman philosophers. They also had sports and activities which didn’t only entertained, but helped helped in building the body and mind.

Through all these, they have been able to draw closer, the world’s attention to themselves and also made the world participate in their sports and also emulate their lifestyle. This is seen where several countries in the world would gather themselves to participate in the Olympic games.

FACTS ABOUT THE ANCIENT ROMAN PASTIMES

  • Rome was believed by many to be the largest empire in the world’s history but it is in fact the 28th largest Empire in history. The largest Empire in the world’s history was the British Empire.
  • The gladiators contest had always been known to be associated with ancient Rome but this bloody sport was not regarded as ancient Rome’s best pastime. As a matter of fact, certain histriograghers argue that chariot racing was the prevailing sports the Romans loved to watch. The famous Colosseum had a capacity of about 50,000 occupants while the Circus Maximus, usually used for chariot races could accomodate  over 250,000 people.
  • The biggest conflict in the whole history of man occurred between the Persians and the Romans. This great war existed for over 721 years and it was said to have resulted from the Persians wanting to gain more land mass and also to seek vengeance against the ancient Greeks for supporting the rebellion of the Lonians against the rulers of Persia.
  • “Saturnalia”was the name given to the national holiday celebrated by the ancient Romans. It signifies the day which a change in status would occur between slaves and masters. Slaves would enjoy luxurious banquet which were usually prepared for elites.

  • The ancient Romans saw the early Christians as aethists because they didn’t pay homage to the Roman gods. They also considered the early Christians as cannibals because they claim to eat the body of christ and drink his blood. Roman authorities were invited to holy communions so as to show them that they weren’t feeding on human flesh.
  • Salty urine happened to be a vast commodity in ancient Rome. It wasn’t only used to flavor foods but was also used to preserve them since cooling machines like freezers and refrigerators weren’t present back then. Good antiseptics were made with salt which is a reason why the word “sal”was used in honor of  Salus, popularly known as the goddess of health. Apart from salt and Urine, the sweat produced by gladiators was another example of a vast commodity. The ancient Roman women wore gladiators sweat so as to enhance their skin color and beauty. Romans also drank the blood of gladiators because they believe it had the cure for epilepsy.
  • The consumption of a particular type of fish referred to as a recreational drug, popularly known as The Salema Porgy. It caused  hallucination when eaten and consumers also had lucid nightmares for so many nights.
  • A dictator in the Republic of Rome known as “Cincinnatus”, dilivered Rome from a very bad occurrence afterwhich he went back to farming having refused to become a ruler. Cincinnati was said to have been named after this great dictator.
  • The ancient Romans also used urine to wash clothes. They see it as a cleansing agent. Large quantity of clothings were immersed in urine so as to clean them. Urine was very valuable and was used also as a teeth whitener.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON FACTS ABOUT ANCIENT ROMAN PASTIMES

  • Question: What was the name given to the Roman national holiday where slaves and masters would trade statuses?
    Answer: Saturnalia was the name given to this Roman National holiday.
  • Question: Why did the ancient Romans call the Early Christians cannibals?
    Answers: They referred to them as cannibals because they believed they fed on the flesh and blood of Christ.
  • Question: Which of the amphitheaters could accomodate over 250,000 people and was usually used to host chariot races?
    Answer: The Circus Maximus.
  • Question: The biggest war in the history of Man occured between the Romans and who?
    Answer: It occurred between the Romans and The Persians.