Roman Britain: Did Officials Throw Prisoners To The Lions? Bronze 'Key' Handle, 1st Discovery [View all]

- Thrown to the Lions? New evidence reveals lions were used during executions in Roman Britain.
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- 'Did Officials in Roman Britain Throw Condemned Prisoners to the Lions?' A key handle unearthed in Leicester suggests executions in imperial colonies involved wild animals. Smithsonian Magazine, Aug. 12, 2021.

Archaeologists in Leicester, England, say a bronze key handle depicting a lion fighting a man may reflect real executions that took place in Britain under Roman rule. “This unique object gives us our most detailed representation of this form of execution found in Roman Britain,” says John Pearce, an archaeologist at King’s College London, in a statement. “As the first discovery of this kind it illuminates the brutal character of Roman authority in this province.”

Pearce and two colleagues published their analysis of the artifact in the journal Britannia this week. Researchers from the University of Leicester Archaeological Services (ULAS) found the object, which measures more than four inches long, while excavating a Roman town house in 2017, reports BBC News. They dated it to around 200 C.E. The dig also uncovered Roman streets, mosaic floors and a theater.

“When first found, it appeared as an indistinguishable bronze object, but after we carefully cleaned off the soil remarkably we revealed several small faces looking back at us, it was absolutely astounding,” says co-author Gavin Speed, who led the excavations for ULAS, in the statement. “Nothing quite like this has been discovered anywhere in the Roman Empire before.”

The handle depicts a man fighting a smaller-than-life lion. Below the fight, four naked youths huddle in fear. The man’s appearance—shirtless, with long hair and a big beard—is suggestive of a “barbarian,” or someone not of Roman origin, writes Sarah Cascone for Artnet News...

More,
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/artifact-suggests-romans-may-have-used-lions-public-executions-britain-180978422/



- The key handle depicts a "barbarian" fending off a lion as 4 young onlookers watch in horror.