Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants: Frequently Asked Questions about the Ancient Greeks and Romans

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I came across a reference in Plutarch's writings (Life of Lycurgus) which seemed to indicate that Spartan men wore only one garment on a regular basis, and that this garment left them bare above the waist. Amphitheaters across the Roman Empire had been built to hold bears, leopards, bulls, alligators, and other deadly animals, and they were all used, at one point or another, to execute criminals. You have to remember that these men were kept in close quarters, unable to leave the crude, dark cells they were kept in. The female gladiator also wore a helmet to protect her head — the weapon commonly used by female gladiators when fighting was a sword. The main goal was to stop making the gladiator fights into shows which, according to the emperor, promoted lower class behavior amongst noble women.

I have read accounts that the Spartans would occasionally cast aside their clothing and fight naked if they wanted to show total scorn to an enemy that they did not fear. In 2001, in Southwark, London, a female Roman skeleton was unearthed and identified as a female gladiator. Sometimes they were simply put on display and a few of the elephants were trained to do tricks for the crowd.They'd probably not carry a full suit of armour though, covering the entire body, as such would be too cumbersome and heavy (and indeed the first pictures show only parts of the body covered). Since the Greeks, and even the Romans to some extent, had a romanticized concept of naked warriors it is quite possible some of these matches might have taken place naked.

Because there were plenty of executions to be completed within a certain amount of time, executions by animals could not take too long. However, it was also said that the senators disgraced themselves for watching the gladiatrix in the amphitheater. Plutarch does not mention whether or not the Spartans wore any other clothing, so it is possible the Spartan soldiers may well have been naked in battle other than their armor. However, the leg and arm bones were found to be unusually heavy and suggested that she had strong muscles.

Meanwhile male viewers got a treat as the girls all wore revealing gold bikinis before wrestling in the sand as they grabbed buried sacks out of the ground. There are few male gladiators who didn't use the helmet, but it seems that in case of women, there was a different reason for not using it. It is worth noting that it wasn’t until 390 AD that homosexuality became outlawed, thanks to Christian emperors. According to Tacitus (56-117AD), they were hardly ever viewed by noble men, but at the same time, their fights were extremely popular.