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Caveat Emptor (Let the buyer beware) |
Aediles also had oversight of commerce and the city's markets. hey ensured that merchants and traders kept to the correct weights and measures and that the citizens' rights were upheld. As such, they also had oversight of Rome's slave-markets and the same rules applied there as it did for all merchants.
Rome's slaves were officially designated as "res mortalis" meaning a "mortal thing".Thus they were stripped of their humanity and became objects and as such, a slave if hurt, wasn't regarded as being injured - rather he was "damaged".
Any slave-trader offering a slave for sale was obliged to advise all buyers of any such damage which was inscribed on a wooden tablet called a "titulus" which was hung around the slave's neck.
Making a final selection:
A prominent Roman citizen - a senator no less - has prevailed on the slave-trader to allow him to preview six of the newly arrived slaves he has selected to serve as litter-bearers for the new, smaller litter he had made to better navigate Rome's narrow, overcrowded street. The litter is small enough to travel the streets without hindrance but ornate and heavy enough to reflect his importance. He required six brawny slaves to carry this new litter and after an exhaustive but pleasurable examination of the slaves in their pens, he has chosen these six as his preferred options.
In the picture, we see the slave Chrysos at the far right standing with his head bowed in shame and humiliation at the senator's invasive inspection of his body. He could only stand in impotent rage as the senator roamed freely over his nakedness, poking and prodding is muscles to determine their strength and then the final indignity of have the senator's finger probe deep into the most private and intimate part of his body.
Standing next to Chrysos and slightly behind him, Eros, who has endured the same indignities, glowers at his captors in a show of useless defiance. He forgets he is now a slave and any acts of disobedience won't be tolerated.
The senator is anxious to own the six slaves he has chosen and he has offered the slave-dealer and attractive sum over and above their true value.
The slave-dealer is tempted to accept.
Artwork by Amalaric. The text is mine.
Finally I, and all your admirers, Chris, have the pleasure to see the fabulous bodies and faces of the gorgeous Chrysos and Eros !
ReplyDeleteI feel ecstatic for this stunningly beautiful vision and very much excited ! …… as certainly also the noble Senator who has just bought them and their four very attractive slave-fellow is.
Now that the lewd and cruel Roman Patrician has had a lot of fun and of sexual and sadistic arousal in humiliating the six slaves with endless most degrading body scrutinies in all the parts of their bodies …. starting of course from the massive genitals and the virgin asses of the six virile young males ……. now the Senator is in an anxious hurry for rushing home while his guards will drag the six herculean males behind him leashed like a group of six robust puppies.
At home of course, first of all, he will do his first duty, the duty of all good Roman citizens when they buy a new slave. I.e. he will brutally and publicly reaffirm and emphasize his boundless power on the bodies and lives of his new slaves, by violently RAPING them ….. by violating and fucking the virgin asses and mouths of these hapless six masculine young men.
Despite the fact that he’s very macho and very sexually potent, the lascivious Senator of course will be unable to rape and fuck in just one day six mouths and six asses.
However the smart nobleman has already found an excellent solution.
Unfortunately for them, the two young slaves Chrysos and Eros have especially attracted the violent lust of their new Master for their superior handsomeness.
So the Senator has decided that for the first raping of his slaves’ virgin mouths and asses, he will personally deflower and tear just the untouched mouths and asses of the two ex-warriors and comrades, of Chrysos and Eros.
While the other four new slaves will be orally and anally raped by four sturdy and gigantic Syrian gladiators who are the main bodyguards of the mighty Senator.
After all, starting from tomorrow, there is a full life in front of the Senator and of his six slaves.
Starting from tomorrow, the cruel and lewd Roman Nobleman will have countless occasions for vigorously fucking his six new slaves and new litter bearers …….. and he will have also countless occasions for having enrapturing sadistic fun and excitement in viciously lashing and tormenting the nude bodies of Chrysos and Eros and of their four fellows while they are toiling and sweating, tied and leashed under the poles of the Senator’s litter.
Next year the rich Senator intends to buy an even bigger and much heavier litter, worthy of his high dignity and nobility ….. a litter that, like the ones of most the richest and noblest Roman aristocrats, must be born by at least twelve or even by sixteen sturdy and very strong young litter bearers.
Therefore the poor Chrysos and Eros will have soon other six or even ten new slave-fellows, laboring and suffering under the same ruthless whip of their Roman Master.
GREAT post, Chris ! Thank you very much
Karel
P.S. Congratulations also for the opportune and very accurate historical note about the AEDILES and their important role and duties in many aspects of the public life in in ancient Rome.
Chris,
ReplyDeleteallow me to add a few additional pieces of historical information about real Roman litters, that were the most favoured “means of transport” – both on short distances inside the city but also in very long trips- of the noblest and richest Lords and Ladies of ancient Rome, and of all those wealthy “parvenu’s” (sometimes of humble origin and even newly enriched freedmen) who liked to display and flaunt their riches and power to the admiring and envying populace.
I know, Chris, that in your uncommonly deep historical culture (as I’m well aware of), you already well know what I’m going to say; and I know that in the specific case you were “obliged” to talk of a “litter with six litter-bearers” because in the previous and very beautiful artwork by Amalaric, are portrayed just six gorgeous young “slaves”.
Actually, “medium-size” litters carried by SIX sturdy young male slaves did exist in ancient Rome but they were very rare and little used. The reason for this rare use of litters with just six litter-bearers is simple to understand by considering the possible “spatial placement / lay-out” of the six bearing slaves.
Four of them were necessarily carrying on their shoulders the two longitudinal front poles / bars and the two longitudinal rear poles /bars; while the remaining two slaves were supporting the litter by carrying on one shoulder two central and much shorter wooden bars, positioned on the two sides of the litter and that were sticking out perpendicularly.
This fifth and sixth much shorter and perpendicular bars for the fifth and sixth litter bearers were of course positioned at the center of the two longer sides of the litter; and obviously their presence was bothering and hampering the Master in his going in and out from the litter, This is why litters with six litter-bearers were rare in ancient Rome, even if there are evidences for their real existence.
The most frequently numbers of litter-bearers were actually EIGHT or TWELVE, and the number of slaves was generally a multiple of four, for an obvious reason of most opportune positioning.
There were cases of particularly “ostentatious” Lords and Ladies that have arrived even to use sixteen or even twenty slaves in ONE litter for just ONE Master …… as in the documented cases of the insane Emperor Elagabalus (204-222 CE) and of his debauched mother and grand-mother (both named Julia).
But these were very rare and almost unique cases, used only in brief walks, e.g. in ceremonies, due to the difficulties of coordinating the pace and movements of so many men, immobilized under the load of the huge litters.
On the contrary, and differently from what many modern people believe, the use of just TWO or of FOUR litter-bearers was extremely rare and in particular four litter-bearers were almost never used.
The reason is simple: especially with four muscular slaves –that could have started to carry already quite heavy and large litters- there was a high DANGER of possible “accidents” that might wound or even kill the Master. In fact, with just four bearers, if one slave had e.g. taken a tumble and had fallen on the ground, the whole litter would have turned and fallen possibly wounding or even killing the Master laying inside.
This is also why, even with eight or twelve litter-bearers, some Masters like to tie and leash by their neck their litter-bearers to the litter’s poles. Not just for cruelty …… but for additional safety and security.
In fact –even if with eight or twelve bearers the risk for the litter to overturn and fall was much lower- anyhow, being tied by their necks to the bars, certainly the bearer-slaves would have been extremely more cautious in avoiding to stumble and to let the litter fall.
Indeed a ruinous fall of the litter would have first of all KILLED the litter-bearers themselves by strangling them and by breaking their neck, before damaging their Master !
As always, very smart Romans !
Just for historical clarification
Karel