Emily

4-5-02

Latin — Second I Caesar project

Mr. Burnett

The Roman slaves of course, did not wear fancy togas made from expensive material. Also, once every two years a cloak was given to the slaves to keep them warm. The footwear was given to Roman slaves once every two years. A pero is a shoe made of a single piece of leather that easily wrapped around a foot. A caliga was shoe that military slaves used in camp. The caliga’s are like a sandal in that they are open toed. Finally, the slaves wore a sculponea which is a wooden clog, this type of footwear was only worn by the Roman peasants.

Those in Rome who are classified as slaves are not citizens and therefore have very few rights. Many slaves were not even considered to be a. A slave that was considered a person did have some rights. They were allowed to own some personal things called peculium. Sometimes a peculium could consist of money, yet other times it was a vicarius, which was a slave’s slave. Even though the peculium gave them some rights, every contract that comes to them has to go through the master as well. Also, a peculium may not be given in the possession of someone else, because the person who got the peculium might use it to buy their freedom. A peculium could buy a slave’s freedom, but only happened when the value of the peculium weighed more than the value of the slave. The slaves were allowed to practice religion by ius sacrum, and also could have proper burials when they became deceased.

The treatment a slave gets varies from master to master. However, a slave's physical condition was likely to worsen over time. Many hard labor slaves were whipped like they were animals. Not only are the slaves hurt physically, but they are hurt mentally too. Some masters call them names that are more demeaning and hurtful than any lashing. Often times, as a farm expanded and its master became more stressed, the slaves would be lashed even more. Slaves' lives often depended on the temperament of their owners.

Slaves that work on a farm do get some reward for their effort. In the winter they receive a modii, which is a bushel of grain to feed off of. In the summer, they receive a modii and a half to feast off of. However, slave prisoners get four pounds of bread in the winter.

Farm slaves for three months drank sour wine. However, by the fourth month they drank hemina which is about a half a pint of wine per day. During the fifth to the eighth months slaves were rewarded and were allowed to drink, sextarius a pint per day. By the ninth to the eleventh month, the slaves were allowed to have three hemina per day, or amphora which is about six gallons per month. The slaves ate olives that were not rich in oil (or in other words olives that would not be good for making wine or vinegar.)

Most of the slaves that were present in Rome were prisoners of war. Many of them were also captured by pirates; there were also those slaves that were purchased in a Roman province, therefore outside the Roman territory.

By the process of manumission, Roman owners could free slaves and allow them to purchase their freedom if they felt inclined to do so. Formal manumission allowed slaves to be totally free, and gave them citizenship. However, informal manumission did not give slaves immediate citizenship.

When a slave is working for a very rich owner its relationship between the slave and that owner is miniscule. The owner almost never sees or meets its slaves, therefore, the slaves do not have the opportunity of manumission, or befriending their owner. Field slaves lives consist of very strenuous work. Because of this unbearable work environment, a slave is only expected to live ten years. The slaves were supposed to do work from sunrise until sunset, without much food or water.

If you had to be a slave it would be the best to work for an upper-class owner. The older slaves were considered to be part of the family, and cared for well. Many urban slaves were given a lot of food and water as well as better clothing and living supplies in exchange for working for their owner. House slaves were given more opportunities and treated better than the field slaves. Therefore, it is ideal to be a house slave, and work in cleaning and cooking in the house rather than working in the field.

The Story of A Roman Slave’s Life , March 3^rd, 2002 http://departments.vassar.edu/~jolott/republic1998/spartacus/slavelife.html

Roman Dress: Toga, Footwear, March 3^rd 2002, http://www.roman-empire.net/society/soc-dress.html

The Roman Army: Police Duties March 3^rd 2002, http://www.roman-empire.net/army/army.html

http://www.roman-empire.net/army/army.html

Roman Slavery Brendan Patrick Sheridan, Miami University. March 3^rd 2002, http://www.muohio.edu/~delucej/slaverysheridan.html

Ancient History Sourcebook: Slavery in the Roman Republic, Paul Halsall, 1998, March 3^rd 2002

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/slavery-romrep1.html