SEPTEMBER 12th.
munera gladiatoria semifinals certamen historicum 4
MUNERA GLADIATORIA
Presented by : Marcus Cassius Philippus
| SALVETE QUIRITES ! The Munera Gladiatoria semifinals results presented by M. Cassius Philippus : DISCLAIMER: THIS REPORT BY MARCUS CASSIUS PHILIPPUS PRINTED BELOW IS PURELY A PIECE OF FICTION INTENDED STRICTLY TO ENTERTAIN THE READER RATHER THAN JUST PUBLISHING THE MUNERA GLADIATORIAL RESULTS IN A STRAIGHT FORWARD AND SOMEWHAT DRY FASHION. NO OFFENSE IS MEANT TO ANYONE OR ANY PLACE REFERRED TO OR MENTIONED IN IT. SO PLEASE JUST ENJOY IT AND TAKE IT LIGHTLY AS A COMIC INTERLUDE IN AN OTHERWISE VERY SERIOUS WORLD. IT INCLUDES SOME OFF COLOR MATERIAL THAT MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR THE WEAK OF STOMACH OR THE TENDER OF SENTIMENT. ROME WAS A BAUDY PLACE AND THIS PIECE OF FICTION WOULD PERHAPS HAVE FIT PERFECTLY WELL IN THAT SOCIETY. IF AFTER READING THIS DISCLAIMER YOU WOULD PREFER TO JUST SEE THE RESULTS AND DISREGARD IT TOTALLY, JUST SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM AND YOU WILL FIND THEM THERE MARCUS CASSIUS PHILIPPUS Salvete Civis, Marcus Cassius Philippus is here again with your arena side report for Nova Roma Sports, this time reporting on the Munera Gladiatoria Ludi Semifinals. We have wonderful weather today, perhaps too wonderful since the sun is already relentlessly beating down on the Flavian Amphitheater and everyone in it, so the amphitheater employees are again busy rolling out the awnings to keep everyone as comfortable as possible. The arena's sand is hot and dry and has been raked and made ready for this afternoon's gladiatorial venue. The crowd goes to its feet as the remaining gladiators of the Munera Gladiatoria Ludi enter the Arena. They come in as a small group of six to the foot of the Consuls' seats and lift their weapons in salute: "Ave Consules, morituri te salutamus." (Hail Consuls, we who are about to die, salute you.) I have just been handed a notice letting us know that the Murmillo owned by Quintus Vitellius Vopiscus, the slave named Naois Ansgar who defeated and killed Superstes the Secutor three days ago has been given a pass. He will be advancing directly to the Finals, which will be held right here in the Flavian Amphitheater in just three days. This comes as no surprise to anyone since Superstes was after all, the reigning champion of the Munera Gladiatoria of the Ludi Megalesia 2758. After having soundly defeated this superb gladiator is it any wonder that he got a pass? Four gladiators now walk back to the entry gate and disappear back into the bowels of the stadium. They are not as full of energy today as they appeared three days ago. Two of them stay in the arena for the first bout. They are the Retiarius named Vir. His contract as you all know by now is owned by Caius Arminius Reccanellus. Reccanellus is sitting with one of the Consuls today and is much more sober and dignified in his demeanor this afternoon than when we last saw him here. He is wearing a brilliant white toga. Does this mean that he is considering running for high office soon? Hmmm. I think he'd do much better at the ballot box by hosting a big `After- Ludi' Banquet followed by an even bigger `After-Ludi' Orgy than by sitting next to one of the Consuls in his best toga if that is his plan. Aula Tullia Scholastica is sitting with me here on this fine day, lets ask her about this. What do you think Flavia? "Call me Scholastica. Please!....Philippus you know I do not go by that name anymore." Sorry darling, I guess I'll never get used to your new name. You'll always be Flavia to me honey. "You are such a chauvinist pig Philippus, I don't know how I tolerate you, if it weren't for your lovely wife Aurelia I wouldn't even give you the time of day, honestly....Well maybe you can use my previous name in private conversations but definitely not publicly....For Iupiter's sake Philippus, thousands are listening to this broadcast right now! They all know me by my new name and I like my new name very much, so stop it. Now to answer your question, Philippus as you know, I don't go in for such lascivious behavior in our aspiring magistrates but I guess men must be men and Nova Roma is a very convivial place. Sometimes I think too much so. I like the manly deportment of the gladiators as well as any Nova Roman lady but I do prefer the chariot races. The revelry and promiscuity that goes on at these After-Ludi Banquets is however just a bit too much for my fine sensibilities. I suggest that aspiring Nova Roman politicians remember that we Nova Roman ladies do vote!" The other fighter is Lucius Arminius Faustus' Sparcagatos the Thraex, who defeated Reccanellus' Ingvar the last time we saw him. Here we are again seeing these two men's properties pitted against each other. I wonder if there will be a girl in the betting today. I wouldn't mind getting into that action myself. Hehehe! Faustus' saucy little prize was absolutely delicious to look at the other day. "Philippus, do I have to pelt you with a stick. Behave yourself! Frankly I don't know what Aurelia sees in you." All right Scholastica, point well taken. The two gladiators are sizing each other up as we speak. Vir seems cautious today in comparison to his last engagement. He is swinging his net rather low today, obviously trying to snag the Thracian's legs and cause him to trip up or rip the flesh out of his thighs with those nasty hooks attached to his net. Damn, there goes a bit of flesh right now. Sparcagatos' right thigh is quite bloody. Again, the net got him in what appears to be the same spot. He is being pulled in by his thigh by the Retiarius. The hook must have grabbed him by his quadraceps. The cagey Thraex is countering this by charging in and pushes the net man's trident to the side with his scutum. Vir is now in trouble and quickly lets go of his net. A very smart move! Oh, no...Sparcagatos has tripped on the net after all and has fallen on his face. Vir has instantly dropped his trident as well and has now taken out a curved knife he had shoved into his balteus. He is now ruthlessly carving out the Thracian's back with his curved knife. The Thracian is bouncing up and down with each slice and stab like a fish just pulled into a boat. It looks like Vir is preparing a Thracian Fillet. It's all over folks. Vir is the victor, Sparcagatos is no more. Our little Hermes is out there poking him to make sure. Next up is Aequoreus the Murmillo against Bastus the Thraex. Both men did very well in their last outing. Speaking of outing...it has been confirmed, apparently Bastus IS a new convert to a religious cult but it isn't what we guessed it was. He has been recently converted into a fanatic quasi-religious cult called Veganism of all things. Go figure! He doesn't want to kill even flies anymore. Crassus must have his hands full with this new state of affairs. As you all probably know, I missed Bastus' last fight. It was a short one. I heard he had to be severely beaten by his handlers in order to even participate in this Ludi. On a different note, the Flavian Amphitheater has just installed extra latrines under the stands to take in the large crowds at this Ludi. They are quite compact and portable. I heard someone calling them `Porta-trines'. Whatever, as long as the lines in front of the `facilities' are shorter. No one likes to miss any of the bloody action at these Ludi because of long lines waiting to use the `facilities'. The two gladiators square off in front of each other. Lucia Cassia Silvana's Murmillo won a decisive victory in his first bout, bringing her a fine purse. Let's see if he can do so again. Silvana is seated a few rows away from me today and I can that she is dressed quite beautifully. A long and expensive pearl necklace hanging is hanging down from her lovely neck, nestling between her exquisite bosom. It must have been purchased with her winnings the other day. "You may be right Philippus, I don't recall seeing her wearing them before" Well, you would know more about those kinds of things Scholastica. I usually pay more attention to what hang on either side of them necklaces, Hehehe. "Philippus, I'm going to hurt you in a moment if you keep this up." By Saturn's Celestial Rings.....Bastus has just dropped his weapons onto the sand of the arena and is kneeling in front of Aequoreus. He doesn't appear to be going to fight him at all. The crowd is up on their feet booing him. Bastus has removed his helmet and lowered his head for the Murmillo to finish him off quickly. Aequoreus swiftly accommodates his desire with a wide swing of his sword. This constitutes the first decapitation of the afternoon but unfortunately in the most dishonorable manner. Aequoreus might as well have been summarily executing a noxi. We had enough of executions of noxi early this morning. This is completely unacceptable for a professional gladiatorial fight. What shame this must bring to Titus Iulius Sabinus Crassus, not to mention the loss of good income. Bastus was one of the finest gladiators in recent Ludi. This is quite a shock to everyone. This fanatic `Cult of Vega' has to be dealt with sooner or later. It is ruining our beloved blood sport! The last pair of gladiators have entered the arena. Crassus' Secutor Ktistai and Aengus Ansgar, the Hoplomachus. Ansgar is Lucuis Vitellius Triairus only surviving entry in these games. His other entry, Superstes was killed the other day. It was quite a loss for him in more than one way since Superstes was a heavy favorite in these games. He was the reigning champion for crying out-loud. His demise was quite a surprise to everyone. Crassus, on the other hand is already hurting today due to Bastus' dishonorable performance. A lot is riding on this bout for both these men. Both men charge each other without delay. The Secutor parries the Hoplomachus' lance downward then swiftly steps on it, breaking it in half. The Hoplomachus is now at a severe disadvantage against Ktistai. The secutor's large scutum and full length gladius against the Hoplomachus' shortish dagger and small round shield is not an ideal situation for the Hoplomachus. Ktistai has him literally on the run. Ansgar has actually trurned around and started to run for it. Ktistai has hurled his gladius at him. Smack!!! We have actually heard the gladius' impact on Ansgar's back. He's down on all fours. He is now crawling. He no longer has his blade or shield. Ktistai is on him. He kicks down on the Hoplomachus' back while pulling out his gladius. Ktistai is now squatting down on his back. Ansgar was pushed down flat on his belly from the weight of the squatting Secutor. Ktistai yanks the happless Hoplomachus' helmet off his head, pulls up the man's head at an obscene angle and cuts his throat wide open from ear to ear. Ansgar screams wildly for an instant, until his larynx is severed. The Secutor stands up now and presents his blood dripping gladius to the adulating crowd of the amphitheater. He takes off his own helmet to show us a very contented smile as he proudly parades around the arena once before exiting. Well, there you have it. The Semifinals of the Munera Gladiatoria Ludi are now also history. The Finals are in just three days. My lovely wife Aurelia will be glad to hear that my purse is again little fatter than before today's bouts began. Until then, this is Marcus Cassius Philippus, your Announcer... "You mean `Chauvenistic' Announcer, don't you Philippus?" ...Oh yes, thank you for your help today Scholastica. I couldn't have done it without you. For Nova Roma Sports, with your exclusive Munera Gladiatoria News Report, this is Marcus Cassius Philippus and Aula Tullia Scholastica. See you in three days. "I can hardly wait." As always, a woman gets the last word ;-) ______________________________________ MUNERIA GLADIATORIA SEMIFINALS RESULTS Murmillo Naois Ansgar is qualified in finals directly by chance. 1.Retiarius Vir vs Thraex Sparcagatus : Retiarius Vir is the winner. 2. Murmillo Aequoreus vs Thraex Bastus : Murmillo Aequoreus is the winner. 3. Secutor Ktistai vs Hoplomachus Aengus Ansgar : Secutor Ktistai is the winner. |
|
CERTAMEN HISTORICUM 1V - ROMAN ARCHITECTURE Presented by : T. Artoria Marcella.
Question #7:
Concrete replaced marble as
the primary building material shortly after its introduction. It allowed
the Roman builders to "think outside the box" and create new styles of
architecture.
a) What substance did the Romans find, when mixed with lime and water, made hydraulic cement? (1 point) b) After Rome burned, Nero built a palace of enormous size that included a concrete dome--possibly the first built that was not part of a temple. Who were the palace's architect's and what was the palace named? (2 points)
Question #8:
When it comes to columns, Roman architects used five orders--three courtesy of Greece, but of Roman invention. What were the names of the two added orders and, of all five, which order was the most popular in Rome? (2 points) |
