Hunting fresco, Museo Nacional de Arte Romano, Merida, Spain

Venatio scene, with a man holding a spear, and a lioness. A venatio was type of entertainment in a Roman circus showing a fight between a gladiator and wild animals. The fighter (venator) is recognizable thanks to his white tunics fitted at the waist and decorated with two vertical red stripes (clavi), his short pants (faciae crurales), and high dark-colored boots. Fresco, late 1st century AD, from the balustrade of the podium of the Merida amphitheatre, in the Museo Nacional de Arte Romano, or National Museum of Roman Art, designed by Rafael Moneo and built 1981-86, housing Roman collections from the colony of Emerita Augusta, founded in 25 BC by Emperor Augustus, now modern-day Merida, Extremadura, Spain. The Roman remains in Merida are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Picture by Manuel Cohen

Picture No

14117063

Media ID

45960482

Size

7087px x 4373px (9.8MB)

Credit

Manuel Cohen / Mary Evans Picture Library

Source

Photograph by Manuel Cohen

Date

2009