City and country

The city was viewed as fostering civilization by being "properly designed, ordered, and adorned".^[292] Augustus undertook a vast building programme in Rome, supported public displays of art that expressed imperial ideology, and reorganized the city into neighbourhoods (vici) administered at the local level with police and firefighting services.^[293] A focus of Augustan monumental architecture was the Campus Martius, an open area outside the city centre: the Altar of Augustan Peace (Ara Pacis Augustae) was located there, as was an obelisk imported from Egypt that formed the pointer (gnomon) of a horologium. With its public gardens, the Campus was among the most attractive places in Rome to visit.^[293]

City planning and urban lifestyles was influenced by the Greeks early on,^[294] and in the Eastern Empire, Roman rule shaped the development of cities that already had a strong Hellenistic character. Cities such as Athens, Aphrodisias, Ephesus and Gerasa tailored city planning and architecture to imperial ideals, while expressing their individual identity and regional preeminence.^[295] In areas inhabited by Celtic-speaking peoples, Rome encouraged the development of urban centres with stone temples, forums, monumental fountains, and amphitheatres, often on or near the sites of preexisting walled settlements known as oppida.^[296]^[297]^{[lower-alpha 18]} Urbanization in Roman Africa expanded on Greek and Punic coastal cities.^[270]

The network of cities (coloniae, municipia, civitates or in Greek terms poleis) was a primary cohesive force during the Pax Romana.^[200] Romans of the 1st and 2nd centuries were encouraged to "inculcate the habits of peacetime".^[299] As the classicist Clifford Ando noted:

Most of the cultural appurtenances popularly associated with imperial culture—public cult and its games and civic banquets, competitions for artists, speakers, and athletes, as well as the funding of the great majority of public buildings and public display of art—were financed by private individuals, whose expenditures in this regard helped to justify their economic power and legal and provincial privileges.^[300]

Thumb — Public toilets (*latrinae*) from Ostia Antica

In the city of Rome, most people lived in multistory apartment buildings (insulae) that were often squalid firetraps. Public facilities—such as baths (thermae), toilets with running water (latrinae), basins or elaborate fountains (nymphea) delivering fresh water,^[297] and large-scale entertainments such as chariot races and gladiator combat—were aimed primarily at the common people.^[301]

The public baths served hygienic, social and cultural functions.^[302] Bathing was the focus of daily socializing.^[303] Roman baths were distinguished by a series of rooms that offered communal bathing in three temperatures, with amenities that might include an exercise room, sauna, exfoliation spa, ball court, or outdoor swimming pool. Baths had hypocaust heating: the floors were suspended over hot-air channels.^[304] Public baths were part of urban culture throughout the provinces, but in the late 4th century, individual tubs began to replace communal bathing. Christians were advised to go to the baths only for hygiene.^[305]

Rich families from Rome usually had two or more houses: a townhouse (domus) and at least one luxury home (villa) outside the city. The domus was a privately owned single-family house, and might be furnished with a private bath (balneum),^[304] but it was not a place to retreat from public life.^[306] Although some neighbourhoods show a higher concentration of such houses, they were not segregated enclaves. The domus was meant to be visible and accessible. The atrium served as a reception hall in which the paterfamilias (head of household) met with clients every morning.^[293] It was a centre of family religious rites, containing a shrine and images of family ancestors.^[307] The houses were located on busy public roads, and ground-level spaces were often rented out as shops (tabernae).^[308] In addition to a kitchen garden—windowboxes might substitute in the insulae—townhouses typically enclosed a peristyle garden.^[309]

The villa by contrast was an escape from the city, and in literature represents a lifestyle that balances intellectual and artistic interests (otium) with an appreciation of nature and agriculture.^[310] Ideally a villa commanded a view or vista, carefully framed by the architectural design.^[311]

Augustus' programme of urban renewal, and the growth of Rome's population to as many as one million, was accompanied by nostalgia for rural life. Poetry idealized the lives of farmers and shepherds. Interior decorating often featured painted gardens, fountains, landscapes, vegetative ornament,^[311] and animals, rendered accurately enough to be identified by species.^[312] On a more practical level, the central government took an active interest in supporting agriculture.^[313] Producing food was the priority of land use.^[314] Larger farms (latifundia) achieved an economy of scale that sustained urban life.^[313] Small farmers benefited from the development of local markets in towns and trade centres. Agricultural techniques such as crop rotation and selective breeding were disseminated throughout the Empire, and new crops were introduced from one province to another.^[315]

Maintaining an affordable food supply to the city of Rome had become a major political issue in the late Republic, when the state began to provide a grain dole (Cura Annonae) to citizens who registered for it^[313] (about 200,000–250,000 adult males in Rome).^[316] The dole cost at least 15% of state revenues,^[313] but improved living conditions among the lower classes,^[317] and subsidized the rich by allowing workers to spend more of their earnings on the wine and olive oil produced on estates.^[313] The grain dole also had symbolic value: it affirmed the emperor's position as universal benefactor, and the right of citizens to share in "the fruits of conquest".^[313] The annona, public facilities, and spectacular entertainments mitigated the otherwise dreary living conditions of lower-class Romans, and kept social unrest in check. The satirist Juvenal, however, saw "bread and circuses" (panem et circenses) as emblematic of the loss of republican political liberty:^[318]

The public has long since cast off its cares: the people that once bestowed commands, consulships, legions and all else, now meddles no more and longs eagerly for just two things: bread and circuses.^[319]

Health and disease

Epidemics were common in the ancient world, and occasional pandemics in the Empire killed millions. The Roman population was unhealthy. About 20 percent—a large percentage by ancient standards—lived in cities, Rome being the largest. The cities were a "demographic sink": the death rate exceeded the birth rate and constant immigration was necessary to maintain the population. Average lifespan is estimated at the mid-twenties, and perhaps more than half of children died before reaching adulthood. Dense urban populations and poor sanitation contributed to disease. Land and sea connections facilitated and sped the transfer of infectious diseases across the empire's territories. The rich were not immune; only two of emperor Marcus Aurelius's fourteen children are known to have reached adulthood.^[320]

The importance of a good diet to health was recognized by medical writers such as Galen (2nd century). Views on nutrition were influenced by beliefs like humoral theory.^[321] A good indicator of nutrition and disease burden is average height: the average Roman was shorter in stature than the population of pre-Roman Italian societies and medieval Europe.^[322]

Food and dining

Most apartments in Rome lacked kitchens, though a charcoal brazier could be used for rudimentary cookery.^[323] Prepared food was sold at pubs and bars, inns, and food stalls (tabernae, cauponae, popinae, thermopolia).^[324] Carryout and restaurants were for the lower classes; fine dining appeared only at dinner parties in wealthy homes with a chef (archimagirus) and kitchen staff,^[325] or banquets hosted by social clubs (collegia).^[326]

Most Romans consumed at least 70% of their daily calories in the form of cereals and legumes.^[327] Puls (pottage) was considered the food of the Romans,^[328] and could be elaborated to produce dishes similar to polenta or risotto.^[329] Urban populations and the military preferred bread.^[327] By the reign of Aurelian, the state had begun to distribute the annona as a daily ration of bread baked in state factories, and added olive oil, wine, and pork to the dole.^[330]

Roman literature focuses on the dining habits of the upper classes,^[331] for whom the evening meal (cena) had important social functions.^[332] Guests were entertained in a finely decorated dining room (triclinium) furnished with couches. By the late Republic, women dined, reclined, and drank wine along with men.^[333] The poet Martial describes a dinner, beginning with the gustatio ("tasting" or "appetizer") salad. The main course was kid, beans, greens, a chicken, and leftover ham, followed by a dessert of fruit and wine.^[334] Roman "foodies" indulged in wild game, fowl such as peacock and flamingo, large fish (mullet was especially prized), and shellfish. Luxury ingredients were imported from the far reaches of empire.^[335] A book-length collection of Roman recipes is attributed to Apicius, a name for several figures in antiquity that became synonymous with "gourmet".^[336]

Refined cuisine could be moralized as a sign of either civilized progress or decadent decline.^[337] Most often, because of the importance of landowning in Roman culture, produce—cereals, legumes, vegetables, and fruit—were considered more civilized foods than meat. The Mediterranean staples of bread, wine, and oil were sacralized by Roman Christianity, while Germanic meat consumption became a mark of paganism.^[338] Some philosophers and Christians resisted the demands of the body and the pleasures of food, and adopted fasting as an ideal.^[339] Food became simpler in general as urban life in the West diminished and trade routes were disrupted;^[340] the Church formally discouraged gluttony,^[341] and hunting and pastoralism were seen as simple and virtuous.^[340]

Spectacles

When Juvenal complained that the Roman people had exchanged their political liberty for "bread and circuses", he was referring to the state-provided grain dole and the circenses, events held in the entertainment venue called a circus. The largest such venue in Rome was the Circus Maximus, the setting of horse races, chariot races, the equestrian Troy Game, staged beast hunts (venationes), athletic contests, gladiator combat, and historical re-enactments. From earliest times, several religious festivals had featured games (ludi), primarily horse and chariot races (ludi circenses).^[342] The races retained religious significance in connection with agriculture, initiation, and the cycle of birth and death.^{[lower-alpha 19]}

Under Augustus, public entertainments were presented on 77 days of the year; by the reign of Marcus Aurelius, this had expanded to 135.^[344] Circus games were preceded by an elaborate parade (pompa circensis) that ended at the venue.^[345] Competitive events were held also in smaller venues such as the amphitheatre, which became the characteristic Roman spectacle venue, and stadium. Greek-style athletics included footraces, boxing, wrestling, and the pancratium.^[346] Aquatic displays, such as the mock sea battle (naumachia) and a form of "water ballet", were presented in engineered pools.^[347] State-supported theatrical events (ludi scaenici) took place on temple steps or in grand stone theatres, or in the smaller enclosed theatre called an odeon.^[348]

Circuses were the largest structure regularly built in the Roman world.^[349] The Flavian Amphitheatre, better known as the Colosseum, became the regular arena for blood sports in Rome.^[350] Many Roman amphitheatres, circuses and theatres built in cities outside Italy are visible as ruins today.^[350] The local ruling elite were responsible for sponsoring spectacles and arena events, which both enhanced their status and drained their resources.^[183] The physical arrangement of the amphitheatre represented the order of Roman society: the emperor in his opulent box; senators and equestrians in reserved advantageous seats; women seated at a remove from the action; slaves given the worst places, and everybody else in-between.^[351] The crowd could call for an outcome by booing or cheering, but the emperor had the final say. Spectacles could quickly become sites of social and political protest, and emperors sometimes had to deploy force to put down crowd unrest, most notoriously at the Nika riots in 532.^[352]

Thumb — The Zliten mosaic, from a dining room in present-day Libya, depicts a series of arena scenes: from top, musicians; gladiators; beast fighters; and convicts condemned to the beasts^[353]

The chariot teams were known by the colours they wore. Fan loyalty was fierce and at times erupted into sports riots.^[354] Racing was perilous, but charioteers were among the most celebrated and well-compensated athletes.^[355] Circuses were designed to ensure that no team had an unfair advantage and to minimize collisions (naufragia),^[356] which were nonetheless frequent and satisfying to the crowd.^[357] The races retained a magical aura through their early association with chthonic rituals: circus images were considered protective or lucky, curse tablets have been found buried at the site of racetracks, and charioteers were often suspected of sorcery.^[358] Chariot racing continued into the Byzantine period under imperial sponsorship, but the decline of cities in the 6th and 7th centuries led to its eventual demise.^[349]

The Romans thought gladiator contests had originated with funeral games and sacrifices. Some of the earliest styles of gladiator fighting had ethnic designations such as "Thracian" or "Gallic".^[359] The staged combats were considered munera, "services, offerings, benefactions", initially distinct from the festival games (ludi).^[360] To mark the opening of the Colosseum, Titus presented 100 days of arena events, with 3,000 gladiators competing on a single day.^[361] Roman fascination with gladiators is indicated by how widely they are depicted on mosaics, wall paintings, lamps, and in graffiti.^[362] Gladiators were trained combatants who might be slaves, convicts, or free volunteers.^[363] Death was not a necessary or even desirable outcome in matches between these highly skilled fighters, whose training was costly and time-consuming.^[364] By contrast, noxii were convicts sentenced to the arena with little or no training, often unarmed, and with no expectation of survival; physical suffering and humiliation were considered appropriate retributive justice.^[183] These executions were sometimes staged or ritualized as re-enactments of myths, and amphitheatres were equipped with elaborate stage machinery to create special effects.^[183]^[365]

Modern scholars have found the pleasure Romans took in the "theatre of life and death"^[366] difficult to understand.^[367] Pliny the Younger rationalized gladiator spectacles as good for the people, "to inspire them to face honourable wounds and despise death, by exhibiting love of glory and desire for victory".^[368] Some Romans such as Seneca were critical of the brutal spectacles, but found virtue in the courage and dignity of the defeated fighter^[369]—an attitude that finds its fullest expression with the Christians martyred in the arena. Tertullian considered deaths in the arena to be nothing more than a dressed-up form of human sacrifice.^[370] Even martyr literature, however, offers "detailed, indeed luxuriant, descriptions of bodily suffering",^[371] and became a popular genre at times indistinguishable from fiction.^[372]

Recreation

The singular ludus, "play, game, sport, training", had a wide range of meanings such as "word play", "theatrical performance", "board game", "primary school", and even "gladiator training school" (as in Ludus Magnus).^[373] Activities for children and young people in the Empire included hoop rolling and knucklebones (astragali or "jacks"). Girls had dolls made of wood, terracotta, and especially bone and ivory.^[374] Ball games include trigon and harpastum.^[375] People of all ages played board games, including latrunculi ("Raiders") and XII scripta ("Twelve Marks").^[376] A game referred to as alea (dice) or tabula (the board) may have been similar to backgammon.^[377] Dicing as a form of gambling was disapproved of, but was a popular pastime during the festival of the Saturnalia.^[378]

After adolescence, most physical training for males was of a military nature. The Campus Martius originally was an exercise field where young men learned horsemanship and warfare. Hunting was also considered an appropriate pastime. According to Plutarch, conservative Romans disapproved of Greek-style athletics that promoted a fine body for its own sake, and condemned Nero's efforts to encourage Greek-style athletic games.^[379] Some women trained as gymnasts and dancers, and a rare few as female gladiators. The "Bikini Girls" mosaic shows young women engaging in routines comparable to rhythmic gymnastics.^{[lower-alpha 20]}^[381] Women were encouraged to maintain health through activities such as playing ball, swimming, walking, or reading aloud (as a breathing exercise).^[382]

Clothing

In a status-conscious society like that of the Romans, clothing and personal adornment indicated the etiquette of interacting with the wearer.^[383] Wearing the correct clothing reflected a society in good order.^[384] There is little direct evidence of how Romans dressed in daily life, since portraiture may show the subject in clothing with symbolic value, and surviving textiles are rare.^[385]^[386]

The toga was the distinctive national garment of the male citizen, but it was heavy and impractical, worn mainly for conducting political or court business and religious rites.^[387]^[385] It was a "vast expanse" of semi-circular white wool that could not be put on and draped correctly without assistance.^[387] The drapery became more intricate and structured over time.^[388] The toga praetexta, with a purple or purplish-red stripe representing inviolability, was worn by children who had not come of age, curule magistrates, and state priests. Only the emperor could wear an all-purple toga (toga picta).^[389]

Ordinary clothing was dark or colourful. The basic garment for all Romans, regardless of gender or wealth, was the simple sleeved tunic, with length differing by wearer.^[390] The tunics of poor people and labouring slaves were made from coarse wool in natural, dull shades; finer tunics were made of lightweight wool or linen. A man of the senatorial or equestrian order wore a tunic with two purple stripes (clavi) woven vertically: the wider the stripe, the higher the wearer's status.^[390] Other garments could be layered over the tunic. Common male attire also included cloaks and in some regions trousers.^[391] In the 2nd century, emperors and elite men are often portrayed wearing the pallium, an originally Greek mantle; women are also portrayed in the pallium. Tertullian considered the pallium an appropriate garment both for Christians, in contrast to the toga, and for educated people.^[384]^[385]^[392]

Roman clothing styles changed over time.^[393] In the Dominate, clothing worn by both soldiers and bureaucrats became highly decorated with geometrical patterns, stylized plant motifs, and in more elaborate examples, human or animal figures.^[394] Courtiers of the later Empire wore elaborate silk robes. The militarization of Roman society, and the waning of urban life, affected fashion: heavy military-style belts were worn by bureaucrats as well as soldiers, and the toga was abandoned,^[395] replaced by the pallium as a garment embodying social unity.^[396]