#gladiatrix

[polartss]

gladiator (gladiatrix????) girlfriends,,,,,,,, thinking thoughts,,,,,,,,

[janrockart]

The House Harkonnen

[toasterdrake]

you’ve heard of knight ruby now get ready for gladiator pyrrha

[city-of-ladies]

"According to Roman sources, emperors such as Nero and Domitian were fond of throwing lavish celebrations featuring female gladiators as novelty acts. The Roman historian Cassius Dio wrote of a days-long festival Nero held in honor of his mother in 59 where upper-class men and women “drove horses, killed wild beasts, and fought gladiators, some willingly and some sore against their will.” Roman historian and politician Tacitus referred to Nero’s female gladiators as feminarum, a term reserved for upper-class women, writing that “many ladies of distinction, however, and senators, disgraced themselves by appearing in the amphitheater.”

In 66, Nero sponsored more gladiatorial games featuring Ethiopian women, wrote Dio. And in 88, Emperor Domitian held games that again featured female gladiators, wrote biographer and historian Seutonius.

Sources also wrote of venatrices, female beast hunters, appearing in the Colosseum’s 100 days of opening games in 80. Venatrices took down stags, boars, and even lions with spears and bows, says Potter. Whereas female gladiators likely fought other women to first blood in single combat, explains Potter. Contrary to popular belief, fighting to the death was rare in gladiatorial games: Sponsors considered gladiators expensive, long-term investments.

Even though many Romans disapproved of female gladiators, people went wild for them in the arena. “We do know that some of the [female gladiator] fights took place in mid-afternoon, and that’s not the time for the novelty acts or the comedies or the executions,” says Philip Matyzask, an author, historian, and professor at the University of Cambridge. “That’s the time for the premier gladiator fights. So they were treated as serious professional bouts.”

The very existence of female gladiators complicates the understanding of Roman gender roles. Many believe Roman women were docile, modest, meek, and subservient to the men in their lives. But “Roman women wielded much more influence in society than many people out in the public think,” says Coleman. Roman women could be independent benefactors (funding the construction of buildings, temples, and social programs), own property, and divorce their husbands.

“I think we develop a better understanding of our own culture by close study of another,” says Potter, and studying female gladiators illuminates the “latent sexism in the way we view women,” both today and in antiquity.

Rome’s female gladiators are just one offshoot of women’s long, often-forgotten history as warriors. “Women have fought in nearly all conflicts and wars throughout history, from the war of Troy until today,” says Manas. Rome’s female gladiators were the women warriors of their time—redefining societal expectations of what women were and are capable of."

[theinimitablefuckstormkilligan]

I was a gladiator for pride 2023, and it's kind of crazy how much more muscular I've become since!

[alienpussycat]

Whole show filled with lesbians

[laind004]

“Little Killer…”

The Gladiatrix from ARK: The Animated Series! She was such an awesome character and I can’t wait to see more of her in the future!

[ouro-bones]

ALL MY ARK DESIGNS 🗣‼️

[curtvilescomic]

Pam Grier in The Arena (1974)

[the-chaos-katzlein]

Y’all the Gladiatrix (Octavia)

H-holy crap

Now that’s a woman…💘 maybe like a solid 7 foot of pure muscle. 💕

[xj4cks]

[janrockart]

New character portrait for Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous run! Her name's Eschate and she was a slave gladiator until about right now (demons are invading or something idk)

[fluffyfurry6663]

LESBIANS!!!!!!!!!!

[rylanwoodrow]

Ahhh! Took all night, but finished the colors and lighting on this Drukhari power-throuple!

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This piece was originally illustrated as a reward for my Patreon followers. If you're interested in checking out some of the variants I made of this piece (including my original, oversaturated color scheme, a desaturated version with spot-colors, and a purple-wash grayscale version perfect for wallpapers), subscribe to my Patreon (18+): patreon.com/rylanwoodrow

[aubreve-art]

Trying out a new process - took ages to pick the colours but loved bringing this panel to life!

[victusinveritas]