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Rémi Bénali

Forceps were among the medical equipment found at Pompeii’s gladiator school.

Decorated with marine life, this high neck guard was worn on the shoulder by a retiarius, who fought with a net and trident.

Eques gladiators, who began their fights on horseback, carried a bronze shield and spear into battle.

A short, steel-and-bone dagger called a pugio forced fighters to get close to their opponents.

Elaborately decorated with storks fighting snakes, this leg protector was part of a pair worn by a thraex-style gladiator in Pompeii.

Not all experts agree that this 2,000-year-old statue is of a female gladiator, but female fighters did exist.

Gladiator reenactors clash in the dust of the 1,900-year-old Roman arena in Arles, France.

The tank of the arena, this gladiator carried a shin-to-shoulder shield, wore a heavy, full-coverage helmet topped with a tall crest, and donned arm and leg guards into the arena. He was armed with a short sword, called a gladius, based on the standard weapon of Roman legionaries. Slow-moving and well protected behind his heavy shield, the murmillo was typically paired against faster-moving opponents. The name comes from a type of fish, perhaps because of the upswept, finlike crest on his helmet.

With a spear and small shield, the hoplomachus—from the Greek for “armoured fighter”—was intended to recall typical Greek warriors. They wore leg armour that extended high up their thighs and helmets decorated with tall feather plumes. The hoplomachus usually paired off with the murmillo or thraex.

Named for the Roman word for net (rete), the “net man” was an arena staple and the secutor’s usual foil. He carried a trident, short knife, and weighted net, but no helmet or shield. Using the net to trip his opponent, he would then close in for the kill. Because he relied on attacks from a distance and fast footwork, the retiarius was often described in ancient accounts as unmanly—Romans respected fighters who stood their ground. They may have been crowd favourites nonetheless, in much the same way the crowd loves to cheer the “bad guy” in a professional wrestling match.