Lost mosaic reveals first image of female beast-fighter from the Roman era - Other Sciences - Archaeology

The woman. (a) Drawing from Loriquet 1862: planche IX, n° 11. (b) Detail of the breasts. Credit: The International Journal of the History of Sport (2026). DOI: 10.1080/09523367.2026.2632176

When you think of a fight between an animal and a human in ancient Roman sports, the mental image is usually of a big man vs. an animal in a big arena filled with cheering spectators. In a new study, Alfonso Manas, a researcher from the University of California, challenges that image. Manas presents evidence that a 3rd-century Roman mosaic from Reims, which depicts a topless figure with prominent breasts battling a leopard, is actually a visual representation of a Roman female beast-fighter, or venatrix. This contradicts previous research, which read her role as that of an agitator, a clown-like arena staff member whose job was to whip the animals to make them attack during a hunt.

While written history has mentioned women participating in beast-fighting sports, the mosaic examined in this study is the first and only known depiction of it. This new evidence is presented in The International Journal of the History of Sport.

In search of women fighters

Fights held in Roman arenas were of two categories: Gladiatura, which refers to combat between humans, and Venatio, which is human-to-animal combat, or hunting in the arena. Gladiator sports have not only garnered public attention, making several appearances in movies and TV shows, but they have also been extensively studied by researchers, unlike Venatio, which has received much less attention. This bias toward man-versus-man fights has left many unanswered questions about the ancient practice. Some of them being: Did women ever take on the role of venatrices, fighting wild beasts in the arena? And if so, at what point in the historical timeline did this take place?

(a) Section of the mosaic showing the leopard and the woman. (b) Section of the mosaic showing the venator with the pole, the leopard, and the woman. Credit: The International Journal of the History of Sport (2026). DOI: 10.1080/09523367.2026.2632176

Over the years, historians have discovered 6 excerpts that mention women facing a beast in the arena, one of the earliest dating to the reign of the infamous emperor Nero from 54 to 68 CE. Documents also show that female venatrices took the center stage during the opening of the Colosseum in the summer of AD 80.

For a long time, researchers believed that they were part of arena hunting, but they disappeared after AD 100.

A closer look at the Reims mosaic calls this stance into question. Manas argues that the images in the mosaic tiles are carefully arranged to depict the pointy breasts of a topless woman. This was intentionally done by the artist to clearly distinguish a woman's anatomy from the flat-chested male figures in the rest of the mosaic.

The study challenges earlier claims that she was a clown or an agitator—a role with little evidence of ever existing—and instead identifies her as a trained hunter, a venatrix. In the mosaic, she holds a whip used to control animals in one hand and possibly the knob at the hilt of a weapon in the other. These weapons make it clear she was not a helpless condemned prisoner, who would have been sent into the arena unarmed and defenseless.

Mosaic from Reims, third century. Found in Reims in 1860, destroyed in 1917 during WWI. Lost. Drawing from Loriquet 1862: planche XVIII. Credit: The International Journal of the History of Sport (2026). DOI: 10.1080/09523367.2026.2632176

A 1860 study by archaeologist Jean Charles Loriquet dated it to the 3rd century by comparing it with the artistic style of other uncovered Roman mosaics. This further supports the evidence that female beast-fighters remained active in the arena for at least a century longer than previously believed. Even though historical records state that female gladiators were banned around AD 200, the study shows that female animal hunters continued to perform well beyond that point.

These findings might help dispel stereotypes about women's roles in ancient societies and inform more accurate museum displays and educational materials on Roman history. 

by Sanjukta Mondal, Phys.org

edited by Gaby Clark, reviewed by Robert Egan 

Source: Lost mosaic reveals first image of female beast-fighter from the Roman era