The elaborate and inventive slaughter of humans and animals in the arena fed an insatiable desire for violent spectacle among the Roman people. Donald G. Kyle combines the words of ancient authors with current scholarly research and cross-cultural perspectives, as he explores
* the origins and historical development of the games
* who the victims were and why they were chosen
* how the Romans disposed of the thousands of resulting corpses
* the complex religious and ritual aspects of institutionalised violence
* the particularly savage treatment given to defiant Christians.
This lively and original work provides compelling, sometimes controversial, perspectives on the bloody entertainments of ancient Rome, which continue to fascinate us to this day.

Chapter 1 Introduction: Violent Spectacles and Roman Civilization; Chapter 2 The Phenomenon: The Development and Diversity of Roman Spectacles of Death; Chapter 3 The Victims: Differentiation, Status, and Supply; Chapter 4 Death, Disposal, and Damnation of Humans: Some Methods and Messages; Chapter 5 Disposal from Roman Arenas: Some Rituals and Options; Chapter 6 Arenas and Eating: Corpses and Carcasses as Food?; Chapter 7 Rituals, Spectacles, and the Tiber River; Chapter 8 Christians: Persecutions and Disposal; Chapter 9 Conclusion: Hunts and Homicides as Spectacles of Death;