| Summary: | Not only did the Romans work very hard during the night, but they also enjoyed
eating, drinking and partying. Although there were only limited sources of light, they
used their evenings and nights optimally.
During the first and second centuries A.D., there was a definite renaissance in
commercial life, in cities as well as in the country. Basic concepts were standardised,
such as the calendar (by Caesar), time reckoning by means of sun dials and water
clocks. There were also improvements in the ways of recreation, entertainment and
different kinds of artificial light.
In this study primary sources of information were used. The chapter on the sources is
an endeavour to combine the biographical information of the specific writers and the
influence of their milieu on their writing and way of life, with the extracts from their
work. Martial and Juvenal give an exaggerated reconstruction, which however
contains many apt descriptions of the social milieu. Pliny in his encyclopaedia
(Naturalis Historia) gives useful facts on e.g. the making of candles and how time
was reckoned in experimental ways,. The question when time should be regarded as
âdayâ or ânightâ already existed in ancient Rome. When the cockâs crow to announce
the morning was no longer regarded as sufficiently correct, night guards were used to
announce a new day. That was before scientific inventions such as the sun dial and
later the water clock were used to determine time.
Lighting was an important factor as it became dark quite early and after sunset, the
Romans were dependent on artificial light. Not only did torches, candles and later even lamps enrich the quality of life, but crime was also limited by lighting. Prices and
availability of fuel played a big role in the distinction between the social classes.
Apart from the personnel of the fire brigade who could be called out at night, bakers,
prostitutes, light house sentinels, doctors and bar- and restaurant owners also
worked during the night. The army, responsible for the safety of the inhabitants of the
country, sometimes had to act during the night, thus it is logical that they had to be
on call day and night. Many authors such as Quintilian, Seneca and Pliny the Elder
also worked during nighttime. The Roman day ended at around the eighth hour with
the cena as the main ac tivity of the late afternoon and evening. It was during this time
that citizens were busy eating and drinking in the triclinium to forget the dayâs
worries.
Two relevant issues in modern times are gender inequality and social stratification.
From the study it is clear that discrimination is not a modern tendency but already
played a role in ancient times. Women and poor people were scoffed, humiliated and
deemed inferior.
The research field of this dissertation thus lay on the socio-cultural level, with specific
reference to the experiences of different social classes and males and females with
regard to nocturnal activities in ancient Rome. This study presents a more nuanced
picture of the social life in ancient Rome. The central theme of this work, however,
stands in contrast with previous studies since nocturnal activities are not mentioned
in passing only but are discussed in detail, in order to point out the wide range of
these activities.
|
|---|
