Ergastula

The ergastulum was an institution associated, in Roman society, with slave labor. It was not indigenous to Italy, having brought from Sicily after the Cartaginians had introduced it, and was used in the area of agriculture. In later times ergastula were used as tabernae or stores. As well as slav...

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Bibliographic Details
Author:J.C. Fitzgibbon
Volume:20
Pages:55-59
Periodical:Échos du Monde Classique
Format:Article
Status:Needs Review
Description
Summary:The ergastulum was an institution associated, in Roman society, with slave labor. It was not indigenous to Italy, having brought from Sicily after the Cartaginians had introduced it, and was used in the area of agriculture. In later times ergastula were used as tabernae or stores. As well as slaves, political dissidents, debtors, or gladiators were sometimes kept in argastula.