Pollice Verso (Gérôme)
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Pollice Verso is an 1872 painting by French artist Jean-Léon Gérôme, featuring the eponymous Roman gesture directed to the winning gladiator.
Jean Leon Gerome Pollice Verso
Detail: the Vestal virgins signal death for the defeated gladiator.
Title page with illustration from "Pollice Verso": To the Lovers of Truth in Classic Art, This is Most Respectfully Addressed, 1879.
Detail: close-up of the gladiators
Pollice verso
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Pollice verso or verso pollice is a Latin phrase, meaning "with a turned thumb", that is used in the context of gladiatorial combat. It refers to a hand gesture or thumb signal used by Ancient Roman c
Pollice Verso (Gérôme)
…Pollice Verso (from Latin: with a turned thumb) is an 1872 painting by French artist Jean-Léon Gérôme, featuring the eponymous Roman gesture directed to the winning gladiator. The thumbs-down gesture in the painting is given by spectators at the Colosseum, including the Vestals, to the…
The Cavillargues medallion (c. AD 200) depicts the ēditor (games manager) showing a closed fist with wraparound thumb, meaning "spare him."