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, an 1872 painting by Jean-Léon Gérôme (Phoenix Art Museum), was the subject of great debate regarding its historical accuracy
The Cavillargues medallion (c. AD 200) depicts the ēditor (games manager) showing a closed fist with wraparound thumb, meaning "spare him."
Title page with illustration from "Pollice Verso": To the Lovers of Truth in Classic Art, This is Most Respectfully Addressed, 1879
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.
Pollice verso
…notion of the pollice verso thumb signal was brought to modern popular attention by an 1872 painting by French history painter Jean-Léon Gérôme entitled Pollice Verso (usually translated into English as Thumbs Down). It is a large canvas that depicts the Vestal Virgins signifying to a murmillo that they decree death…
Detail: the Vestal virgins signal death for the defeated gladiator.
Detail: close-up of the gladiators