Life in Rome
The life of
a Roman person depended on whether they were rich, poor, or a slave, and on
their sex and age. Life in Ancient Rome
was not the same in 200BC as it was in AD200, and living conditions were
different in Roman Gaul, Roman Africa and Rome itself. So there were many variations to the details
described below.
Clothes
Roman men
and women wore a short-sleeved tunic, tied at the waist. These were usually knee-length for men and
ankle-length for women. Poor people,
workmen and slaves would wear these tunics in the street, but the wealthy
always wore a toga over their tunic.
This was a large piece of cloth wrapped around the body and draped over
one shoulder. It was the symbol of the
Roman citizen, a sign of status. Cloaks
would be worn in cold weather, when leather shoes replaced open sandals. Slaves usually went barefoot.
Eating
Breakfast
was usually bread, cheese and a little wine or water. Lunch was a bigger meal of cold meat,
vegetables and fruit, again with bread and wine or water. The main meal was dinner in the early
evening, perhaps at five o’ clock. There
would be several curses. Beef, mutton
and pork were the most common meats eaten, but rich people treated their guests
to more exotic meats, including flamingoes, peacocks, storks, doves and
dormice. Spoons and knives were used,
but forks were not because most eating was done with the fingers. Men usually lay on their side on a couch and
helped themselves to food from a low central table; women and children often
sat on upright chairs. For many Roman
families, the meal would be served by slaves.
Family Life
The Roman
wife shared her husband’s social position outside the home and his authority
inside it. Men were very much in control
of their children, who were expected to be obediently loyal to their father
even when they were grown up. This sense
of duty helped the Roman army control its soldiers. Fathers found husbands and wives for their children
during their teens. Girls could marry at
12, boys at 14.