Gladiators were men and sometimes women who were slaves or criminals trained to fight. Combats between gladiators were also very popular but violent events at the amphitheatre, with the crowd often yelling for blood.

However, gladiators often survived to fight again, and became more popular with each win.

As shown in the lower mosaic, other gladiators were set to hunt animals such as lions, tigers, bears, elephants, and sometimes ostriches or crocodiles.