How Much Did Roman Slaves Cost?

Video Description

🎬 Watch early & support the channel on Patreon: https://patreon.com/ParaBellumHistoryChannel Or become a member on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ParaBellumHistoryChannel/join to unlock early access to new videos. Music from our videos: https://share.epidemicsound.com/xk7k44/?playlist=kgati2pa4pi3mz2hsib867syv6zjdzqh Visit our website: https://parabellumhistory.com Our merchandise store: https://parabellumstore.creator-spring.com/ 🎧 Listen to our podcast: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2OdtsiTkoss7a7O090YsPz Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/para-bellum-history/id1837784993 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/85df1ed1-c405-4568-b0c2-dba307fe4996/para-bellum-history How much did a slave cost in Ancient Rome? 🏛️💰 This video takes you inside the slave markets of the Roman Empire, where human lives were bought and sold as casually as goods at a marketplace. From young Greek boys trained in reading and writing to Thracian farmhands and Syrian women valued for their beauty, every person had a price — and those prices tell us a lot about Roman society, economy, and culture. 📌 In this video, you’ll learn: -- How Roman slave markets worked and why the Forum Boarium in Rome became the heart of the trade -- Real examples of slave prices preserved in historical records and contracts -- Why certain groups — like educated Greek slaves, skilled craftsmen, and entertainers — were worth far more than unskilled laborers -- The shocking differences between the cost of children, women, and men on the auction block -- How Roman buyers evaluated slaves: age, origin, skills, health, and even physical appearance -- The paperwork behind every sale, including contracts, receipts, and guarantees -- How historians calculate what Roman prices (measured in denarii and sesterces) would mean in modern money -- The economic and social impact of slavery on Rome — from agriculture and construction to households and entertainment Slavery was not just a feature of Rome — it was the backbone of its empire. Millions of men, women, and children were enslaved, powering the economy and shaping daily life. Understanding how slaves were valued and traded opens a window into one of the darkest but most essential aspects of Roman civilization. By the end of this video, you’ll know not only the average cost of a slave in Ancient Rome, but also how these transactions reveal the harsh realities of human exploitation in the ancient world. #AncientRome #History #RomanEmpire #Slavery #SlavePrices #romanhistory Bibliography 1. Bradley, Keith R. Slavery and Society at Rome. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994. 2. Finley, M. I. Ancient Slavery and Modern Ideology. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1980. 3. Hopkins, Keith. Conquerors and Slaves. Sociological Studies in Roman History, Vol. 1. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1978. 4. Joshel, Sandra R. Slavery in the Roman World. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010. 5. Kleijwegt, Marc. Ancient Youth: The Ambiguity of Youth and the Absence of Adolescence in Greco-Roman Society. Leiden: Brill, 1991. 6. Scheidel, Walter. “Quantifying the Sources of Slaves in the Early Roman Empire.” The Journal of Roman Studies 87 (1997): 156–169. 7. Cato the Elder, and Varro. 1934. On Agriculture. Translated by W. D. Hooper and H. B. Ash. Loeb Classical Library 283. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. 8. Columella. 1941–1955. On Agriculture (De re rustica). 3 vols. Translated by E. S. Forster and E. H. Heffner. Loeb Classical Library 361, 407, 408. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. 9. Hunt, A. S., and C. C. Edgar, eds. 1934. Select Papyri, Volume II: Non-Literary Papyri, Private Affairs. Loeb Classical Library 266. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. (Includes sale contracts, manumissions, and related documents.) 10. Justinian. 1985. The Digest of Justinian. 4 vols. Edited by Theodor Mommsen and Paul Krueger; translated by Alan Watson. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. 11. Pliny the Elder. 1938–1963. Natural History. 10 vols. Translated by H. Rackham, W. H. S. Jones, and D. E. Eichholz. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. 12. Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum (CIL). 1863–. Berlin: De Gruyter. (Standard corpus for Latin inscriptions; consult relevant volumes for slave sales, manumissions, and price data.) 14. The Theodosian Code. 1952. The Theodosian Code and Novels and the Sirmondian Constitutions. Translated by Clyde Pharr. Princeton: Princeton University Press. (Legal norms affecting the slave trade, taxation, and manumission.) 15. Ulpian. 2012. The Opinions of Ulpian: Regulae. Translated by Tony Honoré. Oxford: Oxford University Press. (Juristic opinions on valuations, guarantees, and liabilities relevant to slave sales.) 🎤 ⁠Voiceover by: Nick Banas Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nickbanas