{{Short description|Type of Roman gladiator}} [[File:Detail of Gladiator mosaic, a Thraex (left) fighting a Murmillo (right), Römerhalle, Bad Kreuznach, Germany (8196070427).jpg|thumb|A Thraex (left) fighting a murmillo, mosaic from Bad Kreuznach, Germany]] The '''Thraex''' ({{plural form }}: '''Thraeces'''), or '''Thracian''', was a type of Roman gladiator armed in Thracian style. His equipment included a ''parmula'', a small shield (about 60 × 65 cm) that might be rectangular, square or circular; and a sica, a short sword with a curved blade like a small version of the Dacian falx, intended to maim an opponent's unarmoured back. His other armour included greaves, a protective belt above a loincloth, and a helmet with a side plume, visor and high crest.
==Fighting style and techniques== thumb|upright|left|Thraex sculpted from ivory as a knife handle (2nd century AD)
A passage in Petronius indicates that "Thracian" was a style of gladiatorial fighting taught in training schools.{{sfn|Carter|2006|p=104, citing ''Satyricon'' 45.12}} An inscription records a ''doctor thraecum'', a teacher of would-be Thracians.{{sfn|Carter|2006|p=104}}
==See also== * List of Roman gladiator types * Spartacus * Ludus Dacicus
==References== {{reflist}}
==Sources== * {{cite journal | last =Carter | first =M. J. |author-link = | title = Gladiatorial Combat: The Rules of Engagement | date =2006 | journal =Classical Journal | volume = 102 | issue = 2 | pages =97–114 | jstor = 30038038 }}
*[https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/G_1873-0820-53 Bronze figurine of a gladiator - British Museum] *[https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/G_1907-0518-4 Terracotta figurine of 2 gladiators - British Museum] *E. Köhne and C. Ewigleben (eds.). ''Gladiators and Caesars: The Power of Spectacles in Ancient Rome''. London: The British Museum Press, 2000.
==External links== {{commonscat|Thraces}} * [https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/cf42fd3fc263df78531de39b1defb3273f23d417/0_29_3072_1843/master/3072.jpg?width=1225&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=7a5280bf03ded67077945c13bafb255a Fresco of a murmillo and Thracian fighting], found in Pompei in 2019
Category:Gladiator types Category:Roman Thrace Category:Dacian weapons
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