![](https://learn.folkestonemuseum.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Romans-12-Samian-ware-gladiator-close-up-detail-500x500.jpg)
Here he is in close-up detail.
He’s dressed in armour, holding a sword above his head, and carrying a shield.
So he’s either a Roman soldier or a gladiator.
Gladiators were trained to fight each other for public entertainment, often in huge open-air arenas called amphitheatres.
Soldiers and gladiators were depicted on smooth, red-orange coloured Samian-ware pottery, imported into Roman Britain from Gaul (modern-day France).
Samian-ware was used by wealthy Romans for special occasions.