Armed and menacing, Roman gladiators are back in the arena and on the Internet in CTCWeb’s #1* ranked posting Roman Gladiator, published on the Classics Technology Center on the Web (CTCWeb, http://ablemedia.com/ctcweb). “Our latest article about modern re-enactments of ancient gladiatorial games adds fresh facts about Roman gladiators to our top-ranked presentation on the Web,” said Wendy E. Owens, CTCWeb Editor-in-Chief. “Stay tuned for more insights, scandal, culture, and history on the combatants whose legacy continues to captivate CTCWeb’s large and growing global audience.”

CTCWeb’s latest addition to Roman Gladiator showcases the revival of ancient Roman gladiatorial games in Jordan, where the modern gladiators of the Jerash Heritage Company re-enact ancient Roman “fights to the death.” Combat is between costumed re-enactors in an ancient Roman arena where modern audiences occupy seats used by ancient spectators and decide the fate of the gladiatorial combatants with a single gesture: thumbs-up or thumbs-down.

With this addition to Roman Gladiator, CTCWeb’s extends its coverage of the fundamentals of ancient gladiators, including their personas, training, social and political status, and the mysteries that surround them, including the mysteries about female gladiators. CTCWeb editors pull no punches in Roman Gladiator. They provide a straightforward explanation and examination of the origins, history, and evolution of the ancient gladiatorial games and the men who fought as gladiators to entertain a society that enjoyed the bloody spectacle. The presentation covers gladiatorial combat from its origin to its demise, describing how both sexes fought mano a mano or against wild beasts in arenas throughout the Roman Empire.

Each week AbleOne’s sponsor, AbleMedia, salutes contributors for outstanding submissions to the AbleOne Consortium (http://ablemedia.com/ctcweb/consortium/), the AbleOne Showcase (http://ablemedia.com/ctcweb/showcase/), and AbleOne Netshots™ (http://ablemedia.com/ctcweb/netshots.html). Each receives the Bronze Chalice award. AbleMedia awards Silver Chalices for the outstanding submissions of the month. At the end of each year, AbleMedia awards Gold Chalices for the outstanding submissions of the year.

AbleOne serves millions of educators, students, and other users in over 100 countries and the number of users is tripling annually. AbleOne’s CTCWeb is a repository of practical tools, for classicists and other educators, to enhance the use of computer technology in Classics education. At CTCWeb, students, educators and others find the free dissemination and open exchange of practical educational materials, systems, and applications by individuals and organizations involved in the Classics community. AbleMedia sponsors CTCWeb as part its AbleOne Education Network.