Rome, the Greek World, and the East, Vol. 2 - Government, Society, and Culture in the Roman Empire

Condemnation to Hard Labour 121

quarrieswasafamiliarfateforChristians.^2 Tertullian,whomightwellcount
notonlyasthefinestwriterofrhetoricalLatinfromtheimperialperiod,^3
butasthemostacuteandobservantsatiristofimperialsocietyandgovern-
ment,hadalreadydeployedthethemeofthesavagepunishmentsnowinuse
tosatirisepaganworshipanditsobjects—piecesofstoneormetalextracted
fromthegroundandfashionedbyhumanhands(Apol.12,3–5):

You place Christians on crosses and stakes. What statue is not first

shapedbyclaymouldedonacrossorstake?Itisonagibbetthatthe

bodiesofyourgodsarefirstdedicated.Youtearwithhooksatthesides

ofChristians.Butallthepartsofyourgodsareevenmorevigorously

workedwithaxes,planes,andrasps.Weplaceourheadsontheblock;

your gods arewithout heads until lead and glue and wedges are ap-

plied.Wearedriventofacethebeasts—thoseindeedwhichyouplace

beside Liber, Cybele, and Caelestis.We are burned with fire; so too

arethey,astheyleavethecrudeore.Wearecondemnedtothemetalla

[minesorquarries];thesearetheoriginsofyourgods.Wearerelegated

toislands;bycustomyourgodsarebornanddieonsomeisland.

LaterTertullianreturnstothethemeofthemines(Apol.29,2–3):

For [if the gods had the powers attributed to them] they would first

defendtheirownstatuesandimagesandtemples,whichinfact,Irather

think,thesoldiersoftheCaesarsstandonwatchtoprotect.Moreover,

asIbelieve,theverymaterialsofwhichtheyaremadecomefromthe

metallaoftheCaesars,andallthetemplesdependonCaesar’snod.

Thesepassagespresupposeandreflectanumberofprofounddevelopments
in the nature of the state and its relation to its subjects which took place
intheimperialperiod.Firstlycomestheregularapplicationtofreepeople,
oratleasttothoseoflowsocialstatus,ofsavagemeansofphysicalpunish-
mentdesignedtoproduceapainfulandlingeringdeath.Some,perhapsall,of
thesepunishmentswereregularlycarriedoutinpublic,asanaspectofshows
forpopularamusement.Secondly,thereistheappearanceofformsofexile
whichinvolvednotmerelyexclusionfromanarea,asintheRepublic,butdi-
rectiontoaparticularplace.Thiswastrueinsomecasesofthemilderformof

2. SeeJ.G.Davies,‘‘CondemnationtotheMines:ANeglectedChapterintheHistory
   ofthePersecutions,’’University of Birmingham Historical Journal6(1957–58):20.


3. SeeT.D.Barnes,Tertullian: A Historical and Literary Study(1971),esp.chap.14:‘‘The
   ChristianSophist’’;R.D.Sider,Ancient Rhetoric and the Art of Tertullian(1971).