Thrown to the Lions? New evidence reveals lions were used during executions in Roman Britain

Archaeologists in Leicester have discovered an elaborately-decorated Roman bronze key handle portraying the execution of captives in the arena by throwing them to lions. The handle portrays a ‘Barbarian’ grappling with a lion, together with four naked youths cowering in terror. The key handle was discovered by University of Leicester Archaeological Services, buried below the floor of a late Roman town house excavated in the city in 2017. After conservation, this unique object was studied at King’s College London and the findings are now published in the journal Britannia.