Levelling up Pompeii: grave shows how a former slave went far

The inscription on the gravestone proudly attests to how far Marcus Venerius Secundio, a former slave of the ancient Roman city of Pompeii, went in life. In order of importance, he lists his achievements after being liberated. The first was his role as custodian of the Temple of Venus, built soon after the creation of Pompeii as a Roman colony.

He also joined the ranks of the Augustales, a college of priests who were in charge of a form of emperor worship. But perhaps the most telling indication of his eventual status was that he financed entertainment events in Greek and Latin.

“Being a slave is humiliating, you are in the possession of someone else,” said Gabriel Zuchtriegel, the director of Pompeii’s archaeological park. “So here we see evidence of a transformation in social ranking … he is showing that he became a different person, that he made it in life.”

Secundio’s partially mummified remains, including white hair, bones and a partly visible ear, were recently found in a monumental tomb located in a prime spot at the necropolis of Porta Sarno, which was one of the main entrance gates into ancient Pompeii.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/21/levelling-up-pompeii-grave-at-site-shows-how-a-former-slave-went-far
____________________________________________________________________________
Humanizing history makes it much more interesting