You may be surprised to learn that party favors — the little trinkets a host may give out at a wedding or celebration — are a rather ancient concept. In fact, some of the original party favors date back to ancient Greek and Roman times.
And for some Roman party guests, they received a small memento that reminded them not to fear death, and to live a little.
Read More: Researchers Dug Up Over 10,000 Rare Roman Artifacts in the UK
Ancient Bronze Skeletons
A notable activity the Roman Elite often partook in was elaborate banquets. According to The Met, hosts would often try to impress their guests with fine cookware, lavish food, and entertainment. These feasts may have also included a small party favor, like a bronze skeleton.
Known as "Larva Convivalis,” or “banquet ghosts,” these small bronze skeletons were likely given to party guests at some Roman banquets. Though it may seem odd to us to present your guests with tiny symbols of death, according to the Getty Museum, Roman arts and literature often depicted banquets and death symbols side by side.
In The Satyricon, a satirical novel by Petronius from 60 A.D., there is even a scene in which a character presents a small, silver skeleton at a banquet.
Memento Mori, a Reminder of Death
At only about two and a half inches long, the bronze skeleton on display at the Getty Museum is missing a few pieces, but it still reveals its toothy smile, intricate joints, wide eyes, and rigid spine. The skeletons may not have been completely anatomical, but they likely moved and bobbled freely when party-goers played with them, similar to the way the characters moved theirs in The Satyricon.
Within The Satyricon, the character Trimalchio manipulates and moves the skeleton in grotesque and sometimes unbecoming ways. During the story, Trimalchio proclaimed, “Alas for us poor mortals. Thus we shall all be, after Hades takes us away. Therefore, let us live while it goes well with us.”
Many interpretations say that the point Trimalchio is trying to prove is that life is short and not guaranteed, so it should be lived to its fullest. Although it is not explicitly stated anywhere, these bronze party skeletons could have been a reflection of the notion, or a memento mori (a reminder of death).
Expert Craftsmanship
One of these bronze skeletons is on display at the Getty Museum in California, though it is not the only one in existence. Several of these banquet ghosts have been discovered over time, including a silver one in Pompeii. They date back to about 199 B.C.E. to 500 C.E.
There isn’t much known about the crafters who made the skeletons, but the intricate details and the use of pins in the skeletons' joints to help make them move demonstrate a fine attention to detail that party-goers probably loved.
Read More: 6 Iconic Ancient Artifacts That Changed History Around the World
Article Sources
Our writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:
- Francine Segan, Melitta Weiss Adamson. Entertaining from Ancient Rome to the Super Bowl
- The Met. The Roman Banquet
- Getty. Miniature Skeleton
- JStor. Memento mori, Roman, 199 BCE-500 CE
