Anthropologists discover battle proof between lions and people in vacation destinations

Archaeologists recently discovered evidence of a gladiatorial fight with a lion at an unexpected tourist destination.

York is a city in northern England known for its breathtaking medieval architecture and welcomes millions of visitors every year – but its history is farther from the Middle Ages.

The area was inhabited by the ancient Romans, which founded the city in 71 AD and named it Eboracum.

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So far, archaeologists are not sure that the gladiatorial battle with lions takes place outside of Italy – there is not much evidence that these battles are shown besides the Roman art that depicts the battles.

Recent discoveries, promoted in journals PLOS ONE analyzed puncture injuries found on the pelvis of Gladiator buried in York Cemetery.

Archaeologists say the English city, known for its medieval architecture, held a battle between gladiators and lions in the third century. (istock; Getty image)

The gladiator lived in the 3rd century AD and died at the age of 26 to 35.

Researchers analyzed the man's wound and found that the bite was made of a big cat, most likely a lion.

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The article states: “The evidence of skeletal related to the fight against Gladiatorial is rare, and most of the evidence comes from written or visual sources.”

The bite is made of a big cat, probably a lion.

“A skeleton in the Roman cemetery outside York is said to be the skeleton where the gladiator was buried.”

The article states: “The survey, including comparative work by modern zoological institutions, suggests that these markers are derived from the removal of large cats.”

The bites found on the gladiator's pelvis may have come from the lion. (Thompson et al., 2025, PLOS, via Reuters' handout)

The study's authors say the finding is “the first physical evidence of fighting in the Roman period in the human-animal period seen anywhere in Europe.”

Although researchers believe gladiators died in battle, they do not think pelvic puncture is a fatal blow.

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“We don't think this is a killing wound because it's possible to survive this injury, and it's an unusual place for cats that are so big,” Tim Thompson, forensic anthropologist at Menos University, said in a statement to Reuters.

“We think this shows procrastination of an incapacitated person.”

The study's authors said the finding marked “the first physical evidence of human animal struggles seen anywhere in Europe during the Roman period.” (Reuters/Will Dunham)

John Pearce, a Roman archaeologist at King's College in London, and the study's co-author told Reuters that the cat might have been hungry before the fight to increase its aggressiveness.

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“From the gladiator's point of view, it's very speculative that maybe methods like the Bullfighter are applied – dodging and gradually entangling to expand performance,” Pierce said.

He continued: “In this case, it is obvious that the lion suffers or drags the position of the person on the ground, given the position of the bite marker, is likely to fail.”

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“Finally, when one or both are dead, the meat will be buried in the gladiator and the use of animal carcasses as meat.”

Although descriptions of the battle between the lion and the gladiator have been found, there is little specific evidence of the battle. (Reuters/Will Dunham)

Experts added that the discovery reflects the “culture of wonder” at the center of Roman life.

“This new analysis provides us with very specific and concrete evidence of violent encounters between human and animal, whether in combat or punishment, showing that the big cats caught in North Africa performed and fought not only in Rome or Italy, but also in a wide range of battles not only when we don't know how long.” Pearce ended. ”

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Reuters contributed the report to this article.