Ancient
Rome was a cosmopolitan city, drawing in people and products from across the
Mediterranean world and beyond. By the late first century BC, there were as
many as one million inhabitants in Rome. The
people of Rome relied on retailers to provide them with food, clothing and
other goods. Our ancient evidence points to a thriving retail trade in the city
and, for any ancient visitor, the sheer number of retailers and shoppers must
have been one of the most striking aspects of the Roman cityscape. Retailers
were found in the busiest areas of the city. Small shops and workshops lined
the main thoroughfares, spilling out over their thresholds into the streets and
colonnades. Market traders, street sellers and ambulant hawkers also tended to
be found in central areas. They clustered around temples, bathhouses, forums,
circuses, amphitheaters and theatres, attracted by the commercial opportunities
offered by large gatherings of people. Sellers at temples offered votive
offerings such as flower garlands, while those at the amphitheater may have
sold gladiatorial programs. See pictures and read article at -- http://www.historyextra.com/article/romans/time-traveller%E2%80%99s-guide-shopping-ancient-rome
The witnesses, laying their coats at the feet of Saul, were the men that would cast the first stones at Stephen in Acts 7. Why did they all lay their coats at Saul’s feet? The Talmud contains a very interesting account of the act of stoning that may provide the answer. “When the trial was over, they take him [the condemned person] out to be stoned. The place of stoning was at a distance from the court, as it is said, ‘Take out the one who has cursed.’ [i] A man stands at the entrance of the court; in his hand is a signaling flag [Hebrew sudarin = sudar , ‘scarf, sweater’]. A horseman was stationed far away but within sight of him. If one [of the judges] says, ‘I have something [more] to say in his favor,’ he [the signaler] waves the sudarin , and the horseman runs and stops them [from stoning him]. Even if [the condemned person] himself says, ‘I have something to say in my favor,’ they bring him back, even four of five times, only provided that there is some substance to...
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