Abstract
Leanne, Bablitz
Department of Classical, Near Eastern and Religious Studies
University of British Columbia
Trials at home
The Roman domus, while fulfilling the private needs of a Roman familia, also served several functions that we today would think of as public. At the same time, the legal system of Rome, a public institution by definition, involved activities that could, and did, take place within the domus. This paper discusses the evidence for legal activities that took place within the Roman domus in the first two centuries AD. Topics examined include the preparation of trials by advocates within their own homes, the types of trials that could take place in this environment, and the impact such activities could have both on the architecture of the domus and on the presentation of the case by the involved advocates.
Return to CACW 2006 "Household and Society in the Ancient World" Program