Rostrum

Шлаканёв В.

Rostrum – ram on warships of the ancient Roman fleet. Ramming into the side of an enemy ship was the main combat technique in naval combat. The ram was located below the water level,which made it possible to quickly sink the ship. The rostrum was also a war trophy. In the future,the concept of rostrum was transferred to the bow figure on the ship,but the tradition of displaying rostrums of defeated ships remained. A striking example is the rostral columns on Vasilievsky Island in St. Petersburg.

The rostrum was made mainly of bronze. The most common form was the trident. However,sometimes there are rams in the form of a boar's head. The best preserved antique rostrum is kept in a museum in Haifa,Israel.

Function

A rostrum is a projecting ship's ram or an architectural motif derived from such a naval ram. In Roman tradition captured rostra became symbols of naval victory and were used in public monuments. The best-known example is the rostra in the Forum, a speaker's platform from which magistrates and orators addressed the people.

The word therefore has two main fields of meaning. In a technical sense it is a bronze or reinforced bow ram connected with hull, oars, speed and manoeuvre of the ship. In a political and memorial sense rostra are trophies removed from enemy ships and turned into signs of victory, authority and public speech.

Ship ram and monument

A rostrum existed in two connected meanings: as a real part of a warship and as a monumental sign of naval victory. On a ship it was a bronze ram built into the bow structure and intended to strike the hull of an enemy vessel. Its form depended not on decoration, but on the hull, framing, weight of the ship and tactics of closing with the enemy.

When captured rostra were removed from ships and displayed in the city, the object changed function. In architecture and public space the important features became the recognizable row of projections, the connection with victory at sea and the memory of a defeated enemy fleet. The same term could therefore refer both to a technical part of a ship and to a political symbol in the Roman city.

The ram strike

A fighting rostrum was not a decorative ship's nose, but part of the entire hull structure. For a ram strike to matter, the ship had to gain speed, hold direction and hit a vulnerable point of the enemy vessel. After impact the crew had to avoid becoming stuck in the enemy's side and keep their own ship controllable.

The rostrum therefore cannot be studied apart from rowers, helmsman and naval tactics. It required coordinated movement, training and the right moment of attack. The bronze ram was only the visible part of a complex system: hull, oars, crew, distance and manoeuvre.

Rostra as trophy and platform

Captured ship rams became political and memorial symbols in Rome. They decorated the speakers' platform, and the word rostra passed from the ship's ram to the place of public speech. This is a strong example of a military object changing meaning: from naval weapon to sign of victory, authority and memory.

The connection with the Roman Forum is especially important. The rostra on the platform recalled naval power and at the same time formed the background for political speech. Military victory became part of urban memory: a trophy taken from a ship was inserted into the space of magistrates, assemblies and public authority.

Related topics

Trireme, Sternpost, Trident, Roman Forum

Literature

• Lionel Casson, Ships and Seamanship in the Ancient World.
• William M. Murray, The Age of Titans: The Rise and Fall of the Great Hellenistic Navies.
• Amanda Claridge, Rome: An Oxford Archaeological Guide.