Analecta

[porphyry]

One of the Saturnalia gifts that Martial wrote a gift tag for is an analecta. This is a slave trained to pick up crumbs dropped during a cena lauta et vensuta (symposium) without sweeping. How strange it would be to have such a person crawling under the table during a dinner party.

Yet I find myself spending more and more of my time doing exactly that.

Comments

[karinmollberg.livejournal.com]

As a housewife, however dilettante, I just love this.) Must remember word.

[benicek.livejournal.com]

What's this candle snuffer object?

[benicek.livejournal.com]

What was the point of an analecta? Why did that task require training? Bloody Romans.

[benicek.livejournal.com]

Crumby job! Hahahahahaha (hic!)

[leopold-paula-b.livejournal.com]

HAHAHA!

[malkhos.livejournal.com]

I was going to ask too.

[malkhos.livejournal.com]

I think the point was to not disturb the diners. they would have been reclining on couches, so the slave crawling around would not bump their legs. I would the point of the training might have been unobtrusiveness.

[malkhos.livejournal.com]

It had completely slipped my mind.