Ergastulum

An ergastulum (plural: ergastula) was a Roman building used to hold in chains dangerous slaves, or to punish other slaves. The ergastulum was usually subsurface, built as a deep, roofed pit - large enough to allow the slaves to work within it and containing narrow spaces in which they slept. They were common structures on all slave-using farms (latifundium). The etymology is disputed between two possible Greek roots 'ergasterios' (workshop) and 'ergastylos' (pillar to which slaves were tethered).

Contents

• Gangsta ost 01 ergastulum
• Ergastulum pretrauma
• References

The ergastulum was made illegal during the reign of Hadrian.

The term is also used to describe any small Roman prison.