Found a weird Roman curse tablet at a little museum in Bath last weekend

I was visiting the Roman Baths museum in Bath last Saturday and they had this tiny rolled up piece of lead on display. It was a curse tablet from like 200 AD where someone named Docilianus was asking the goddess Sulis to curse the person who stole his cloak. The handwriting was so small and messy, it felt crazy to think someone actually sat down and wrote that out 1800 years ago. Has anyone else seen one of these in person and gotten that weird feeling of connection across time?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_claire1mo ago

Honestly used to think curse tablets were just kind of a weird ancient gimmick, like people being dramatic about losing stuff. But seeing one up close with the actual scratched letters on that tiny piece of lead really hit different. It made me realize that people back then had the same petty anger and frustration we do now, they just wrote it down and hoped a goddess would handle it. Maybe it's just me but that little moment of connection really changed how I see history, it's not just dates and names but real people getting mad about their stuff getting stolen.

phoenixw111mo agoTop Commenter

Do you ever wonder what happened after they wrote these curses? Like, did the person who stole the laundry really drop dead? Or did they just laugh about it later? I get what you mean about the realness of it though. Those scratches on lead aren't just words, they're raw emotion poured out by someone who felt helpless. It's the Same feeling we get today when someone takes our stuff and we want justice but can't get it. History suddenly feels way less distant when you realize people have ALWAYS been this petty and angry about things getting stolen.

linda1141mo ago

Picturing someone in ancient Rome actually dropping dead after stealing a tunic or something genuinely made me laugh out loud. Honestly, I'd 100% be the person who curses someone's laundry, then feels awkward about it a week later when I find it behind my dresser.