Do you think that today’s athletes like Tiger Woods earn too much? You are still wrong for over a Roman charioteer Guy Apuleius Dioklom, Tiger Woods earns quite funny money. And, I might add, still paying huge taxes from them, while the Roman athletes do not pay any taxes.

Guy Diokl Apuleius, who was born in 104 in the Lusitania (about today’s Portugal), with 18 years became involved in racing chariots, which was extremely dangerous competition – often overturned chariot charioteer and career was very short, despite a respectable suit of armor worn by each of them – the chariot still a heavy thing, and horses too. Diokl was lucky – he played until the age of 42 years and won the race in 1462 from 4257.

During his career he has earned nearly 36 million sesterces. Translated into today’s money it would have been $ 15 billion. For such a sum could Diokl a year to feed bread Rome or 1 / 5 year contain all the Roman army. It is 5 times higher than the salaries of the richest provincial Roman governor over the same period of time.

It’s funny that Diokl was not even the most successful racer, such as Pompey won Musklos 3.599 races (and by age 22!) – Nearly 2.5 times higher and have earned 15.5 million sesterces.

Just Diokl was most successful.

Incidentally, an interesting thing – as in “Formula 1″, and in the Roman race, was the whole team. For example, “hortator” riding a horse with his charioteer, encouraged him and informed as the situation there. “Sparsor on each circle effusions horses with cold water and, if necessary, oiling the axis of the chariot.

Byzantium took over the tradition of these races and they were held until 1204.

Data and calculations Straka professor at the University of Chicago.

Valuable cargo caravels

Mysterious hemisphere in the photograph – the most common cargo Portuguese and Spanish caravels and karakk traveling to India. What is it and why?

And this – copper ingots Fugger, the best quality copper in the world in those days, one of the most popular goods then.

First, they were ideal for ship ballast, and secondly a compact and cost-effective product – Indians bought them for a good price, and paying less valuable then the spices. By the way, do you know why spices were so important then? The fact is that in those days there was no refrigeration, meat was salted. Cool salted meat was not the most delicious food in order to make it edible at salinity dobyvlyali pretty spicy.