ROMAN WAY OF DEATH

New exhibition tells the lives of gladiators, with help from their tombstones

SLAVES, prisoners of war, condemned criminals or even free men who voluntarily chose the job… there was no one route to becoming a gladiator in Roman times. But one thing was common - death was never far away.

Blues Fun

THE annual Benicassim Blues Festival, taking place from June 2-4, will animate the streets of the coastal retreat for a weekend of live music, workshops, masterclasses, and children’s activities. Head off to the vermouth and blues masterclass, or combine the soulful sounds of the Spanish and international blues scene with an al fresco paella. Music will play in open-air venues across the town and the whole festival is free to attend. Artists will include soul, hip-hop and funk band The Main Squeeze, jump-blues and rockabilly band Micky & The Buzz and blues artist Alice Armstro.

By Simon Hunter

Now a new exhibition in Burgos is telling the stories of some of these warriors through artefacts used to commemorate them.

The Museum of Human Evolution in the northern Castilla y Leon region has borrowed six funerary ‘steles’ from Cordoba’s Archeology Museum for the show, which is called ‘Death in the arena. Gladiators of Cordoba’.

The steles – made from slabs of limestone or marble – are inscribed with the life stories of the dead gladiators, and were once located in a necropolis in Cordoba.

The site was discovered in

EPITAPHS: On a Gladiator life and (top) a helmet the 1930s when the local council in Cordoba decided to build a new neighbourhood.

It was then that workers found a spectacular underground tomb, and some years later proper excavation work located 15 burial sites (five of them with two occupants) for a total of 20 gladiators. The exhibition also features reproductions of the equipment that these gladiators used, including shields, helmets, daggers and armour.

Surprise Result

ELCHE area singer Blanca

Paloma could only finish in 17th place in last Saturday’s Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool with her flamenco-based song Eaea. The low-standing was something of a surprise with bookmakers expecting a top-10 finish. Paloma, 33, said after the competition that she was ‘very proud’ of what she had done but that there was ‘work still to do’.

The items on display date from the first and second centuries A.D. but the exhibition explains the birth of the profession of gladiator from as far back as the fourth century B.C., when combat would honour someone’s memory.

“Flamenco still needs to be exported,” she told Spain’s broadcaster TVE. “It’s a seed that we have planted.” She added that she was ‘happy with the execution’ of the song on the night’. “It was risky” she added. “I want to encourage people to continue to take risks with different proposals.”

The display would later become the preferred public spectacle in the times of the Roman empire, according to the museum. The exhibition will run until autumn and is free to enter. Guided tours are also available at no charge.

2022 SPANISH INCOME TAX, RATES AND OBLIGATIONS Calling

Spanish tax residents!

etc. may also be subject to the obligation to declare even if no other income is received.

This tax is proportional and is levied according to the principle of economic tax capacity, which is constitutionally recognised in article 31 of the Spanish constitution. It basically means that those who earn more pay more.

Interest, real estate income or capital gains must be declared

income from interest, dividends or rental income,

For income obtained from salaries and pensions the general tax scale must be applied and the tax rate varies from a minimum of 19% for the lowest incomes to 47% for incomes exceeding €300,000. Other income such as dividends, interest, real estate income or capital gains must be declared in the savings section and these rates tend to be significantly lower than the general scale.

It should also be noted that all taxpayers, depending on age and family circumstances, are entitled to family and personal allowances to reduce the amount payable.

If you have any queries regarding the filing of your income tax return, we recommend that you contact Pedro from My Lawyer in Spain who will be happy to advise and assist you.