The use of former enemy soldiers as slaves led perhaps inevitably to a series of en masse armed rebellions, the Servile Wars, the last of which was led by Spartacus. One major source of slaves had been Roman military expansion during the Republic. Over time, however, slaves gained increased legal protection, including the right to file complaints against their masters. Unlike Roman citizens, they could legally be subjected to corporal punishment, sexual exploitation ( prostitutes were often slaves), torture and summary execution. Slaves were considered property under Roman law and had no legal personhood. Unskilled slaves, or those sentenced to slavery as punishment, worked on farms, in mines, and at mills. Slaves of Greek origin in particular might be highly educated. Accountants and physicians were often slaves. Besides manual labour, slaves performed many domestic services and might be employed at highly skilled jobs and professions. Slavery in ancient Rome played an important role in society and the economy. Treatment of people as property in ancient Rome and its empire Roman mosaic from Dougga, Tunisia (2nd century AD): the two slaves carrying wine jars wear typical slave clothing and an amulet against the evil eye on a necklace the slave boy to the left carries water and towels, and the one on the right a bough and a basket of flowers.
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