Lampreys (Petromyzontiformes) are jawless, predatory aquatic animals that can grow to over a meter in length. They are mostly parasites – they bite into the victim’s body using sharp teeth set in their round mouths.
Despite their rather unpleasant appearance, lampreys were a real culinary delicacy in ancient Rome. Wealthy Romans bred them in special home pools so that they always had fresh meat at hand. The largest lampreys even became something like household pets – owners gave them names and decorated them with jewelry.
One of the undoubted lovers of lampreys was a man who lived in the 1st century BCE the wealthy Roman Vedius Pollio. During one of the feasts, at which Emperor Octavian Augustus himself hosted, an unfortunate incident took place – one of the host’s slaves accidentally broke a crystal vessel. His master sentenced him to death by throwing him into a tank of lampreys (which was apparently a punishment often used by Pollio). The unfortunate slave begged the emperor, present at the incident, not to spare his life, but to die less cruelly. To the surprise of those gathered, Augustus not only ordered the slave to be spared, but also to break all the crystal vessels in Vedius Pollio’s house.
According to other versions of the story, the slave was to be fed not to lampreys, but to eels or moray eels – other animals popular in Roman cuisine.
Lampreys appeared on tables in various forms in many parts of Europe, including Poland, until the 19th century, and in some places (e.g. Latvia) they can still be eaten today.