The Cavillargues medallion is a terracotta relief plaque from the 2nd or 3rd century AD, measuring 16 cm in width, discovered in Nîmes. It depicts a gladiatorial combat between the retiarius Xantus and the secutor Eros, as evidenced by the insignia, the ministri, on either side. The retiarius gladiator on the left is lightly armed, wielding a net and trident, and battles against a more heavily armed and armoured secutor. The upper part of the medallion depicts the two fighters, accompanied by the inscription stantēs missī, which translates literally from Latin as "released while still standing," indicating that the fight ended in a draw. To the right of the combatants in the foreground, one of the referees signals with a thumb gesture—pollice premere or presso, hiding the thumb in the fist—that pardon is granted, allowing the gladiators to leave the arena on their own feet. In ancient Rome, two gestures signified a gladiator's defeat: pollice verso and pollice presso, thumb pointed up or close the fist, unsheath the sword or return it to the sheath.
Holding the thumb up mimicked the gesture of unsheathing a blade from its scabbard, recalling the act of holding a gladius, and thus signifying death to the defeated gladiator by slitting the throat; indeed, by making this gesture, the crowd shouted jugula, meaning "cut his throat."

To show mercy, the public and the Emperor, when present, would close their thumbs into their fists. This gesture indicated putting the sword back into its sheath. It was great news for the loser: in Latin, "pollice presso favor indicatur," meaning "benevolence is indicated with the thumb inside," which implied that by bending the thumb downwards within the hand, the victorious gladiator was invited to sheathe his sword and allow the loser to live.
The lower part of the medallion depicts the barricade that separated the fighting arena from the audience. The medallion does not show the crowd, but places the spectator in the front row among the most elite viewers; it resembles a window, offering a direct view of the arena. Some scholars have identified this barricade as the summit of the platform where gladiators attempted to climb, and where combats between pontarii gladiators occurred. They were called this because they fought on a kind of bridge.
The name originates from the Latin word pons, meaning bridge. The pontarii were always gladiators of the secutor or retiarius type.

The medallion was found in Cavillargues, in the Gard department of southern France. It is now housed in the collection of the Musée de la Romanité in Nîmes. The combat likely depicts a real encounter in the arena of present-day Nîmes, formerly known as Nemausus, a Roman colony established near a Celtic village that was soon incorporated into the new city. It became a Latin colony after the transfer of Greco-Egyptian soldiers from Antony's army, and during the reign of Augustus, who named it Colonia Augusta Nemausus in 27 BC, as part of the reorganisation of Gallia Narbonensis. New colonies, such as Narbonne and Arles, were also added during this period. A significant process of Romanisation ensued, involving the adoption of Roman customs and laws. The city expanded and was enriched with magnificent monuments, surrounded by a wall (built in 16 BC), and quickly became one of the wealthiest cities in Gaul, with a population reaching 20,000, mainly due to its strategic location along the Via Domitia, the principal route connecting northern Italy and Spain. The original name given to it by the Romans was: "Colonia Julia Augusta Nemausus Volcarum Aremecorum".