The roots of Hoboeroticism can be traced back to the 6th century BC, where mention is first made of the practice by the poet Homer: Depictions of vagrant sexuality have been discovered on many Graeco-Roman antiquities, and Tacitus, in Annals of Imperial Rome IV, notes how the spectators at the Colosseum would throw handfuls of coins to the beggars (commonly known as Masturbatii) who were employed to stimulate themselves for the crowd's amusement between gladiatorial bouts.