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| Titles |
Circus Maximus: |
| Name |
Mark Cartwright |
| Type of Resource |
still image |
| Genre |
Architecture |
| Abstract |
View of the remains of the Circus Maximus today. |
| Physical Location |
Rome |
| Extent |
L: 620 m ; W: 140 m |
| Form |
nonprojected graphic |
| Note |
The Circus Maximus acted as both a stadium and a circus until the first century CE. The circus was completed by the Emperor Trajan around 103 CE with an earlier reconstruction done by the Emperor Domitian, and was used for chariot racing and other spectacles, such as venationes (beast hunts) until the 5th century CE (Dunbabin 2016, p.140). With seating surrounding all sides of the track, with the exception of the starting gates, the circus could host 150,000 spectators (Dunbabin, 2016: p.140). A barrier called the spina ran down the middle of the circus with turning posts (metae) at each end and was decorated with monuments and statues that were added throughout the years by various emperors, including Egyptian obelisks in 10 BCE commissioned by Augustus and structures decorated with dolphins in 357 CE by Constantius II (Dunbabin, 2016: p.140). Images of the Circus Maximus appear on coins commissioned by Trajan in 103 CE, see 'Coin with the Circus Maximus' (Dunbabin 2016: p.144). |
| Access Condition |
Attributed to Mark Cartwright under the license CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0 |
| Access Condition |
CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0 |
| Subject Hierarchical Geographic |
Europe--Italy------Rome |
| Subject Local Name |
--Circus--Roman--Chariot Race--Roman Ludi------6th c. BCE--5th c. BCE--4th c. BCE--3rd c. BCE--2nd c. BCE--1st c. BCE--1st c. CE--2nd c. CE--3rd c. CE--4th c. CE--5th c. CE |
| Note |
Dunbabin, Katherine M. D. Theater and Spectacle in the Art of the Roman Empire. New York: Cornell University, 2016.
Humphrey, John H. Roman Circuses: Arenas for Chariot Racing. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1986. |