The Circus Maximus (
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
for "largest circus";
Italian: ''Circo Massimo'') is an
ancient Roman
In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–50 ...
chariot-racing stadium
A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...
and mass entertainment venue in
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus ( legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
, Italy. In the valley between the
Aventine and
Palatine hills, it was the first and largest stadium in
ancient Rome
In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom ...
and its later
Empire
An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
. It measured in length and in width and could accommodate over 150,000 spectators. In its fully developed form, it became the model for
circuses
A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicycli ...
throughout the Roman Empire. The site is now a
public park.
Events and uses
![Plan Rome Caen Circus Maximus Colisée](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/Plan_Rome_Caen_Circus_Maximus_Colis%C3%A9e.jpg)
The Circus was Rome's largest venue for ''
ludi
''Ludi'' ( Latin plural) were public games held for the benefit and entertainment of the Roman people (''populus Romanus''). ''Ludi'' were held in conjunction with, or sometimes as the major feature of, Roman religious festivals, and were also ...
'', public games connected to
Roman religious festivals
A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival ...
. ''Ludi'' were sponsored by leading Romans or the Roman state for the benefit of the
Roman people (''populus Romanus'') and
gods. Most were held annually or at annual intervals on the
Roman calendar
The Roman calendar was the calendar used by the Roman Kingdom and Roman Republic. The term often includes the Julian calendar established by the reforms of the dictator Julius Caesar and emperor Augustus in the late 1stcenturyBC and some ...
. Others might be given to fulfil a
religious vow, such as the games in celebration of a
triumph. In Roman tradition, the earliest triumphal ''ludi'' at the Circus were
vowed by
Tarquin the Proud to Jupiter in the
late Regal era for his victory over
Pometia.
''Ludi'' ranged in duration and scope from one-day or even half-day events to spectacular multi-venue celebrations held over several days, with religious ceremonies and public feasts, horse and chariot racing, athletics,
plays and recitals,
beast-hunts and
gladiator
A gladiator ( la, gladiator, "swordsman", from , "sword") was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gla ...
fights. Some included public executions. The greater ''ludi'' (meaning sport or game in Latin) at the Circus began with a flamboyant parade ''(
pompa circensis)'', much like the
triumphal procession, which marked the purpose of the games and introduced the participants.
During the
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...
, the
aedile
''Aedile'' ( ; la, aedīlis , from , "temple edifice") was an elected office of the Roman Republic. Based in Rome, the aediles were responsible for maintenance of public buildings () and regulation of public festivals. They also had powers to ...
s organized the games. The most costly and complex of the ''ludi'' offered opportunities to assess an aedile's competence, generosity, and fitness for
higher office. Some Circus events, however, seem to have been relatively small and intimate affairs. In 167 BC, "flute players, scenic artists and dancers" performed on a temporary stage, probably erected between the two central seating banks. Others were enlarged at enormous expense to fit the entire space. A ''
venatio'' held there in 169 BC, one of several in the 2nd century, employed "63 leopards and 40 bears and elephants", with spectators presumably kept safe by a substantial barrier.
As Rome's provinces expanded, existing ''ludi'' were embellished and new ''ludi'' invented by politicians who competed for divine and popular support. By the
late Republic, ''ludi'' were held on 57 days of the year;
[Bunson, Matthew, ''A Dictionary of the Roman Empire'', Oxford University Press, 1995, p. 246.] an unknown number of these would have required full use of the Circus. On many other days, charioteers and jockeys would need to practise on its track. Otherwise, it would have made a convenient corral for the animals traded in the nearby
Forum Boarium, just outside the starting gate. Beneath the outer stands, next to the Circus' multiple entrances, were workshops and shops. When no games were being held, the Circus at the time of
Catullus
Gaius Valerius Catullus (; 84 - 54 BCE), often referred to simply as Catullus (, ), was a Latin poet of the late Roman Republic who wrote chiefly in the neoteric style of poetry, focusing on personal life rather than classical heroes. His ...
(mid-1st century BC) was probably "a dusty open space with shops and booths ... a colourful crowded disreputable area" frequented by "prostitutes, jugglers, fortune tellers and low-class performing artists."
![CircusMaximusNorthEast2019](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f2/CircusMaximusNorthEast2019.jpg)
Rome's emperors met the growing popular demand for regular ''ludi'' and the need for more specialised venues, as essential obligations of
their office and cult. Over the several centuries of its development, the Circus Maximus became Rome's paramount specialist venue for chariot races. By the late 1st century AD, the
Colosseum
The Colosseum ( ; it, Colosseo ) is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheatre in the world ...
had been built to host most of the city's
gladiator
A gladiator ( la, gladiator, "swordsman", from , "sword") was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gla ...
shows and smaller beast-hunts, and most track-athletes competed at the purpose-designed
Stadium of Domitian, though long-distance foot races were still held at the Circus. Eventually, 135 days of the year were devoted to ''ludi''.
Even at the height of its development as a chariot-racing circuit, the circus remained the most suitable space in Rome for religious processions on a grand scale and was the most popular venue for large-scale ''venationes''; in the late 3rd century, the emperor
Probus Probus may refer to:
People
* Marcus Valerius Probus (c. 20/30–105 AD), Roman grammarian
* Marcus Pomponius Maecius Probus, consul in 228
* Probus (emperor), Roman Emperor (276–282)
* Probus of Byzantium (–306), Bishop of Byzantium from 29 ...
laid on a spectacular Circus show in which beasts were hunted through a veritable forest of trees, on a specially built stage. With the advent of Christianity as the official religion of the Empire, ''ludi'' gradually fell out of favour. The last known beast-hunt at the Circus Maximus took place in 523, and the last known races there were held by
Totila in 549.
Topography and construction
Regal era
![Obelisk-popolo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/Obelisk-popolo.jpg)
The Circus Maximus was sited on the level ground of the Valley of Murcia ''(Vallis Murcia)'', between Rome's
Aventine and
Palatine Hill
The Palatine Hill (; la, Collis Palatium or Mons Palatinus; it, Palatino ), which relative to the seven hills of Rome is the centremost, is one of the most ancient parts of the city and has been called "the first nucleus of the Roman Empire." ...
s. In Rome's early days, the valley would have been rich agricultural land, prone to flooding from the river
Tiber
The Tiber ( ; it, Tevere ; la, Tiberis) is the third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by th ...
and the stream which divided the valley. The stream was probably bridged at an early date, at the two points where the track had to cross it, and the earliest races would have been held within an agricultural landscape, "with nothing more than turning posts, banks where spectators could sit, and some shrines and sacred spots".
In
Livy
Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...
's ''
History of Rome
The history of Rome includes the history of the city of Rome as well as the civilisation of ancient Rome. Roman history has been influential on the modern world, especially in the history of the Catholic Church, and Roman law has influenced ...
'', the first
Etruscan king of Rome
The king of Rome ( la, rex Romae) was the ruler of the Roman Kingdom. According to legend, the first king of Rome was Romulus, who founded the city in 753 BC upon the Palatine Hill. Seven legendary kings are said to have ruled Rome until 50 ...
,
Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, built raised, wooden perimeter seating at the Circus for Rome's highest echelons (the
equites
The ''equites'' (; literally "horse-" or "cavalrymen", though sometimes referred to as "knights" in English) constituted the second of the property-based classes of ancient Rome, ranking below the senatorial class. A member of the equestrian ...
and
patricians), probably midway along the Palatine straight, with an awning against the sun and rain. His grandson,
Tarquinius Superbus
Lucius Tarquinius Superbus (died 495 BC) was the legendary seventh and final king of Rome, reigning 25 years until the popular uprising that led to the establishment of the Roman Republic. Livy, ''ab urbe condita libri'', I He is commonly know ...
, added the first seating for citizen-commoners (
plebs
In ancient Rome, the plebeians (also called plebs) were the general body of free Roman citizens who were not patricians, as determined by the census, or in other words " commoners". Both classes were hereditary.
Etymology
The precise origins ...
, or plebeians), either adjacent or on the opposite, Aventine side of the track. Otherwise, the Circus was probably still little more than a trackway through surrounding farmland. By this time, it may have been drained but the wooden stands and seats would have frequently rotted and been rebuilt. The turning posts (''metae''), each made of three conical stone pillars, may have been the earliest permanent Circus structures; an open drainage canal between the posts would have served as a dividing barrier.
Republican era
The games' sponsor (Latin ''editor)'' usually sat beside the images of attending gods, on a conspicuous, elevated stand (''
pulvinar'') but seats at the track's perimeter offered the best, most dramatic close-ups. In 494 BC (very early in the
Republican era) the
dictator
A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a small clique. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to rule the republic in time ...
Manius Valerius Maximus and his descendants were granted rights to a
curule chair
A curule seat is a design of a (usually) foldable and transportable chair noted for its uses in Ancient Rome and Europe through to the 20th century. Its status in early Rome as a symbol of political or military power carried over to other civilizat ...
at the southeastern turn, an excellent viewpoint for the thrills and spills of chariot racing. In the 190s BC, stone track-side seating was built, exclusively for senators.
Permanent wooden starting stalls were built in 329 BC. They were gated, brightly painted, and staggered to equalise the distances from each start place to the central barrier. In theory, they might have accommodated up to 25 four-horse chariots (
Quadrigas) abreast but when team-racing was introduced, they were widened, and their number reduced. By the late Republican or early Imperial era, there were twelve stalls. Their divisions were fronted by
herms that served as stops for spring-loaded gates, so that twelve light-weight,
four-horse or
two-horse chariots could be simultaneously released onto the track. The stalls were allocated by lottery, and the various racing teams were identified by their colors. Typically, there were seven laps per race. From at least 174 BC, they were counted off using large sculpted eggs. In 33 BC, an additional system of large bronze dolphin-shaped lap counters was added, positioned well above the central dividing barrier ''(euripus)'' for maximum visibility.
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, an ...
's development of the Circus, commencing around 50 BC, extended the seating tiers to run almost the entire circuit of the track, barring the starting gates and a processional entrance at the semi-circular end. The track measured approximately 621 m (2,037 ft) in length and 150 m (387 ft) in breadth. A canal between the track perimeter and its seating protected spectators and help drain the track. The inner third of the seating formed a trackside ''
cavea''. Its front sections along the central straight were reserved for senators, and those immediately behind for ''equites''. The outer tiers, two thirds of the total, were meant for Roman plebs and non-citizens. They were timber-built, with wooden-framed service buildings, shops and entrance-ways beneath. The total number of seats is uncertain, but was probably in the order of 150,000;
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic ' ...
's estimate of 250,000 seating places is unlikely. The wooden bleachers were damaged in a fire of 31 BC, either during or after construction.
Imperial era
![Sestertius Trajan Circus Maximus AD103](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Sestertius_Trajan_Circus_Maximus_AD103.jpg)
The fire damage of 31 was probably repaired by Augustus (Caesar's successor and Rome's first emperor). He modestly claimed credit only for an obelisk and ''pulvinar'' at the site but both were major projects. Ever since its quarrying, long before Rome existed, the obelisk had been sacred to Egyptian Sun-gods. Augustus had it brought from
Heliopolis at enormous expense, and erected midway along the dividing barrier of the Circus. It was Rome's first obelisk, an exotically sacred object and a permanent reminder of Augustus' victory over his Roman foes and their Egyptian allies in the recent civil wars. Thanks to him, Rome had secured both a lasting peace and a new Egyptian Province. The ''
pulvinar'' was built on monumental scale, a shrine or temple (''
aedes'') raised high above the trackside seats. Sometimes, while games were in progress, Augustus watched from there, alongside the gods. Occasionally, his family would join him there. This is the Circus described by
Dionysius of Halicarnassus
Dionysius of Halicarnassus ( grc, Διονύσιος Ἀλεξάνδρου Ἁλικαρνασσεύς,
; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary styl ...
as "one of the most beautiful and admirable structures in Rome", with "entrances and ascents for the spectators at every shop, so that the countless thousands of people may enter and depart without inconvenience."
![Topographical diagram of the Circus Maximus by Samuel Ball Platner](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/Topographical_diagram_of_the_Circus_Maximus_by_Samuel_Ball_Platner.jpg)
The site remained prone to flooding, probably through the starting gates, until
Claudius
Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was the fourth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Drusus and Antonia Minor ...
made improvements there; they probably included an extramural anti-flooding embankment. Fires in the crowded, wooden perimeter workshops and bleachers were a far greater danger. A fire of 36 AD seems to have started in a basket-maker's workshop under the stands, on the Aventine side; the emperor
Tiberius
Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus (; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was the second Roman emperor. He reigned from AD 14 until 37, succeeding his stepfather, the first Roman emperor Augustus. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC. His father ...
compensated various small businesses there for their losses. In
AD 64, during
Nero
Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 un ...
's reign, fire broke out at the semi-circular end of the Circus, swept through the stands and shops, and destroyed much of the city. Games and festivals continued at the Circus, which was rebuilt over several years to the same footprint and design.
By the late 1st century AD, the central dividing barrier comprised a series of water basins, or else a single watercourse open in some places and bridged over in others. It offered opportunities for artistic embellishment and decorative swagger, and included the temples and statues of various deities, fountains, and refuges for those assistants involved in more dangerous circus activities, such as beast-hunts and the recovery of casualties during races.
In AD 81 the Senate built a triple arch honoring
Titus
Titus Caesar Vespasianus ( ; 30 December 39 – 13 September 81 AD) was Roman emperor from 79 to 81. A member of the Flavian dynasty, Titus succeeded his father Vespasian upon his death.
Before becoming emperor, Titus gained renown as a mili ...
at the semi-circular end of the Circus, to replace or augment a former processional entrance. The emperor
Domitian
Domitian (; la, Domitianus; 24 October 51 – 18 September 96) was a Roman emperor who reigned from 81 to 96. The son of Vespasian and the younger brother of Titus, his two predecessors on the throne, he was the last member of the Fl ...
built a new, multi-storey palace on the Palatine, connected somehow to the Circus; he likely watched the games in autocratic style, from high above and barely visible to those below. Repairs to fire damage during his reign may already have been under way before his assassination.
The risk of further fire-damage, coupled with Domitian's fate, may have prompted
Trajan
Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...
's decision to rebuild the Circus entirely in stone, and provide a new pulvinar in the stands where Rome's emperor could be seen and honoured as part of the Roman community, alongside their gods. Under Trajan, the Circus Maximus found its definitive form, which was unchanged thereafter save for some monumental additions by later emperors, an extensive, planned rebuilding of the starting gate area under
Caracalla
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor ...
, and repairs and renewals to existing fabric. Of these, Pliny claims that Trajan's works gained a further 5,000 seats. Some repairs were unforeseen and extensive, such as those carried out in
Diocletian
Diocletian (; la, Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus, grc, Διοκλητιανός, Diokletianós; c. 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed ''Iovius'', was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Gaius Valerius Diocles ...
's reign, after the collapse of a seating section killed some 13,000 people.
Religious significance
The southeastern turn of the track ran between two shrines which may have predated the Circus' formal development. One, at the outer southeast perimeter, was dedicated to the valley's eponymous goddess
Murcia, an obscure deity associated with
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...
, the
myrtle shrub, a sacred spring, the stream that divided the valley, and the lesser peak of the Aventine Hill. The other was at the southeastern turning-post; where there was an underground shrine to
Consus, a minor god of grain-stores, connected to the grain-goddess
Ceres and to the
underworld
The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underwo ...
. According to Roman tradition,
Romulus
Romulus () was the legendary founder and first king of Rome. Various traditions attribute the establishment of many of Rome's oldest legal, political, religious, and social institutions to Romulus and his contemporaries. Although many of these ...
discovered this shrine shortly after the
founding of Rome. He invented the
Consualia
The Consualia or ''Consuales Ludi'' was the name of two ancient Roman festivals in honor of Consus, a tutelary deity of the harvest and stored grain. ''Consuales Ludi'' harvest festivals were held on August 21, Plutarch. "Life if Romulus", in ...
festival, as a way of gathering his Sabine neighbours at a celebration that included horse-races and drinking. During these distractions, Romulus's men then
abducted the Sabine daughters as brides. Thus the famous
Roman myth of the
Rape of the Sabine women had as its setting the Circus and the Consualia.
In this quasi-legendary era, horse or chariot races would have been held at the Circus site. The track width may have been determined by the distance between Murcia's and Consus' shrines at the southeastern end, and its length by the distance between these two shrines and
Hercules
Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures.
The Romans adapted the ...
'
Ara Maxima
The Great Altar of Unconquered Hercules ( la, Herculis Invicti Ara Maxima) stood in the Forum Boarium of ancient Rome. It was the earliest cult-centre of Hercules in Rome, predating the circular Temple of Hercules Victor. Roman tradition made the ...
, supposedly older than Rome itself and sited behind the Circus' starting place. The position of Consus' shrine at the turn of the track recalls the placing of shrines to Roman
Neptune
Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun and the farthest known planet in the Solar System. It is the fourth-largest planet in the Solar System by diameter, the third-most-massive planet, and the densest giant planet. It is 17 time ...
's Greek equivalent,
Poseidon
Poseidon (; grc-gre, Ποσειδῶν) was one of the Twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and myth, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 In pre-Olympian Bronze Age Greece, he was venerated as ...
, in Greek
hippodromes. In later developments, the altar of Consus, as one of the Circus'
patron deities, was incorporated into the fabric of the south-eastern turning post. When Murcia's stream was partly built over, to form a dividing barrier (the ''spina'' or ''euripus'') between the turning posts, her shrine was either retained or rebuilt. In the Late Imperial period, both the southeastern turn and the circus itself were sometimes known as ''Vallis Murcia''. The symbols used to count race-laps also held religious significance;
Castor and Pollux, who were
born from an egg, were patrons of horses, horsemen, and the
equestrian order
The ''equites'' (; literally "horse-" or "cavalrymen", though sometimes referred to as "knights" in English) constituted the second of the property-based classes of ancient Rome, ranking below the senatorial class. A member of the equestrian ...
''(equites)''. Likewise, the later use of dolphin-shaped lap counters reinforced associations between the races, swiftness, and
Neptune
Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun and the farthest known planet in the Solar System. It is the fourth-largest planet in the Solar System by diameter, the third-most-massive planet, and the densest giant planet. It is 17 time ...
, as god of earthquakes and horses; the Romans believed dolphins to be the swiftest of all creatures.
When the Romans adopted the Phrygian
Great Mother as an ancestral deity, a statue of her on lion-back was erected within the circus, probably on the dividing barrier.
![Roman - Intaglio of a Circus with a Chariot Race - Walters 421314](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Roman_-_Intaglio_of_a_Circus_with_a_Chariot_Race_-_Walters_421314.jpg)
Sun and Moon cults were probably represented at the Circus from its earliest phases. Their importance grew with the introduction of Roman cult to Apollo, and the development of
Stoic and solar monism as a theological basis for the
Roman Imperial cult. In the Imperial era, the Sun-god was divine patron of the Circus and its games. His sacred
obelisk
An obelisk (; from grc, ὀβελίσκος ; diminutive of ''obelos'', " spit, nail, pointed pillar") is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape or pyramidion at the top. Originally constructed by An ...
towered over the arena, set in the central barrier, close to his temple and the finishing line. The Sun-god was the ultimate, victorious charioteer, driving his four-horse chariot (''
quadriga'') through the heavenly circuit from sunrise to sunset. His partner Luna drove her two-horse chariot (''
biga''); together, they represented the predictable, orderly movement of the cosmos and the circuit of time, which found analogy in the Circus track. Luna's temple, which was probably built long before Apollo's, burned down in the
Great Fire of 64 AD and was probably not replaced. Her cult was closely identified with that of
Diana, who seems to have been represented in the processions that started Circus games, and with
Sol Indiges, usually identified as her brother. After the loss of her temple, her cult may have been transferred to Sol's temple on the dividing barrier, or one beside it; both would have been open to the sky.
Temples to several deities overlooked the Circus; most are now lost. The temples to
Ceres and
Flora
Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''.
...
stood close together on the Aventine, more or less opposite the Circus' starting gate, which remained under Hercules' protection. Further southeast along the Aventine was a temple to
Luna, the moon goddess. Aventine temples to
Venus Obsequens,
Mercury and
Dis (or perhaps
Summanus
Summanus ( lat, Summānus) was the god of nocturnal thunder in ancient Roman religion, as counterposed to Jupiter, the god of diurnal (daylight) thunder. His precise nature was unclear even to Ovid.
Pliny thought that he was of Etruscan origin ...
) stood on the slopes above the southeast turn. On the Palatine hill, opposite to Ceres's temple, stood the temple to
Magna Mater and, more or less opposite Luna's temple, one to the sun-god
Apollo
Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...
.
Several festivals, some of uncertain foundation and date, were held at the Circus in historical times. The Consualia, with its semi-mythical establishment by Romulus, and the
Cerealia, the major festival of Ceres, were probably older than the earliest historically attested "Roman Games" ''(
Ludi Romani
The ''Ludi Romani'' ("Roman Games"; see '' ludi'') was a religious festival in ancient Rome. Usually including multiple ceremonies called '' ludi''. They were held annually starting in 366 BC from September 12 to September 14, later extended to ...
)'' held at the Circus in honour of
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but slightly less than one-thousand ...
in 366 BC. In the early Imperial era,
Ovid
Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom ...
describes the opening of Cerealia (mid to late April) with a horse race at the Circus, followed by the nighttime release of foxes into the stadium, their tails ablaze with lighted torches. Some early connection is likely between Ceres as goddess of grain crops and Consus as a god of grain storage and patron of the Circus.
Modern status and uses
![Circus-Maximus-June-1983](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/Circus-Maximus-June-1983.jpg)
After the 6th century, the Circus fell into disuse and decay. The lower levels, ever prone to flooding, were gradually buried under waterlogged alluvial soil and accumulated debris, so that the original track is now buried 6 meters beneath the modern surface. In the 11th century, the Circus was "replaced by dwellings rented out by the congregation of Saint-Guy." In the 12th century, a watercourse was dug there to drain the soil, and by the 16th century the area was used as a
market garden. During the renaissance, the site was one of many used as a convenient quarry for good quality building stone.
[Choay, ''The Invention of the Historic Monument'', p. 37] Many of the Circus's standing structures survived these changes; in 1587, two obelisks were removed from the central barrier by
Pope Sixtus V
Pope Sixtus V ( it, Sisto V; 13 December 1521 – 27 August 1590), born Felice Piergentile, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 April 1585 to his death in August 1590. As a youth, he joined the Franciscan order ...
, and one of these was re-sited at the
Piazza del Popolo.
In 1852 a gas works was built on the site by the Anglo-Italian Gas Society. It remained in situ until 1910 when it was relocated to the edge of Rome. Mid 19th century workings at the circus site uncovered the lower parts of a seating tier and outer portico. Since then, a series of excavations has exposed further sections of the seating, curved turn and central barrier but further exploration has been limited by the scale, depth and waterlogging of the site.
![FIFA world cup 2006 - Rome circus maximus flag](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/FIFA_world_cup_2006_-_Rome_circus_maximus_flag.jpg)
The Circus site now functions as a large park area, in the centre of the city. It is often used for concerts and meetings. On 2 July 2005, the
Rome concert of Live 8 was held there. On 14 July 2007, the British rock band
Genesis
Genesis may refer to:
Bible
* Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind
* Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...
performed a concert before an estimated audience of 500,000 people. This concert was filmed and released on a DVD called
When in Rome 2007
''When in Rome 2007'' is a live DVD by British rock band Genesis recorded at Circus Maximus, Rome, Italy, on 14 July 2007, during the Turn It On Again Tour. The concert was directed by David Mallet. The collection was released on 26 May 2008 in ...
.
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically dr ...
played there in front of 71,527 people on June 22, 2014 for the Italian date of their
14 On Fire
14 On Fire was a concert tour by the Rolling Stones, which started on 21 February 2014 in Abu Dhabi. It was a follow-up to the 50 & Counting tour which celebrated the 50th anniversary of the band. The tour was very much similar to the 50 & Co ...
tour. The Circus has also hosted victory celebrations, following the Italian
World Cup 2006 victory and the A.S. Roma Serie A victory in 1983 and 2001. In May 2019, a new virtual reality, virtual/augmented reality experience, the ''Circo Maximo Experience'', opened on the site, taking visitors on a journey through the site and its history.
See also
*
*
* Amphitheatre
* Forma Urbis Romae
* List of closed stadia by capacity
* Hippodrome of Constantinople
* List of ancient monuments in Rome
References
Works cited
*
External links
Virtual 3D reconstruction of the Roman Forum�
www.italyrome.info* High-resolution 360° Panoramas and Images o
Circus Maximus , Art Atlas
{{Authority control
Ancient Roman circuses in Rome
Roman archaeology
Ancient Roman buildings and structures in Rome
Rome R. XII Ripa