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Circuses
The Circus Maximus is a massive hippodrome and mass entertainment venue located in Rome which is essentially derived from the Latin word for 'greatest circus'. Specifically, it is located in the valley between the Aventine and Palatine Hills where the initial use of the land revolved around public games and entertainment initiated by the Etruscan kings of Rome. The circus
Chariot races serve to be one of Rome's most popular and the oldest form of entertainment to serve the eager masses. The origins of the Circus Maximus go as far back as 600 BCE when the fifth king of Rome, Tarquinius Priscus, created a track between the Palatine Hill and Aventine hill. The first permanent starting gates were created in 329 BCE and rebuilt in 33 BCE to install seven beautiful bronze dolphins on top of the central wall in the arena. The dolphins are used to count the number of laps as one dolphin is removed after each lap. Chariot racing is This extremely popular form of entertainment serves its purposes by meeting the demands of the Roman populace for a mass public entertainment center on a highly extravagant scale. The Circus was expanded by Julius Caesar around 50BCE, consequently resulting in an immense Circus measuring approximately 600 meters in length, 225 metres in breadth and can accommodate an estimated 250,000 seated spectators, almost a quarter of Rome's population! The spectators could view the games by standing, crowding and lining the adjoining hills as the view to this monstrosity is never closed off. Other events can also be observed in circuses including Athletics and wrestling, clearly derived from our Greek neighbours. Furthermore, the Circus Maximus is occasionally utilised to host events such as processions or gladiator combats, but it mainly provides a course for chariot races with quadrigaes (chariots), pulled by four horses. Such races are widely popular and prevalent with the wider public with people fanatically supporting one of the four factions: red, white, blue and green symbolising summer, spring, winter and autumn, respectively. The action is unmissable and the cheer of the crowd echoes for miles! You can bet on your chosen faction and make some hard, cold money in return! In fact charioteers are such a popular form of entertainment that they are awarded with sculptures, mosaics and molded glasswares, sometimes even with inscribed names, of themselves. The factions create an intense and thrilling rivalry throughout the season, sometimes even resulting in violence amongst supporters. In general, the greens and blues are the favourites in Rome as they provide for the most chariot action. The circus itself is comprised of tiers and seats moulded around an extended U-shaped arena with an elaborately extravagant barrier and the spina, running down the middle. The turning posts are positioned at each end of the course. The process of the race entails that twelve horse chariots at the open end of the U begin the race from starting gates, steer to the right of the spina, and then continue counter clockwise for seven laps. |
Theatres
In Rome, plays are performed usually at the time of the chariot or gladiator games on wooden stages. The first permanent Roman theatre built by the Roman ruler Pompey in 55 BC on the Campus Martius in Rome. The theatre was built from stone can accomodate up to 27,000 people. The design of the theatre was essentially patterned after Greek theatres but on level ground.
The Theatre of Pompey, one of many in Rome, was excavated out of the sides of the hills, and consists of a semi-circular space at its front wear an orchestra of choruses and actors performing a prepared play. Roman actors mainly comprise of male slaves and men from lower social ranks as they play the roles of women. This can be ascribed to the fact that an actor might have to play several parts, and the costumes for males are easier to get on and off. The mood of actor is always portrayed to the audience in order to help them understand what was going happening. You can will the actors often holding up happy or sad faces. There are also shows available where the plays are without words. Such Roman actors have stringently developed the art of pantomime or the skill of acting without words. They also dance, play music, make elaborate gestures, have extravagant sets, and wear beautiful costumes to get across the meaning of the play. Typical characters include rich men, kings, soldiers, slave, a young men and young women. If necessary some actors play two or more roles in a single performance. The most notable part of an actors costume is considered to be his mask. Different masks and wigs are used for comedies than tragedies. Grey wigs represent old men, black for young men and red for slaves. Young men wear brightly coloured clothing, while old men wore white allowing the audience to easily identify them. The actors spoke the lines, but a second actor mimed the gestures to fit the lines, along with back round music. An interesting fact is that if a character is scripted to die in a play, a condemned man replaces the actor at the last moment and is actually killed on stage. Admission to all Roman plays is free for citizens and women are restricted from viewing comedies but only permitted to watch tragedies. |
Public Baths
In Rome, you'll find that baths are immensely significant places which have become a venue of leisure and a daily ritual and routine for the mass populace. The first thermae were built by Agrippa in late 1st Century BCE. Emperors later began building grander baths, and the thermae quickly became a Roman tradition and communal activity. The thermae, as they are known, are open to people from nearly every class including men, women and children, thus making them a community center of sorts. The baths aren't just a place to clean yourself from a hard day's work, but they also serve as a venue where men and women can meet with friends, exercise and read at the library.
The more than fifty public baths in Rome play an undeniable important role in Roman society, but the Baths of Caracalla in the heart of Rome, serves a much more profound role. The baths are a significant venue for Rome's crowded tenements during the hot summer months and serve just as well in winter with the heated pools. These baths have improved the cleanliness and health of Roman citizens and they can do the same for you after a long day of touring! Despite bathing being the common activity, socializing, gossiping and relaxing are just as important to the baths' respected name. The ritual of bathing involved starting with a hot bath in the calidarium, then dipping into the tepidarium or warm room where they would lie around and chat with their friends, followed by the cold frigidarium and lastly stopping by for a swim in the natatio, an open air swimming pool. The process at times began with the unctuarium where one would have oil rubbed onto their skin and would proceed to exercise in one of the exercise yards. Attendants also serve snacks and drinks to the guests while they relax. After swimming the bather also had the option of a massage, where oils and perfumes are rubbed into the skin. The structure of a bath often comprises of the tepidarium, an exceedingly large, vaulted and mildly heated hall, located in the centre of the Roman baths. This hall is usually adjacent to the dressing room. On one side of the tepidarium is the frigidarium, which could surround a dressing room. The frigidarium is a large chilled swimming pool about 60 m by 30 m. On the other side of the hall is the calidarium which is where hot bathing takes place, warmed by subterranean steam. As social gathering is integral to baths, the baths have become commonplace for portico shops, marketing everything from food, to ointments, to clothing. Further to this, there are also sheltered gardens and promenades, gymnasiums, rooms for massage, libraries, museums, marble statues and other artistic masterpieces. |
Amphitheaters and Gladiator Matches
The Amphitheater's in Rome host a diverse range of shows in their arenas. Amphitheaters are most the venue where Gladiator matches occur. These Gladiator matches had been adopted from Etruscan funeral rites known as munera. The Amphitheater floors are covered in sand in order to soak up spilt blood.
The Roman Forum and the Circus Maximus have been recorded to have hosted the earliest gladiator competitions when no chariot races were scheduled. In 29 BCE, however, the first Roman Amphitheater, the Amphitheater of Statilius Taurus, was completed after years of construction. The structure was specifically designed to serve the purpose of hosting large shows and ultimately embodied two normal theaters combined together. Originally, gladiatorial schools existed to engender a strong gladiator culture and to train generations of Gladiators to come. This, however, was changed to state control gladiators were they are now recruited from various walks of life. The majority of gladiators today are a selection of condemned criminals, slaves, prisoners of war and volunteers who show up for a fee. Gladiators are categorised into four groups: 1) Murmillo: Murmillo fight with a helmet marked with a fish crest, an oblong shield and a sword. They usually battle a Retiatirius gladiator. 2) Retiatirius: Retiatirius is a partially armed gladiator with a net, displaying either a trident or a dagger. 3) Samnite: Samnites utilise a sword, visor and helmet, and an oblong shield in battle. 4) Thracian: Thracians combat with a curved scimitar (short sword) and a round shield. The gladiator matched are not excluded to men alone. Various other weapons, women, and sometimes even dwarfs are utilised in the matched. Wild animal matches, venationes, are special types of gladiator matches which involve exotic animals that are brought from all over the world to awe the Roman crowds. Originally, wild animals matches would occur in the mornings of the games, the public executions at midday, and then the gladiatorial matches. However, this routine changed over time with different types of fights taking place at once. You can also witness mock navy battles which occur when the arena is flooded with water. The most famous amphitheater in all of Rome and the work is the Colosseum, however. In all of its magnificence, the elliptical building measures 188m in length by 156m in breadth and reaches a height of more than 48 meters. The overwhelming structure is covered in marble from lands afar and a total of 160 captivating statues which grace the arches of the upper floors. The Colosseum can accommodate around 55,000 spectators who can enter the building through no less than 80 entrances. The actual games involve fights to the death between animals and gladiators and between gladiators. The fighters are mainly prisoners of war, slaves or condemned criminals who come from throughout the empire and are a sure-bunch of entertainment! |
Dining Out
The upper class partake dinner parties as a private leisure activity which has significantly become popular amongst lower social ranks as well. Such dinner parties are quite diverse in terms of their celebration either through intimate parties for nine in a triclinium, events with music and other forms of entertainment or extremely extravagant outdoor parties such as floating banquets. At Roman dinner parties, women and men dined together. The commoners or plebeians in Rome dine out in a different fashion as they have completely different options that they can choose from. These include a thermololium, which is a small tavern-like shop selling warm wines and grease treats or various types of restaurants, some of which are also connected to inns. Dining out provide a profoundly significant element to Roman society and that is, social gathering. Social gathering in terms of dining out is aided by the sharing of good food, interesting chatter and vibrant atmospheres.
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Triumphs
A Roman Triumph is unlike any celebration held in the world. It is wild with excitement and victory! A Roman triumph commemorates and glorifies the victories of an army commander or general in a public fashion. Such achievements are considered to be great military successes, and/or the victorious completion of a war. The heroic general is branded as the "vir triumphalis", or man of triumph, in the Roman empire for the rest of his life.
The triumph is the most exceptional and prized honour amongst the hereditary nobility that govern the Roman Empire, whose background is essentially of a militant ruling class. In order to receive a triumph, the general must either:
The triumphant general would have his face painted red symbolising bloodshed, he would have wear a gold coronet designed in the shape of a laurel wreath, a tunic embroidered with palm-leaves and a white toga. The general is accompanied in a chariot by a slave who holds a golden wreath above his head and chants "Look behind you, remember you are only a man." and "Remember that you are mortal" in his ear. The Ceremony The triumphal progression features exotic animals, musicians and slaves carrying pictures of conquered cities and signs with the names of conquered people in commemoration of Rome's victory. The ceremony begins with the triumphater, or the victorious general, walking outside of the Servian Walls in the Campus Martius on the western bank of the Tiber then entering the city on his chariot. He enters through the Porta Triumphalis to be met by the senate and magistrates who would accompany him. The parade then proceeds through the streets of Rome while the crowds line the roads and cheer in victory for the general! The progression courses through the Via Triumphalis to Circus Faminius and then to the Circus Maximus. Triumphs are undeniably a form of Roman entertainment as they unite Rome in joy and engender a strong sense of accomplishment! |