Long Description:Metro Station : Line B "Circo Massimo".
Situated in the valley between the Aventine and Palatine hills,
the location was first utilized for public games and entertainment
by the Etruscan kings of Rome. Certainly, the first games of the
Ludi Romani (Roman Games) were staged at the location by Tarquinius
Priscus, the first Etruscan ruler of Rome. Somewhat later, the
Circus was the site of public games and festivals influenced by the
Greeks in the 2nd century BC. Meeting the demands of the Roman
citizenry for mass public entertainment on a lavish scale, Julius
Caesar expanded the Circus around 50 BC, after which the track
measured approximately 600 m (1,968 ft) in length, 80 m (387 ft) in
breadth and could accommodate an estimated 250,000 spectators (many
more, perhaps an equal number again, could view the games by
standing, crowding and lining the adjoining hills).
In 81, the Senate built a triple arch honoring Titus by the
closed East end (not to be confused with the Arch of Titus over the
Via Sacra on the opposite side of the Palatinum).
The emperor Domitian connected his new palace on the Palatine to
the Circus in order that he could more easily view the races. The
emperor Trajan later added another 5000 seats and expanded the
emperor's seating in order to increase his public visibility during
the games.
Chariot racing was the most important event at the Circus. The
track could hold twelve chariots, and the two sides of the track
were separated by a raised median termed the spina. The spina was
set slightly diagonally. Statues of various gods were set up on the
spina, and Augustus erected an Egyptian obelisk on it as well. At
either end of the spina was a turning post, the meta, around which
chariots made dangerous turns at speed. On top of the spina, there
were rotatable metal dolphins that were turned down to mark laps
around the course. Chariot racing was a very dangerous sport,
frequently resulting in spectacular crashes and quite possibly the
death of one or more of the contestants. One end of the track
extended further back than the other, to allow the chariots to line
up to begin the race. Here there were starting gates, or carceres,
which staggered the chariots so that each travelled the same
distance to the first turn. During these chariot races, bribery of
the judge in order to fix the start of the race was very common.
The race went for a total distance of about 6.5 km (4 mi).
Very little now remains of the Circus, except for the now
grass-covered racing track and the spina. Some of the starting
gates remain, but most of the seating has disappeared, the
materials no doubt employed for building other structures in
medieval Rome.
