Hello from the Circus of Maxentius in Rome.

"Wow! You mean horses actually ran this whole track Antonio?"

"Yeah, it was part of the chariot racing. I'll race you down the stretch Dante."

"I'll take a rain check for a shorter track Antonio."

Below are just some of the interesting facts about the Circus of Maxentius in Rome.

Circuses in ancient Rome were large open-air venue used for public events (clowns were not used) The circus is 513 meters long and 91 meters wide It is estimated that over 10,000 spectators could fit inside the stadium Emperor Maxentius ordered the construction of the circus for his son Valerius Romulus who enjoyed watching the games and races Romulus died at a young age and was interned in a nearby mausoleum specifically built for him nearby to the circus The circus has stood since the early 300s Games were originally meant to be inaugural games, but became funeral games after the passing of Romulus and lasted until Constantine the Great overthrew Maxentius in 312AD The spina divides the circus in half to create the oval shape As decoration, the Emperor Maxentius had statues of gods and goddesses placed on the marble spina including Hercules (Roman hero/god and son of Jupiter, known for his strength), Venus (Roman goddess of love, beauty, desire, sex, fertility, prosperity and victory), Victoria (Roman goddess of victory), and an Amazon (mythical race of female warriors) The structure of the mausoleum and some of the circus is comprised of stone For high vaulted areas, the Romans used their patented technique of filling the concrete with pots to lighten the load of the concrete Soprintendenza Archeologica di Roma (Archaeological Superintendence of Rome) currently takes care of the grounds

Circus of Maxentius Ancient Times

"Ciao for now - see you next week for a whole new traveling adventure!"

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