Why do people chariot race

This is a plan of the Circus Maximus, and this reconstruction drawing of the circus from the starting gate end shows the construction of the stands. This terracotta lamp depicts a chariot race in the Circus Maximus; on the left one can see rows of spectators, on the right the starting gates, and at the bottom the spina with its statues and obelisks. The form of the circus closely followed its function; for further details about the various structures in the circus and how they related to the races, see starting gates , track , barrier , turning posts , finish line , stands , and imperial enclosure.

Enjoy a virtual day at the races by visiting the Circus Maximus in Region XI of VRoma, either via the web gateway or the anonymous browser. Charioteers and Racing Factions: Chariot racing was the most popular sport in Rome, appealing to all social classes from slaves to the emperor himself.

This appeal was no doubt enhanced by the private betting that went on, although there was no public gambling on the races. The popularity of chariot racing is reflected in the many household items decorated with racing motifs, like these two terra-cotta lamps depicting victorious chariots in procession, this this signet ring with a circus scene, and this fragment of a glass bowl , and this child's toy.

This fanciful mosaic shows a little boy dressed like a charioteer and receiving a palm of victory, even though his steeds are birds! Although most Roman charioteers called aurigae or agitatores began their careers as slaves, those who were successful soon accumulated enough money to buy their freedom.

The four Roman racing companies or stables factiones were known by the racing colors worn by their charioteers; this mosaic depicts a charioteer and horse from each of the stables, Red , White , Blue , and Green. In the later empire these groups even acquired some political influence Junius Bassus, a consul of CE, had himself portrayed driving a chariot in a mosaic ; behind him are four horsemen wearing the colors of the four circus factions.

I am the more astonished that so many thousands of grown men should be possessed again and again with a childish passion to look at galloping horses, and men standing upright in their chariots. It could seat about , people, making it the largest sporting arena ever erected anywhere at that point in human history. The chariot races were immensely popular, and historical accounts tell us that the city would be virtually deserted when they would take place.

Generally, the format had 12 chariots racing in teams. There were four teams, often called factions, which were identified by their colors: blue, green, red, and white. The fans followed the team color more than they followed the individual drivers or horses, similar to modern sports. This is a transcript from the video series The History of Ancient Rome.

Watch it now, on The Great Courses. If you had 12 chariots racing, that would mean you would have three chariots from each team that would be fielded for a typical race. For each chariot, the normal number was four horses. We do hear of two-horse and even six-horse chariot racing on occasion, but that was quite rare.

Imagine trying to control six galloping horses. Trying to control four is hard enough; six would be stretching it. The most popular seats were at the curved end of the bullet shape of the arena, since that is where most of the crashes took place. The chariots would break out of the starting gates at the one end.

There were horseback races as well, but these were not nearly as popular Meijer There were other spectacle events such as the Trojan Games, a mock chariot battle, and the pedibus ad quadrigam.

The exact nature of this spectacle is unknown, but it seems to have been a duathlon style chariot and foot race. The name implies that the drives raced on foot to their chariots and then raced in them Matz The Romans put a lot of time and effort into making the races as fair as possible.

Racers drew lots for starting positions. Starting gates were used to prevent false starts Harris If a false start did occur, the official in charge of the races would call all the racers back to the start line, a difficult process. Racers were required to stay within their lane for two laps, after that they were free to jockey for the best position and inside track.

This is the point where the race became the most dangerous, and collisions were most common Meijer Harris, H. Malden, MA. Meijer, Fik. Johns Hopkins University Press,Baltimore. Panvinio, Onofrio. De Ludis Circensibus. Oxford University Press. New York. These factions were known by the colours that their drivers wore white, green, blue or red. The Romans would support these factions in the same way as people today support rival football teams.

This rivalry sometimes resulted in fights between spectators. On one occasion, Emperor Vitellius , who was a strong supporter of the Blues, had several spectators executed for shouting out rude comments about his team. The race was made up of seven laps 8. Each lap was marked by the lowering of an egg from a platform. Each faction would provide one, two or three chariots for every race. If more than one from each faction was used, the drivers raced as a team rather than as individuals.

There were twelve starting-boxes and the drivers would draw lots to decide where they started from. The best draw was on the rails as it was the shortest way round. However, it was also the most dangerous because if the chariot hit the spina a long thin island in the middle of the arena the driver was in danger of being thrown out into the path of the other teams.

Horses had to be very brave to run so close to the walls of the spina and the most important horse was the one at the front on the left. The best horses were imported from Africa and Hispania. The lead-horse would be named on the racecard, and during the race the crowd would chant the name of this horse, the driver or the faction.

Before the race started the driver would wrap the reins around his waist and then hold them with his left hand.