The spectacles in Ancient Rome- Archives of History

The big ones shows they were the main popular entertainments in Ancient Rome. Contrary to Greece, sports games such as athletics or boxing were not very popular. How do they dictate Res Gestae divi Augustiwe can find six types of large Spectacular in the imperial stage: Ludi Circensis, Ludi Scaenici, Certamina Athelarum, Munera Gladiatorum Y Naumachiae.

Ludi Circensis: The circus games

They were basically the games held in the circuses Romans. This was an oval-shaped enclosure with a central separation or spina. Said spine divided the sand into two lanes, thus forming the race track. Likewise, these buildings were the largest, being able to house the Circus Maximus in Rome between 200,000 and 300,000 spectators. For example, him Emerita Augusta Circus it had a capacity of 30,000 attendees, virtually the entire population of the city at its peak.

Here, chariot races of different modalities were practiced depending on the shot. First of all we have the beams (two horses), wheat (three horses) or chariots (four horses).

At one end of the enclosure, the doors or prisons, where the cars were placed before going out on the track. When they were ready, the host would throw a handkerchief or mappa which started the race. This had a duration of between 7 and 5 laps (in the Greek there were 12) and the one who completed them first would be crowned the winner.

These shows were extremely dangerous, both for the charioteer and for the horse. Accidents here were common, with participants suffering serious injuries and even death on many occasions.

Racing reached a high degree of popularity in Hispania, its charioteers and horses being famous in all corners of the Empire. One of the most prominent is the Hispanic Gaius Apuleius Diocles (2nd century AD). By the end of his career, he had won 1,462 games and amassed a fortune of 35,863,120 sesterces.

Ludi Scaenici: Performing Arts Shows

The theatrical shows in Rome they had a notable importance due to the Hellenistic influence of Magna Graecia; above all, after the conquest of Taranto in 272 BC, soaking up Greek tragedies and comedies.

Initially, the enclosures used for the Theater displays They were temporary or improvised. In the year 55 a. C., the first stone theater is built, which could hold 20,000 spectators, the Theater of Pompey. The measurements of the scaena and the frons scaneae are similar to the Greek ones. The orchestra is semicircular, while in the Greeks it is circular. In addition, the Romans, masters of engineering, would build the theaters using arches, vaults and semicircular galleries that would communicate well with all the spaces in the enclosure.

Roman actors used the Roman toga praetexta and the scenes were accompanied by music and effects, such as the use of masks to capture the character’s feelings. We also find various genres, although the favorite of the Roman plebs was comedy. Authors such as Plautus and Terence stand out in this genre.

The dialogue of the works followed a certain metric and a part of them was sung (cantica) and another part was spoken (divervia). Dance interludes (embolia) and final farces (exodia) were also included.

These shows could be both public, organized by the state, or private, paid for by a patrician.

theatrical genres

  • mime and pantomime: theatrical genre in which the actor dances and interprets the story through gestures, without speaking. To complete the function, we found people who sang and played musical instruments along with the performance.
  • Tragedy: With a solemn tone, it usually has gods and heroes as protagonists. The choir is replaced by the actors, who sang some parts of the work. In addition, it contains a solemn tone and lofty language. One of the greatest exponents of it was Seneca.
  • Comedy: works with a satirical tone that were mainly aimed at the common people, so they used casual and rude language at times. Plautus and Terence stand out, whose works have an educational purpose. It had several subgenres such as fable trabeata (Roman nobles were included), fable togata (about Roman themes and characters) and fable palliata (comedy of Greek affair).
  • Citarodia: singing and poetry contests in which the interpreters used to be accompanied by a zither. It was common for fragments of tragedies to be sung. As a curious fact, the emperor Nero was a fervent fan of this genre, giving recitals that lasted hours in which the doors were closed to prevent people from leaving the premises. According to Suetonius, in these recitals some attendees threw themselves down the stands and pregnant women gave birth in the same theater because they were not allowed to leave in the middle of the performance.
  • Athena: had its origin in the Oscan city of Atella. They were farces performed in a satirical tone, mostly improvised. In them verse and prose alternated and the actors used fixed masks. In these, often considered obscene, only men participated.
  • we shy: aquatic choreographic shows, whose name is given by the goddess of the sea, Tethys. They were represented in the part of the orchestra which was flooded. Female nudes were common in it.

The Venationes

The venations were another of the main public spectacles that were part of the ludi. The origin of these had a pagan character, being celebrated only on religious festivities. The other ludi that existed were the circuses, the scaenici (mentioned above), the naumaquias and the shows gladiators. However, these could be borne both by the state and by an individual.

These games were held in amphitheater in the morning, from dawn according to Suetonius (ludi matutini). Although they used to be what preceded the shows of gladiatorsthe first of the venations It was celebrated in Rome in the year 186 a. C., to celebrate the victory over the Aetolians, eighty years before the first battles of gladiators.

The fighters who participated in these were known as venators either bestiarii. Thanks to the wide extension of the empire we could find animals such as lions, tigers, elephants, rhinoceroses, bears, crocodiles, giraffes or hippos. Similarly, we find different types of venations:

  • Exhibits with exotic animalswhich were trained, being similar to those of the current circuses.
  • Wild Animal Hunts with knife and spear. In these, the use of dogs was also frequent.
  • Fights to the death between beasts. They used to be harassed before the show to increase their aggressiveness. They were also tied in pairs, red cloth dolls, spikes or fire were thrown at them.
  • Confrontation between venatores and beasts. They fought wild animals, such as lions, bears or tigers against people equipped as gladiators.
  • executions (damnatio ad beasts). Some prisoners were condemned to perish under the jaws of beasts. It was a common punishment during the persecution of Christians.

naumaquias

The naumaquias they were simulations of naval combat (the Latin word naumachia translates literally as “naval combat”). These shows were not too frequent, as their realization was extremely expensive. It was also one of the bloodiest, involving thousands of men

The first naumachia known is the one held by Julio César in the year 46 a. C., which is believed to have been held in a pool built in the Tiber River. Augustus celebrated the following, in an artificial lake located on the right bank of the Tiber in which more than 30 ships and 3,000 men participated. Emperor Claudius also sponsored one of these shows at Lake Fucino during AD 52.

Other emperors like Dominican Tito Flavio, offered the people naumaquias in the amphitheatres. Specifically, said president held one at the Rome Coliseum in 1985, and it is currently unknown how they managed to flood the venues. Similarly, he sponsored another in 89 in a large pool surrounded by steps and excavated near the Tiber.

Certamina Athelarum: athletic competitions

This could be said to be one of the least successful shows among the Roman population. These were mainly athletic competitions in the Greek style. In them we could find the following modalities:

  • Quinquertium: made up of javelin throw, discus throw, long jump, athletics and wrestling.
  • Lampadedromia: team races. Races were also held in which the runners wore full military equipment.
  • Boxing or pugilism: it was practiced, in principle, with some rudimentary gloves made with rawhide straps or with a bare fist. The Romans also included pieces of metal in these bandages, configuring a new sporting modality: caestus.

There was a particularly bloody modality known as pankration, in which there were practically no rules. Here the winner had to make his rival surrender or leave him unable to continue fighting.

In the same way, other types of competitions were held, such as horse races with a jockey, chariot races, shot put, speed or long-distance races.

Munera Gladiatorum: gladiator shows

The fighting of gladiators they have an Etruscan origin and date back to the 6th century BC, as purely funerary customs. In principle they were celebrated as part of the Saturnian games, around the third century BC

The combatants were of the most varied, from prisoners of war, such as freedmen or slaves, to free men who renounced their civic rights as Romans in order to practice such a dangerous trade.

From being a religious show, it became a public event, with the fights held in the amphitheaters being the most popular entertainment among the Romans.

In addition, the gladiators were trained in the so-called schools lanistas (of old gladiators), under rigorous training. At the same time, these lanistas were the teachers and entrepreneurs of the gladiators, who sold them, rented them and were in charge of paying their salary. Similarly, the gladiators they could earn combat bonuses equivalent to a master’s annual salary and considerably more than the average legionnaire, who in the third century earned 15,400 denarii a year.

The schools lanistas They weren’t the only owners. gladiators. With the fame they acquired, it was common for wealthy individuals to have gladiators in the propiety.

The fight

Before the evening, the gladiators they arrived at the precinct adorned, having previously crossed the city. Next, they would do a simulated combat with wooden or blunt weapons in the arena to go on to fight once the horn that started the fight was sounded.

The lanistas They chose the gladiators who were going to face each other and the warriors…