Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 04.djvu/870

* CIRCUS. 766 CIRCUS. it for themselves. The games continued to be held aimually, and the tiers of wooden seats were made pimiiaiicnt and periodically renewed. This was distingruished, subsequently to the erec- tion of the Flaniinian and other circi, as the Circus Jlaximus. It was altered and enlarged at various times. According to different com- putations, it was capable of holding 150,000, 260,000, or 48.5,000 persons. Its extent also has been variouslv estimated. In the time of -Julius C«sar it wius'three stadia, or 187.5 feet, long and one stadium, or 025 feet. wide, while the depth of the buildings surrounding the open space was half a stadium, or about .iVl feet. The lower tiers of seats were, for the first time, built of stone in the time of .Julius Cirsar: even after that the upper tiers were of wood, until the time of Domitian. when it was all of stone and marble, though its stage of greatest magnificence was reached under Trajan, who erected there a triumphal arch. The exterior was formed of three stories of arches, like the Coliseum, but built of white marble. Next in date came the Circus Flaminius, built in B.C. 221 in the Cam- pus Martins, and a favorite meeting-place. It measured about 1000 by 400 feet. There _was a Circus of Caligula andNero, near the Vatican; a Circus of Hadrian near his mausoleum ; a Stadium of Domitian at the Piazza Navona ; a Circus in the Gardens of Heliogabalus ; and a Circus of Jlaxentius on the Via Appia, two miles from the city. All these served as stone- quarries down to the close of the Kenaissance, so that few traces are left of any of them, ex- eept that of :laNentius. which is merely stripped of its surface decoration. Its construction is believed to liave differed very little from that of the large Circus. Along the sides and at the curved end were ascending ranges of wooden or .stone seats for the spectators, forming the cnvca, divided into bands (three in the Circus jSlaxi- nius) or mwiiiana by horizontal passages called iimbtilacni or prceci)ictionrs. Each mCEmamim was cut into cioici by nund)ered flights of steps, as in the theatre or "amphitheatre, and each line of seats was numbered : but there were no indi- vidual seats, each person being allowed so much space by lines marked. The vaults and piers sup- porting the receding lines of seats were like those of the Coliseum. Light columns were erected, supporting temporarj- or permanent cov- erings for the spectTtors. Boxes of especial beauty were erected for the emperors, magis- trates, etc. — some of them above the carcercs. At the end opposite the curve-end were the car- ceres, or stalls, which were covered, and fur- nished with gates, and in which the horses and chariots remained until, on a given signal, the gates were simultaneously flung open. In the centre is the xjiina. a long and broad wall round which the cliarioteers drove, terminating at both ends at the mvlc, or goals — three cones which marked the turnings of the course. At each extremity of the enrccres is a stone tower. From its gates and castellated appearance, the whole of this side received the name of oppidmn, or 'town.' Over the carccrefi were seats for the president of the games, the consuls, or other dis- tinguished persons. There were four entrances, of which the most important were the porta pompa- and the porta triumiibniis. The games were inaugurated by a procession from the Capitol, in which those bearing the images of the gods went first, and were followed by the performers in the games, the consuls, and others. This procession entered through the porta pmn- pec, while the porta triumpltalis was that by which the victors left the circus. The spina, an object conspicuous from its situation, was in general highly decorated with such objects as statues, snuiH temples, altars, etc. In the spina of the Circits Maximus, two large obelisks Avere erected by Augustus and Constantius. This circus was also distinguished by si.x towers, and by a canal or cunpiis, formed by .Julius Ca'sar, to protect the spectators more effectually during the conflicts of wild beasts. The circus was especially adajjted for races — an amusement of which the Koinans were pas- sionately fond. The length of the race was seven circuits round the spina, and from ten to twenty races were run in each day. The number of chariots was usually four. The cluirioteers adopted different colors, representing the four seasons, liets and party spirit ran high, and the victor received a substantial pecuniary re- ward at the end of the race. The athletic exer- cises, such as boxing and wrestling, which some- times terminated fatally, were probably exhibit- ed in the large open space between the carceres and the spina. The Indus Troiw was a mock conflict between young men on horseback. A regular battle was sometimes re])resented ipuffna efjtttstris et pcdcstris). By the forma- tion of canals and the introduction of vessels, a ndumachia, or sea-fight, was occasionally ex- hibited ; but under the Empire this species of exhibition, as well as the renatio, was gradually transferred to the amphitheatre (q.v., and au- machia). In providing for the vcnatio, or hunt- ing of wild beasts, vast sums of money were ex- pended. Animals were procured from every available part of the Boman Empire, including Africa and Asia. The exliibition afforded not only an opportunity for the display of private munificence or ostentation, but attained the im- portance of a political engine, which none who aspired to popularity ventured to overlook. When Pompey opened his new theatre, he is .said to have given public exhibitions in the cir- cus for five days, during which time 500 lions and 20 elephants were destroyed. There is an almost continuous tradition from the Bonian days of varioiis performances for the aunisement of the jiopulace. corresponding in many particulars to those of the Roman amphi- theatre. (See Acrobat: Juggler.) The mod- ern circus, as a combination on a large scale of feats of skill and dexterity, may be traced to the performances given in London, from 1770 on, by Philip Astley,^ at first in the open air. and from 1780 in his amphitheatre. After his death, in 1S14. the great equestrian Ducrow was the most prominent figure in the development of thg circus; but during Astley's lifetime traveling circuses had become common in England, and permanent amphitheatres had been opened in sev- eral large towns. After Astley's, the most not- al)le English circuses were Ilengler's and San- ger's. American traditi(ms are less full and clear, but the development seems to have begun about the same time. The earliest definite figure is Rickets, whose performance Oen. Wash- ington is said to have witnesseil in Phila(lel])hia. m 1780. But it was not until about 18.50 that exhibitions on anything like a large scale began