Circus Maximus, Ancient Roman circus in Rome, Italy
The Circus Maximus is a public park in the valley between the Aventine and Palatine hills, where the outline of the ancient stadium survives as a long, broad expanse of pale dirt and gravel divided by strips of grass. A tall brick tower with a hipped terracotta roof and a band of small arches stands on the grassy slope, and low ruined walls with a metal railing enclose a small rectangular area in front of it.
Julius Caesar commissioned a permanent structure here in the first century before Christ, replacing earlier wooden buildings in the Murcia valley. Over the centuries the arena was expanded and remained in operation until the sixth century after Christ, when it fell into disrepair and its stones were used for other projects.
The games opened with the pompa circensis, a procession from the Capitol to the track that introduced the chariot teams. By the late Republic, ludi filled 57 days a year; the site also hosted the 169 BC venatio with 63 leopards and 40 bears and elephants. Outside race days the area held shops, jugglers and fortune tellers.
The site lies open under the sky and is accessible in all weather, though shade is scarce during summer months. Visitors can walk across ancient paving stones and descend into accessible galleries that once led to the seating rows.
A virtual experience using special glasses lets visitors see the building in different periods and understand how races unfolded. The technology brings back vanished columns, seating and chariots and connects the empty field with its former shape.
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