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    Roman Culture: by Eric Tao, Katie Lang, Kiffa Conroy, and Brandon Zhang

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    ericthecmh
    Roman culture included chariot racing, which was a popular pastime held in circuses. Chariot races featured four horse chariots or bigae racing around the track. Gladiatorial contests also entertained crowds and often featured criminals, slaves, or prisoners of war fighting to the death. Public baths were an important part of Roman life, featuring hot, warm, and cold pools along with massage rooms and saunas. Religious festivals with sacrifices and ceremonies accompanied important events in the agricultural calendar and seasonal changes.

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    Roman Culture: by Eric Tao, Katie Lang, Kiffa Conroy, and Brandon Zhang

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    ericthecmh
    57 views26 pages
    Roman culture included chariot racing, which was a popular pastime held in circuses. Chariot races featured four horse chariots or bigae racing around the track. Gladiatorial contests also entertained crowds and often featured criminals, slaves, or prisoners of war fighting to the death. Public baths were an important part of Roman life, featuring hot, warm, and cold pools along with massage rooms and saunas. Religious festivals with sacrifices and ceremonies accompanied important events in the agricultural calendar and seasonal changes.

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    Roman Culture

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    Roman culture included chariot racing, which was a popular pastime held in circuses. Chariot races featured four horse chariots or bigae racing around the track. Gladiatorial contests also entertained crowds and often featured criminals, slaves, or prisoners of war fighting to the death. Public baths were an important part of Roman life, featuring hot, warm, and cold pools along with massage rooms and saunas. Religious festivals with sacrifices and ceremonies accompanied important events in the agricultural calendar and seasonal changes.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as ppt, pdf, or txt
    57 views26 pages

    Roman Culture: by Eric Tao, Katie Lang, Kiffa Conroy, and Brandon Zhang

    Uploaded by

    ericthecmh
    Roman culture included chariot racing, which was a popular pastime held in circuses. Chariot races featured four horse chariots or bigae racing around the track. Gladiatorial contests also entertained crowds and often featured criminals, slaves, or prisoners of war fighting to the death. Public baths were an important part of Roman life, featuring hot, warm, and cold pools along with massage rooms and saunas. Religious festivals with sacrifices and ceremonies accompanied important events in the agricultural calendar and seasonal changes.

    Copyright:

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    Download as ppt, pdf, or txt
    of 26

    Roman Culture

    By Eric Tao, Katie Lang, Kiffa


    Conroy, and Brandon Zhang
    Chariot Races
    • Chariot racing was a highly valued pastime of
    Rome.
    • Originally held on religious days
    • Most chariot races were quadrigae, or four
    horse chariots. However, some, two horse
    chariots existed. Those were called bigae.
    • Although chariot racing was expensive, it can
    also be a profitable business if handled
    correctly.
    Who Were Charioteers
    • Most charioteers started off as slaves
    • However, chariot races are very profitable
    • The successful slaves were able to gain
    enough money to buy their freedom
    The Four Factions
    • There were four factions in every chariot race,
    seperated by colors.
    • Blue, Green, Red, and White
    • Violence was common between the supporters
    of each faction
    • Private Bets between supporters of different
    factions
    The Circus
    • The chariot races were held in circuses. The
    circuses consisted of three major parts: metae,
    spina, and carceres. These three are labed in
    the image below.

    Carceres Spina

    Metae
    The Circus
    • The Circus Maximus was the first circus to be
    built, and reached 620 meters long and 140-
    150 meters wide.
    • Charioteers ride counterclockwise around the
    circus 7 times.
    The Danger of the Chariots
    • The chariots that were used were made of
    wood, and extremely lightweight:
    • As a result, they offered little protection for
    the charioteer.
    • The danger was increased
    by the charioteers’ desire
    to make their supporters
    happy. They made very
    sharp turns around the metae
    The Appeal
    • The appeal of chariot racing is strong, and can
    be seen in household items:
    • Fragments of broken glass engraved with
    chariot:
    • Child’s toy of a horse pulling
    chariot:
    Gladiators
    • Gladiators were often used to honor the dead.
    • Many gladiators were pitted against each other
    (Julius Caesar once pitted 320)
    • First held in 246BCE by Marcus and Decimus
    Brutus
    Who Were the Gladiators
    • Criminals, prisoners of war, or slaves
    • Free men volunteer to become professional
    • Roman warriors and senators forbidden
    The Ludi
    • Lanista was the owner of gladiators
    • The Ludi was a school for gladiators
    – Only people who have not committed capital could
    go to Ludi
    Armor
    • Different from that of Roman soldiers
    – Scutum – large oblong code
    – Ocrea – metal or boiled leather grieve on left leg
    – Galea – visor helmet with a large crest and plume
    – Gladius – sword
    During a Match
    • During a gladiator match, if spectators decided
    to spare the gladiator, they either waved their
    handkerchief or pointed their thumb
    downward while yelling “Mitte!”
    During a Match cont...
    • If the spectators decided to kill the gladiator,
    however, they pressed their thumbs towards
    their own chests, and yelled “Lugula!”
    Freedom!
    • A gladiator earns his freedom if he fights for
    3-5 years.
    • Unfortunately, many don't live that long
    Celebrations
    • The wealthy hosted their own dinner parties
    and lavish banquets.
    • Professional dancing, music, and singing
    accompanied dinner.
    • Sometimes, recitation of written work
    followed.
    Sacrifices
    • Romans believed that if the gods or goddesses
    were happy, they would have good fortune.
    • As a result, sacrifices were made.
    • Sacrifices were very specific and ritualized:
    – The sex of the animal must match the sex of the
    god to which the animal is being sacrificed
    – White animals to gods of the upper world, black
    animal to gods of the underworld
    Ceremonies to Control Nature
    • Ancient Roman Religion used ceremonies
    with charms, spells, sacrifices, and various
    ceremonines to influence nature, such as to
    produce rain.
    • Also practiced were religious festivals such as
    Saturnalia and Bacchanalia, where sacrifices,
    ribald songs, lewd acts and sexual promiscuity
    occurred.
    Worshipping the Fields
    • The ancient ceremonies incorporated the
    worship of the fields.
    • The life of early Romans in the fields, his
    hopes, activities, and fears are all reflected in
    agricultural ceremonies as part of celebrations
    in the Calendar. They commonly follow the
    seasons and occupations of the agricultural
    year.
    Gods of Fields
    • The Roman festivals related to the gods of the
    fields include:
    • The Spring, expressive of the hopes and fears for
    the growing crops and herds of farm animals
    • The Summer, the festivals of fulfilment, including
    the celebration of harvest
    • The Winter, the festivals of sowing and of of
    social rejoicing
    Baths/Games
    • Public games were part of religious festivals
    • Roman baths was an integral part of
    civilization
    • Roman baths were considered a right, not a
    priviledge
    • Slaves served as masseaurs and fire tenders
    Parts of a Bath
    • By 240 AD, the hypocaust came into use.
    • Hypocaust = stacked clay pillars under neath pool
    so hot air from fire can flow through the spaces
    created between the pillars
    • 3 pools: caldarium(hot), tepidarium(warm),
    frigidarium(freezing)
    The Three Pools
    • The caldarium was the main pool for
    socializing, like a community center.
    • Men’s and women’s baths were separated.
    Women’s baths were smaller, typically 1/3 of
    the men’s.
    • The women’s baths did not have a frigidarium,
    because of the erroneous belief that the frigid
    water could cause fertility problems
    Massage Rooms and Sauna
    • Most of the “private” baths had massage
    rooms and rooms equivalent to today’s sauna.
    • Most baths were richly decorated and adorned
    with gold. The Great Bath in Britain is a
    prime example.
    The Great Bath
    • Originally made in 70 AD
    • Originally used as Temple for the next 300
    years
    • People can still see the natural water from the
    hot springs
    Bibliography
    • Auguet, Roland. Cruelty and Civilization: The Roman
    Games. London: Allen and Unwin, 1972. Print.
    • Harris, H. A. Sport in Greece and Rome. Aspects of
    Greek and Roman Life. Ithaca: Cornell University
    Press, 1972. Print.
    • Humphrey, John H. Roman Circuses: Arenas for
    Chariot Racing. Berkeley: University of California
    Press, 1986. Print.
    • Wistrand, Magnus. Entertainment and Violence in
    Ancient Rome: The Attitudes of Roman Writers of the
    First Century A. D. Göteburg: Acta Universitatis
    Gothoburgensis Universitatis, 1992. Print.

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