Chariot races originated in ancient Rome in the Sixth century
BCE. The Etruscans were the first to practice this game.
Chariot races had always
ties with religious ceremonies like the Consualia,
but they were also held on non-feast days and sponsored by magistrates and
other Roman dignitaries. The Consualia was celebrated on December 15th
every year and dedicated to the god of granaries called Consus whose name comes
from the verb condere, which means to
store. The Consualia was a ceremonial event where people stored part of their
harvests underground and where the beginning of winter begins. The Circus
Maximus was a place where the god originated. During this time, the Flamen
Quirinales (those devoted to the god Quirinus) and the Vestal Virgins offered
to Consus various types of fruits. The event then was preceded by chariots
races.
Chariot racing was the most popular game in Rome. All
social classes enjoyed this game. Roman charioteers began their career as
slaves. After they had a good sum of money, they could buy their freedom. The four
Roman companies or stables (factiones)
could be identified by four distinct colours: red, white, blue, and green. Charioteers
wore little protection such as a light helmet only. Their main objective was to
be as light as possible to achieve fast manoeuvres.
2. Red company
There were seldom rules for the participants to
follow. We only now the names of the chariots according to the number of
horses. A two-horse team was called a biga,
a three one was called triga, and a chariot
with four horses was called quadriga.
It is believed that the racing circuit was filled with sand son there were no
lanes. The only rule for a participant to complete seven rounds. If the
participant was the first to complete the seven rounds, he was the winner.
Works Cited:
McManus, Barbara F. “The Circus: Roman Chariot Racing.” VRoma. Accessed July, 2003. http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/circus.html
Sheldon, Natasha. “December Festivals in Ancient Rome: Bona Dea, Consualia, Opalia, Angeronalia, and Larentalia.” Decoded Past. Accessed December 8, 2013. http://decodedpast.com/december-festivals-ancient-rome/4029
UNRV.com.
“The Chariot Races.” UNRV History. http://www.unrv.com/culture/chariot-races.php
Images:
1. http://www.tuttartpitturasculturapoesiamusica.com/2015/11/Ancient-Rome.html
2. http://www.vroma.org/images/mcmanus_images/charioteerred3.jpg
3. http://www.vroma.org/images/mcmanus_images/charioteerwhite3.jpg
4. http://www.vroma.org/images/mcmanus_images/charioteerblue3.jpg
5. http://www.vroma.org/images/mcmanus_images/charioteergreen3.jpg
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