Julia ran out of her bedroom into the atrium to
meet Terentia. Julia was thrilled that Terentia had decided to join her, that
day in August, for the Consualia. This festival was in honor of Consus, a deity
with the power to allow for great harvest. Today was the ludi and Julia could not wait to watch the chariot races. Julia and
Terentia hurried down the Palatine Hill, accompanied by their two largest
slaves for protection, and entered the Circus Maximus. The sight was
overwhelming. It appeared that the whole city of Rome had come out to celebrate
and it was difficult to move around in the throngs of people. Finally, the two
women made it to their reserved seats to watch the event.
The
procession was first. This was Julia’s favorite part. She sat back and watched
as the magistrate lead the pompa. He
was dressed in a manner that gave him the appearance of being a triumphant
general and Julia felt proud at that moment to be a part of such a decadent
experience. Next came the boys on horseback, and the musicians after that.
Julia and Terentia applauded and laughed, both completely consumed by the
festival mentality of the day.
The
procession of deities came next and this brought about great excitement. Consus
entered on the fist cart, adorned in garlands and symbols representing
prosperous harvest. The citizens of Rome had had a tough time this past year
with the success of their crops and they were excited to have the opportunity
to appease the god Consus with this elaborate festival. Deafening cheers were
coming from the entrance of the Circus Maximus and both Julia and Terentia
strained to see what was approaching. The chariot racing competitors! Finally,
the competitors made their way in front of the women and they exploded in
applause for the Red team, a favorite of the senatorial class.
The
chariots lined up at the flat end of the track. The crowd was overwhelmed with
sheer anticipation. The magistrate dropped the mappa and the race was on! Terentia was caught up in the excitement
and Julia was thankful that the event had, even just for one day, taken
Terentia’s mind off her recent divorce.
