Alyssa Ogi

Assignment 7: Entertainment

Aulus remembered his first trip to the amphitheatre, tucked under his father’s heavy arm when he was only seven. His mother had complained that he was too young to experience the Ludi Romani, but his father insisted that he should see the spectacle in the Circus Maximus and honor Jupiter alongside the other men. When Aulus arrived, he was stunned by the enormity of the venue, nearly 600 meters across. It was the largest space he had ever seen! They arrived late, after the pompa’s procession of deities had already paraded through, and went to the elite section of the arena. As the son of a prominent senator, his seat was well in sight of the entire audience of citizens and he couldn’t shy away from the carnage below. Thick muscled soldiers slaughtered strange-looking animals on leashes; spoils of war from Caesar’s triumphs. His brother Flavius pointed to one of the dead animals and told him it was a ‘giraffe’; it looked more like a stretched out horse. The whole experience was confusing, and when he asked his father, he was told that the soldiers were reenacting wild animal hunts called ‘venationes.’

What his older brother and father were really waiting for were the chariot races that happened after the animal shows. Some of the best charioteers in the region were waiting in the circus’ back chariot stalls for the animals to be cleared out, in order to win the biggest race of the season. The Circus Maximus was specifically made for multiple chariots to race side-by-side, dangerously close to damaging each other’s wheels. Flavius cheered louder than anyone as the stampeding chariots raced around and around the track, the horses’ hooves thundering across the sandy floor. Aulus enjoyed this greatly compared to the bloody hunts; even though there was the constant threat of a charioteer being killed, it was exciting! By the time the race was over and the victor had been crowned, the sun was nearly gone and his seven-year-old body was exhausted from the excitement. He barely remembered the 100,000 citizens streaming out of the Circus as his brother walked him out.

Things were so different now – his brother was dead, and his father was his greatest enemy. But standing in the amphitheatre seven years later, Aulus could still recall the sounds and sights of that wonderful day.