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Circus Varianus

Ancient Roman circuses in Rome
Plan Rome Circus Varianus
Plan Rome Circus Varianus

Circus Varianus was a large Roman circus, started during the reign of Caracalla (r. 198-217) and located in the palatial villa complex known as the Horti Spei Veteris (later the Sessorium), which included the Amphitheatrum Castrense. This circus was where Elagabalus (r. 218-222) raced chariots under the family name of Varius, giving the site its name. The circus was later restructured by Elagabalus, who removed the western end to create more space for the palace by moving the starting gates (carcares) back and building two towers at the end.Remains of the circus survive to the south of Porta Maggiore, next to the Aurelian Walls, near the church of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme. The dimensions of the circus were 565 x 125 m, only slightly smaller than the Circus Maximus (600 x 150 m).In around 271 AD the circus was cut in two by the Aurelian Walls and the major part then lay outside the city walls so became unused.According to records in the 16th century, an obelisk was found at the site, measuring 9.25 meters tall. It had originally been located at the temple dedicated to Antinous at Antinoöpolis and was moved in the reign of Elagabalus. After being discovered, the obelisk was moved to the Palazzo Barberini in 1633, from there to the Vatican in 1769, and reached Monte Pincio in 1822 where it resides currently.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Circus Varianus (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Circus Varianus
Via Acireale, Rome Municipio Roma VII

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Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 41.8878 ° E 12.5194 °
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Via Acireale 8
00182 Rome, Municipio Roma VII
Lazio, Italy
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Tomb of Eurysaces the Baker
Tomb of Eurysaces the Baker

The tomb of Marcus Vergilius Eurysaces the baker is one of the largest and best-preserved freedman funerary monuments in Rome. Its sculpted frieze is a classic example of the "plebeian style" in Roman sculpture. Eurysaces built the tomb for himself and perhaps also his wife Atistia around the end of the Republic (ca. 50–20 BC). Located in a prominent position just outside today's Porta Maggiore, the tomb was transformed by its incorporation into the Aurelian Wall; a tower subsequently erected by Honorius covered the tomb, the remains of which were exposed upon its removal by Gregory XVI in 1838. What is particularly significant about this extravagant tomb is that it was built by a freedman, a former slave. Three sides of the slightly trapezoidal structure remain largely intact. All have the same form, with over a plain lower storey, now mostly below ground level but exposed, a storey consisting of pairs of engaged columns between flat slabs, all crammed together with no space in between. The effect is far from the classical orders; at the corners the slabs turn to pilasters rising at the top level to unorthodox capitals combining scrolls at the sides with plant forms in the centre. There are unusual circular openings in the topmost storey, now thought to represent kneading-basins or grain-measuring vessels. Below a cornice is the frieze, with continuous scenes in relief showing the operation of the bakery where Eurysaces made what was evidently a considerable fortune. Reconstructions imagine a gently rising roof above this, now lost.