Hippodrome of Tyre
About
Tyre's hippodrome at the Al-Bass necropolis was one of antiquity's largest, nearly 480 meters long with tiered seating for tens of thousands of chariot-race spectators. It rose alongside a monumental triumphal arch and a new aqueduct as part of a building program tied to Emperor Hadrian's tour of the eastern provinces around 130 CE, when Tyre was elevated to metropolis status. Hadrian succeeded Trajan only in August 117 CE, so this entire ceremonial complex postdates the snapshot by more than a decade. In 117 CE the approach road to Al-Bass was still an ordinary Roman-period thoroughfare, not yet the grand racing venue later tourists know.
What happened here
Two hundred thousand people can watch, and on race days most of them do. Four stables — Red, White, Blue, Green — supply the teams, and supporters wear the colour, bet on it, and brawl about it. Seven laps, twelve chariots, the tightest turns at either end of the central barrier where the crashes happen. Between races there are acrobats, and the barrier itself carries obelisks, statues and the lap-counting eggs and dolphins that are tipped one by one. Seating is mixed, unlike the theatre, which makes the circus the best place in the city to meet someone. Drivers start as slaves and the successful ones die rich and famous. The track is watered and raked constantly; the smell is horse, dust and food.
Sources
Nearby
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Roman Maps shows the empire frozen at 11 August 117 CE, the day Trajan died — its moment of greatest territorial extent. Explore the full map →