The Circus Maximus , a sprawling amphitheater nestled between the Palatine Palace and the Aventine Hill, epitomized the grandeur of ancient Roman entertainment . Originally a venue for celebratory...
Like many ancient cities, and some modern, Augustan Rome was a combination of public magnificence and private squalor. There were the temples, the aqueducts, the basilicas, and other grandiose public...
The poet Juvenal berated the Roman people for allowing themselves to be seduced by slimy politicians who bought their votes with free wheat and expensive circus games: “Already long ago, from when we...
“The horses burst through the sky and with swift-hooved feet cut a dash through the clouds, which blocked their way as borne on wings they passed the east wind .” (Ovid, Metamorphoses II.157–60) The...
In 2020, Cristiano Ronaldo, a five-time FIFA player of the year became the first team-sport athlete to surpass $1 billion in career earnings. It is hard to imagine anyone topping that, but in the...
There is much discussion about today’s highly paid athletes, be they football stars or Olympic competitors. According to Forbes, the top five highest-paid athletes in 2016 were Cristiano Ronaldo ($88...
More than six years of excavations and restoration work has given Rome a new tourist attraction in the form of the ancient Circus Maximus. The archaeological ruins were nothing more than an enormous...