Editing Circus Maximus (section)

=== Imperial era ===
[[File:Sestertius Trajan Circus Maximus AD103.jpg|thumb|upright|Sestertius of Trajan celebrating the restoration of the Circus Maximus (minted 103 AD).<ref>Sear, David R. (2002). ''Roman Coins and Their Values''. Volume II: The Accession of Nerva to the overthrow of the Severan dynasty, AD96-AD235 (pp.112, coin#3208). London: Spink. {{ISBN|1-902040-45-7}}</ref>]]
The fire damage of 31 was probably repaired by Augustus (Caesar's successor and Rome's first emperor). He modestly claimed credit only for an obelisk and ''pulvinar'' at the site but both were major projects. Ever since its quarrying, long before Rome existed, the obelisk had been sacred to Egyptian Sun-gods.<ref>It was quarried and first dedicated in the reign of [[Seti I]]</ref> Augustus had it brought from [[Heliopolis (Ancient Egypt)|Heliopolis]]<ref name="auto3">{{Cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/egypt/raising/rome.html|title=Mysteries of the Nile – A World of Obelisks: Rome|website=NOVA Online}}</ref> at enormous expense, and erected midway along the dividing barrier of the Circus. It was Rome's first obelisk, an exotically sacred object and a permanent reminder of Augustus' victory over his Roman foes and their Egyptian allies in the recent civil wars. Thanks to him, Rome had secured both a lasting peace and a new Egyptian Province. The ''[[Glossary of ancient Roman religion#pulvinar|pulvinar]]'' was built on monumental scale, a shrine or temple (''[[Glossary of ancient Roman religion#aedes|aedes]]'') raised high above the trackside seats. Sometimes, while games were in progress, Augustus watched from there, alongside the gods. Occasionally, his family would join him there. This is the Circus described by [[Dionysius of Halicarnassus]] as "one of the most beautiful and admirable structures in Rome", with "entrances and ascents for the spectators at every shop, so that the countless thousands of people may enter and depart without inconvenience."<ref>{{harvnb|Humphrey|1986|pp=72–73}}. [[Dionysius of Halicarnassus]] described the Circus and its seating c.30 BC–AD 8. Augustus also rebuilt Ceres' temple, above the starting gates; it was probably damaged in the fire of 31 BC. ''Ibid,'' pp. 268–272 for Augustus' obelisk.</ref>
[[File:Topographical diagram of the Circus Maximus by Samuel Ball Platner.jpg|thumb|left|Groundplan of the Circus Maximus, according to [[Samuel Ball Platner]], 1911. The staggered starting gates are to the left.]]
The site remained prone to flooding,<ref>The ''Ludi Martiales'' of AD 12 were temporarily transferred from the Circus, after a flood.</ref> probably through the starting gates, until [[Claudius]] made improvements there; they probably included an extramural anti-flooding embankment. Fires in the crowded, wooden perimeter workshops and bleachers were a far greater danger. A fire of 36 AD seems to have started in a basket-maker's workshop under the stands, on the Aventine side; the emperor [[Tiberius]] compensated various small businesses there for their losses.<ref>{{harvnb|Humphrey|1986|pp=100–101}}. Claudius' improvements at the Circus included stone-built or marble-clad starting stalls and rebuilt turning posts.</ref> In [[Great Fire of Rome|AD 64]], during [[Nero]]'s reign, fire broke out at the semi-circular end of the Circus, swept through the stands and shops, and destroyed much of the city. Games and festivals continued at the Circus, which was rebuilt over several years to the same footprint and design.<ref>Nero, inordinately fond of chariot-racing, may have considered the Circus rebuilding a priority but the overall cost of Rome's rebuilding must have proved an extraordinary drain on Imperial and public funds. Wooden bleachers for the Roman masses were an expedient, cost-effective solution. If Nero had grander plans for the Circus, they ended with his suicide under compulsion, after a coup d'etat in AD 68. {{harvnb|Humphrey|1986|p=101}}</ref>

By the late 1st century AD, the central dividing barrier comprised a series of water basins, or else a single watercourse open in some places and bridged over in others. It offered opportunities for artistic embellishment and decorative swagger, and included the temples and statues of various deities, fountains, and refuges for those assistants involved in more dangerous circus activities, such as beast-hunts and the recovery of casualties during races.<ref>{{harvnb|Humphrey|1986|pp=293–294}}</ref>

In AD 81 the Senate built a triple arch honoring [[Titus]] at the semi-circular end of the Circus, to replace or augment a former processional entrance.<ref>This is not to be confused with the [[Arch of Titus]], built over the [[Via Sacra]] on the opposite side of the Palatine.</ref> The emperor [[Domitian]] built a new, multi-storey palace on the Palatine, connected somehow to the Circus; he likely watched the games in autocratic style, from high above and barely visible to those below. Repairs to fire damage during his reign may already have been under way before his assassination.<ref>{{harvnb|Humphrey|1986|p=74}}</ref>

The risk of further fire-damage, coupled with Domitian's fate, may have prompted [[Trajan]]'s decision to rebuild the Circus entirely in stone, and provide a new pulvinar in the stands where Rome's emperor could be seen and honoured as part of the Roman community, alongside their gods. Under Trajan, the Circus Maximus found its definitive form, which was unchanged thereafter save for some monumental additions by later emperors, an extensive, planned rebuilding of the starting gate area under [[Caracalla]], and repairs and renewals to existing fabric. Of these, Pliny claims that Trajan's works gained a further 5,000 seats. Some repairs were unforeseen and extensive, such as those carried out in [[Diocletian]]'s reign, after the collapse of a seating section killed some 13,000 people.<ref>{{harvnb|Humphrey|1986|pp=80, 102, 126–9}}</ref>