The Tyre Hippodrome is a
UNESCO World Heritage site of the city of
Tyre in south
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...
dating back to the
Second century CE The
Expositio, a description of the world written in the second half of the fourth century by an unknown writer about circuses in the Roman empire, names the ''Tyre Hippodrome'' as one of the five best racecourses in the Levant.
Geography
Placed perpendicular to the south of the
Al-Bass Tyre necropolis, the 480 meter long and 90 meter wide horseshoe shaped structure seated twenty thousand spectators who gathered to watch the death-defying sport of chariot racing.
Description
The place is considered to be one of the largest and best preserved Roman
hippodrome
The hippodrome ( el, ἱππόδρομος) was an ancient Greek stadium for horse racing and chariot racing. The name is derived from the Greek words ''hippos'' (ἵππος; "horse") and ''dromos'' (δρόμος; "course"). The term is used i ...
s of its type in the Roman world. Its well conserved seating section (
cavea
The ''cavea'' ( Latin for "enclosure") are the seating sections of Greek and Roman theatres and amphitheatres
An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performanc ...
) is surmounting a long gallery. The start boxes and parts of the median strip (spina) with an obelisk on it are still visible. Each end of the course is marked by still existing stone turning posts (
metae).
Charioteers had to make this circuit seven times. Rounding the metae at top speed was the most dangerous part of the race and often produced spectacular spills.
Tyrian Games
Although primarily meant for chariot races, the hippodrome was also used for other types of sport, and it is likely that at least some of the events of the Tyrian Games were celebrated at this place. It may have been the place where, during the
Diocletianic Persecution
The Diocletianic or Great Persecution was the last and most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire. In 303, the emperors Diocletian, Maximian, Galerius, and Constantius issued a series of edicts rescinding Christians' legal rig ...
, Christians were tortured to death.
The Tyre Hippodrome
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File:TyreHippodrome1.jpg, Turning post and median strip with obelisk
File:TyreHippodrome2.jpg, The start boxes
File:Roman Hippodrome Arch - Tyre Lebanon.JPG, Arch below the hippodrome seats
References
{{reflist, 40em
Ancient Roman circuses
Archaeological sites in Lebanon
Horse racing venues in Lebanon
Roman sites in Lebanon
Tyre, Lebanon