The Circus Games Mosaic is a 2nd-century Roman mosaic depicting a chariot race in quadrigas. [1] It was discovered in 1806 in the Ainay district of Lyon (ancient Lugdunum) and is now on display in the Gallo-Roman Museum of Lyon.
The Circus Games Mosaic is a 2nd-century Roman mosaic depicting a chariot race in quadrigas. [1] It was discovered in 1806 in the Ainay district of Lyon (ancient Lugdunum) and is now on display in the Gallo-Roman Museum of Lyon.
This mosaic is also known as mosaic "Macors" named Paul Macors, owner closed which were discovered mosaics in the Ainay area between 1806 and 1809. According to the chroniclers of the time, it could have been discovered at three different but nearby places: either at the southeast corner of Rue Victor Hugo and Jarente, 24 rue Jarente or even 39 rue Victor Hugo. On Lot VI, the so-called "circus" mosaic was unearthed on February 18, 1806 by workers digging a reservoir. Buried under a meter of topsoil, it has no index ruin. Reddish gravel that covered the mosaic suggests it had been covered to protect it. Only the Greek surrounds the mosaic and intended to visually increase the size is very degraded. Macors Paul, conscious of his wealth, built a small Doric temple above the mosaic in order to protect it.
From 5 to 20 June 1806, the people of Lyon and other curious could visit the mosaic for a small fee that was to pay the effort of the workers. June 26, 1806, teachers and students were invited to observe the mosaic and the garden, probably during the construction of the temple. We do not know when the visit is possible again, but Mr. Macors states that from 1 November 1808 to 1 May 1809, the mosaic will be more visible and will be made new digs. He discovers a new mosaic called "Meleager" it does protect the construction of a second flag. Arts lovers, Mr. Macors decided to create the Circle Garden Mosaics so visitors are curious and cultivate their knowledge and offer a moment of rest and entertainment in a place where the attractions are no different from neighboring breweries. This Circle lasted only a year 1 July 1809 to 30 June 1810, and the death of Paul Macors 12 March 1811 precipitated the sale of the Garden Mosaics. City Council deliberated on 29 May 1811 on the subject and decided to create a commission to determine the procedures for the acquisition of land by the city. The Council decided to postpone its decision at the meeting of April 20, 1812. The report "Chaussagne the" fixed the purchase price of the mosaic to 5000 francs and then plans to buy the adjoining land. Council adjourned its decision.
Mr. Macors field is then divided into two: north and south house the temple which covers the mosaic. The auction takes place on September 18, 1812 and the fields are awarded to Vincent Depierre and his son Charles, residing in rue Sainte-Catherine. The new owners made a new offer to the City Council and it is then that the prefect, Monsieur le Comte de Bondy suggested to the mayor to include a sum of 6,000 francs on the 1813 budget for the acquisition of the mosaic so that the city retains it. This was too late because the mosaic has been sold on August 10, 1813 to two architects, Jacques and Victor Ruffaut Rivoiron for 4,900 francs. The architects destroyed the temple and decided to transfer the mosaic to Paris. This is not counting on the will of the mayor of Lyon, Albon, who under the law of 18 Brumaire Year III on the protection of monuments, makes an order prohibiting the removal of the two mosaics. The City agrees to pay them 4,900 francs incurred to which it added 2,100 francs as reimbursement of expenses and allowances. She agrees to move the mosaic within three months. A shed is then built to protect the pavement. Total transactions ultimately cost 7,535 francs and moving mosaic wait ... 1818 !
Acquired in 1813, the mosaic must still undergo several degradation: Depierre filled the ditches to protect the pavement from moisture and decide to close the field. These actions were reported to the mayor by Artaud 16 April 1814 and the next day the mayor wrote to Depierre requiring removal of the pavement. In 1815, Depierre reoffended and molested the guardian appointed by the mayor to monitor the field. They complained about not being able to pierce the streets in their field they plan to sell building lots. On 26 July 1817, within a fortnight Depierre threatened to continue the work they have already committed, the consequence would be the destruction of the ancient pavement. The prefect then made an order which prohibited Depierre to continue the work and forced them to surrender the land to the city agrees to move the mosaic.
It is still unknown what delayed the movement of the mosaic, a possible cause was the technical difficulties of the transfer. Artaud gives no explanation other than bad political circumstances. One known technique at that time, that moves Schneyder of a mosaic, if the cement is healthy, which seemed not to be the case since it has been altered by moisture. It was not until the process Belloni for the Lyons mosaic, starting with that of "Circus Games" could be moved. It will then be the turn of the mosaic "Cassaire" and the so-called "Michoud". Belloni, Director of the royal manufactory of mosaics Paris invented a method to move the tiles. The Comte de Fargues, Mayor of Lyon, teaches a method exists and tells the City Council that Mr. Belloni agrees to come to Lyon to transport the mosaic Palais Saint-Pierre for the sum of 6,000 francs. Parisian mosaic arrived in Lyon in early October 1818 and the work of displacement took place from October 8 to November 3. It takes eight months of work to restore the pavement in the workshop Belloni invites competent to check the parts of the mosaic before the removal person. This is done by the company and Company Widow Souplet. The museum will host Saint Peter mosaic on the floor of the Hall of Antiques while the inventory of 1833 falls in the Cabinet des Antiques, room at the southeast corner of the museum. The mosaic will eventually filed in December 1819 and January 1820. In 1835, Artaud says that the total cost of restoration and displacement reaches about 23,000 francs, far from the 6,000 francs that the Council had agreed in 1817.
In 1863, the movement of the mosaic is decided during the expansion of the museum on the current street Édouard-Herriot. The new location is chosen room antique casts, the first floor of the east wing. On 20 March 1870, the prefect decided to entrust a new restoration of the mosaic (as well as so-called "Children's Games") to Mora mosaic father and son. Mosaic circus games then joined the mosaic Cucherat or "Fish", present in the room antique casts since 1845. In 1921, during the drafting of the Revue du Lyonnais, the mosaic is still based in the same room at the Gallo-Roman Museum in Fourvière.
In 1975, the mosaic moved into the current museum.
Artaud publishes three almost identical descriptions mosaic in two monographs in 1806 and in the book of 1835. Board drawn and engraved monograph illustrates the folio of 1806 and is followed by three detail images in the book of 1835. Several reproductions of mosaics, more or less happy, appear in subsequent publications, such as the History of the Romans Victor Duruy or in Gallia Camille Jullian . It must be admitted that only the board of Artaud represents the mosaic as it was found, without renovation. While admitting some interpretations, the first board presents the mosaic as it was in 1806, not one has Belloni in 1818 .
Artaud gives the dimensions of the pavement in situ 5.035 × 3.086 m. After the second sitting in the hall of the Mummy Comarmond measuring 4.97 × 3 m, very close to modern dimensions.
Mosaic is rectangular. Its scope is black, polychrome decoration. From the exterior to the interior, the mosaic provides a framework consisting of a frieze of white teeth and a black border of three stones wide and again a wide white border of two stones. Then comes a great foliage leaving a cup placed on the left and whose lobes are filled with flowers with four petals, larger on the right of the mosaic decoration which results in a rich vegetable decoration side. Then comes a large white net three stones and a large continuous braid, again a white net three stones.
The decor has the central arena of a circus without the stands. On the left side is the delivery of tanks (carceres) topped by a box (pulvinar) forming the oppidum. It is structure which tends to prove that the mosaic image of the circus of the ancient city of Lugdunum, which corroborates the link with the epigraphy, including mention of the college of centonaires who financed the reconstruction of the circus after its wooden benches were burned.
The door through which leave the tanks, carried pompae, is surrounded by two pillars, one of which disappeared in a crack in the pavement that also hides a character we know only the head surmounted by a red cap and bears blue breeches. Perhaps this inspector game On both sides of the porta pompae carceres are eight, four on each side. Can provide some dating mosaic speculating a prior to the reign of Domitian, which establishes the use of six tanks, so carceres twelve, six back-to-six tanks and discharge. The lodge is occupied by three judges whose central characters, the sponsor of the show, holding the mappa, machine let loose to signify the start of the race.
Spina, massive central masonry around which the chariots turn, sharing the arena in its greatest length. It has two pools rectangular shape with the left features an obelisk. In the passage between the two basins are two characters. Lyon mosaic is remarkable in several respects (including the presence of three judges in the box), but the most intriguing is represented by the absence of these altars and other small temples that adorn the other known spinae as they are replaced here by basins. Each of the two basins present a set of pillars and architrave bearing the one seven balls and the other seven dolphins spouting water. These oval balls (or eggs) and these dolphins are lowered at every turn (curriculum).
Staff is on the edge of the track: a Sparsör ("sprinkler") holds a full bowl of water, it is responsible for watering the track, horses, and chariot wheels in case of overheating. In the corner, an agitator holds a whip, likely to excite the horses, and strength, perhaps intended to cut the reins of the horses in case of accident. A lonely rider straddles side runners, perhaps is it a steward.
Dougga or Thugga or TBGG was a Berber, Punic and Roman settlement near present-day Téboursouk in northern Tunisia. The current archaeological site covers 65 hectares. UNESCO qualified Dougga as a World Heritage Site in 1997, believing that it represents "the best-preserved Roman small town in North Africa". The site, which lies in the middle of the countryside, has been protected from the encroachment of modern urbanization, in contrast, for example, to Carthage, which has been pillaged and rebuilt on numerous occasions. Dougga's size, its well-preserved monuments and its rich Numidian-Berber, Punic, ancient Roman and Byzantine history make it exceptional. Amongst the most famous monuments at the site are a Libyco-Punic Mausoleum, the Capitol, the Roman theatre, and the temples of Saturn and of Juno Caelestis.
A Roman circus was a large open-air venue used mainly for chariot races, although sometimes serving other purposes. It was similar to the ancient Greek hippodrome. Along with theatres and amphitheatres, circuses were one of the main entertainment venues at the time.
The Circus of Maxentius is an ancient structure in Rome, Italy, part of a complex of buildings erected by emperor Maxentius on the Via Appia between AD 306 and 312. It is situated between the second and third miles of the Via Appia, between the basilica and catacombs of San Sebastiano and the imposing late republican tomb of Caecilia Metella, which dominates the hill that rises immediately to the east of the complex. It is part of the Appian Way Regional Park.
Opus sectile is a form of pietra dura popularized in the ancient and medieval Roman world where materials were cut and inlaid into walls and floors to make a picture or pattern. Common materials were marble, mother of pearl, and glass. The materials were cut in thin pieces, polished, then trimmed further according to a chosen pattern. Unlike tessellated mosaic techniques, where the placement of very small uniformly sized pieces forms a picture, opus sectile pieces are much larger and can be shaped to define large parts of the design.
The Arch of Germanicus is an ancient Roman arch in Saintes, Charente-Maritime in France. It was built in 18 or 19 by a rich citizen of the town, C. Julius Rufus, and dedicated to the emperor Tiberius, his son Drusus Julius Caesar, and his adoptive son Germanicus. It has two bays and was originally sited over the terminus of the Roman road from Lyon to Saintes. On the proposal of Prosper Mérimée in 1843 it was moved fifteen metres during works on quays along the river, and it was restored in 1851.
The Presqu'île is the central part of the City of Lyon, France. Extending from the foot of the Croix-Rousse hill in the north to the confluence of the Rhône and the Saône rivers in the south, it has a preponderance of cafés, restaurants, luxury shops, department stores, banks, government buildings and cultural institutions.
The 1st arrondissement of Lyon, France is one of the nine arrondissements of the City of Lyon. It is located below the hill of Croix-Rousse and on the north part of the Presqu'île formed by the Saône and the Rhône, the two rivers in Lyon.
The Rue de la République is a street located in the 1st and 2nd arrondissements of Lyon, France. It links the Place de la Comédie in the north to Place Le Viste in the south, just next to Place Bellecour, via the Place de la République.
Rue Victor-Hugo is a pedestrian street in the 2nd arrondissement of Lyon, in the Ainay district of the Presqu'île quarter, reputed to be one of the most known shopping area of Lyon. From north to south, it connects the Place Bellecour to the Place Carnot. Beyond the Place Bellecour, the rue de la République is its natural extension, thus creating one of the biggest pedestrian streets in Europe. The street is served by metro stations Perrache, Bellecour and Ampère - Victor Hugo. It belongs to the zone classified as World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Lugdunum, formerly known as the Gallo-Roman Museum of Lyon-Fourvière, is a museum of Gallo-Roman civilisation in Lyon. Previously presented at the Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon and the Antiquarium, the municipal Gallo-Roman collection was transferred to a new building designed by Bernard Zehrfuss and opened in 1975, near the city's Roman theatre and odeon, on a hill known as Fourvière, located in the heart of the Roman city. Internally, it is formed of a concrete spiral ramp descending and branching out into the display rooms. It is managed and operated by the Metropolis of Lyon jointly with the archaeological museum of Saint-Romain-en-Gal. As well as displaying its own permanent collections of Roman, Celtic and pre-Roman material, a plan-relief of the ancient town and scale models of its major monuments such as the theatre and the Odeon, it also regularly hosts temporary exhibitions. On November 8, 2017, the museum was renamed Lugdunum.
The Sarcophagus of the Triumph of Bacchus is a monumental ancient Roman stone sarcophagus of Carrara marble. The style and high quality of its reliefs and the choice of Bacchus triumphing over India as its subject suggests it came from a Roman workshop and possibly dates to the start of the 3rd century, from the reign of Caracalla to that of Elagabalus.
The Rue Lanterne is one of the oldest streets of Lyon, created in the Middle Ages, which is located in the 1st arrondissement of Lyon. It begins after the rue d'Algérie and ends against a facade of the rue Longue.
The Place Benoît-Crépu is a stone-paved square, located in Saint-Georges quarter, on the banks of the Saône, in the 5th arrondissement of Lyon. It has fountains with dolphin heads, many benches and trees and a playground. The place belongs to the area classified as World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Comte (Philippe-Marcellin) Camille de Tournon-Simiane was a French bureaucrat, a chambellan of Napoleon I who served the Emperor as Prefect of Rome, and with the Bourbon Restoration served as Prefect of the Gironde at Bordeaux and briefly of the Rhône at Lyon.
The Grande synagogue de Lyon is a synagogue located at 13 quai Tilsitt in the 2nd arrondissement of Lyon. This neo-Byzantine Jewish place of worship was built between 1863 and 1864 and renovated for the first time in 2014. It was classified as a monument historique in 1984.
The Montée du Gourguillon is an old street in the 5th arrondissement of Lyon, France, on the hill of Fourvière, between the Saint-Jean and Saint-Just quarters. Montée translates in English to the nouns "climb" or "rise " and is given to a number of steep streets. The ancient Roman settlement of Lugdunum was established here in 43 BC. The montée du Gourguillon begins at the Place de la Trinité and ascends to the rue des Farges. Fourvière is known as "the hill that prays" because the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, several convents, and the Archbishop's residence are located there. The street belongs to a zone classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
The Circus of Carthage is a Roman circus in Carthage, in present-day Tunisia. Used for chariot racing, it was modeled on the Circus Maximus in Rome and other circus buildings throughout the Roman Empire. Measuring more than 470 m in length and 30 m in width, it could house up to 45,000 spectators, roughly one third of the Circus Maximus.
Shhiim alternatively written as Shheem or Chhim/Shleem is a town in Lebanon which is located 40 kilometres south-east of Beirut. Shhiim is located on 4 mountains in the Chouf region in lebanon. Chhim has a population of about 49,000. It is considered a city by some.
The Mosaic of Virgil is a mosaic found on the site of the ancient Hadrumetum and currently preserved in Bardo National Museum in Tunis, where it constitutes one of its key pieces. It is currently the oldest portrait of the Latin poet Virgil.
Ememem is an anonymous French street artist based in Lyon. They create mosaics incorporating geometric motifs in cracked sidewalks and façades, a process they call flacking. Ememem creates art at night, so that it is generally discovered at dawn.
