Ludi Romani

Ludi Romani

A look at entertainment in Ancient Rome.

What were the Roman Ludi?

Ludi were public games held for the entertainment of the Roman people, usually in conjunction with Roman religious festivals.The days on which ludi were held were public holidays, and no business could be conducted. It has been noted that during the Imperial era these days might have been more than 135 during the year. The earliest ludi were horse races in the circus.

Types of Ludi

1. Ludi circenses
2. Ludi gladiatorii
3. Ludi scaenici
4. Venationes
5. Naumachiae

Ludi circenses

Ludi circenses were games presented in the circus, most famously in Circus Maximus which was primarily a venue for chariot races, but other athletic events, races, and beast hunts could be held as well.The games were preceded by an opening parade, the pompa circensis. They were part of the most important holidays and festivals, such as the Floralia, Ludi Magni, and Ludi Plebeii.

Ludi gladiatorii

Very popular during the Imperial era they were performed in theaters, namely the Flavian Ampitheatre, later known as the Colosseum.The combatants could be professionals, novice gladiators, convicted, slaves, war prisoners, or free people, without racial or sexual distinctions (fights of gladiatrices were extremely rare but the most requested). Clashes would often occur between opposing fans, sometimes resulting in flat out brawls.

Ludi scaenici

Interpreted at first by amateur actors and without masks, ludi scaenici were free performances of theatre plays, that later became more professionally staged.They were extremely popular, especially from the I century B.C. when stone theaters started to be built, as they were previously built using wood and then teared down. Comedies and tragedies were not the only ones portrayed, there were also lighter shows like the nudatio mimarum, mime plays in which the actresses would undress as the final act.

Venationes

First introduced by Marcus Nobilior, Venationes were held in Ampitheaters and involved the hunting and killing of wild animals.They would usually be held in the morning, before ludi gladiatorii and would feature beasts coming from the most remote and exotic regions of the empire, such as lions, elephants, tigers, leopards, crocodiles, hippos, etc. Thousands of animals would be killed each day. It was also a way to execute convicted people of the lower classes.

Naumachiae

Originating from the Ancient Greek ναυμαχία, they were staged naval battles, first represented during Caesar's dictatorship.They were either staged in natural or artificial basins, or directly in circuses and ampitheaters filled with water. They were very frequent during the I century BC; the greatest naumachia was held on Lake Fucino with almost 20.000 fighters in 52 BC, under the empire of Claudius. This type of ludus was represented also in the Renaissance, up until the 19th century.

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