DOCSLIB.ORG

Spielregel-USA21.8.Pdf

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Spielregel-USA21.8.Pdf THE SENSATION OF ANCIENT ROME – DARING CHARIOT RACES FOR FAME AND LAURELS Published by: Pro Ludo Author: Wolfgang Riedesser Illustrations: Eckhard Freytag Graphic Design: Ingrid Berner A daring chariot race for up to 6 drivers ages 12 years and up. Contents: 1 Double-sided game board 6 Chariots 6 Denari (coins) 144 Race Cards (divided into 6 decks of 24 cards, each in a different color) BECOME THE BEST CHARIOT DRIVER IN ROME! In Ave Caesar, you and up to five other charioteers compete in the Circus Maximus to determine who is the greatest driver in all of Rome. The racer who most skillfully navigates their chariot over the course of three laps will receive the most Laurels. After several races, whoever has collected the most Laurels wins the tournament, and the adulation of countless fans. 2 CONTENTS AND GAMEPLAY: I. Select a Racecourse .................................................................................................................................... page 3 II. Setup and Starting Positions ...................................................................................................................... page 3 III. The Start of the Race ................................................................................................................................. page 4 IV. Emperor’s Alley .......................................................................................................................................... page 6 V. The End of the Race .................................................................................................................................. page 7 VI. Setup for the Next Race ............................................................................................................................ page 7 VII. Tips und Tactics ......................................................................................................................................... page 7 VIII. History of the Circus Maximus ................................................................................................................. page 8 I. SELECT A RACECOURSE Both sides of the game board contain racecourses that can accommodate up to 6 players. The races move in a clockwise direction along the course. Each race is a distance of 3 laps, during which all participants must drive their chariots through Emperor’s Alley to pay homage at least once. II. SETUP AND STARTING POSITIONS Before the game begins, each player receives a chariot, the appropriately colored deck of race cards, and a matching denari. The race card decks are identical (they differ only in color) and contain barely enough points in total to complete the 3 laps around the course to finish the race. 3 To determine starting positions, each player shuffles their deck and places it face-down on the table. Now, each player reveals the top-most card in their deck. The player with the highest numbered card places their chariot in starting position No. I. The player to the left of the starting player places their chariot in position No. II, and all other players place their chariots in the remaining starting positions following the same clock- wise pattern. The revealed cards are then shuffled back into the deck. In the case of a tie for the highest numbered card, the tied players con- tinue to reveal the top-most cards in their decks until the tie is broken and a starting player can be determined. A tip for all charioteers: It is best to take the inside route on curves, as this uses the fewest movement points. The race card decks contain only a few extra movement points, you need both skill and tactics to reach the end of the race. III. THE START OF THE RACE Each player takes the top three cards from their deck to form their hand and looks at them, while keeping them hidden from their opponents. The player whose chariot is in starting position No. I then begins the race. The starting player places one of their three race cards on the table face-up and moves their chariot the appro- priate number of spaces in the clock- wise direction along the track. The player then replenishes their hand by taking the top-most card from their race card deck. Once the starting player finishes their turn, the remaining players bring their chariots into the race in the same fashion. 4 MOVEMENT RULES: • Chariots can only move forward. They can change lanes to any space (that is not barred by a wall) by moving diagonally forwards into the space in the desired lane. While diagonal movement is possible in this way, sideways movement is not permitted. • If a wall stands directly in front of a chariot, the chariot can still move diagonally to another lane. • Players must always play a card, and must move the exact number of spaces indicated on the card played. In the curves, this may force a player to move to one of the longer, outside lanes. • Only one chariot can occupy any single space. • After a race card is played, the player draws the top card from their race card deck, so that their hand of 3 cards is maintained. • A race card can only be played if the chariot is able to move the number of spaces indicated on the card. If that is not possible, because (for instance) the player’s chariot is blocked on all sides and cannot move forward, the player’s turn is skipped and the blocked player does not play a card. • The player whose chariot is leading the race may not play a card with a value of 6, except at the very beginning of the game (the starting player). In the case of a tie, none of the leading players may play a 6 until a single leader emerges. • If the leading player has only sixes in their hand, their turn is skipped until someone else takes over the lead. 5 • Exception due to bottleneck. Bottlenecks are places where the track narrows to a single space. If the leading player is in this type of space, and possesses three 6s in their hand, the leading player may play one of these 6s to move further along the track. • A further exception occurs if two players are tied for the lead, they both have three 6s in their hands, and their chariots are blocking the movement of the players behind them. In this unique situation, the leading player whose turn occurs first may play a 6 to move his chariot forward. • Chariots may not jump over other chariots, but may pass them by moving diagonally into another lane. Chariots may not jump over walls. • A chariot might not be able to reach the finish line if it takes the outside track too often during the race and runs out of movement points. In this situation, the chariot is removed from the track and receives no Laurels (points). • Water ditches on the track are just there for graphic interest. They do not divide spaces, but rather run through them. They do not have any effect on the game. It is assumed that the chariots simply drive through them. IV. EMPEROR’S ALLEY During either the first or the second lap of the race, each player must bring their chariot into Emperor’s Alley to salute the Emperor with the imperial greeting, “Ave Caesar!” Players must bring their chariots to a stop along Emperor’s Alley and pay homage to the Emperor by greeting him (literally yelling “Ave Caesar!”) and paying their denari as tribute (placing it into the box). Once this is accomplished, the chariot can return to the race. If during the second lap of the race the entrance to Emperor’s Alley is blocked by an opposing chariot, players needing to enter Emperor’s Alley must suspend their turns until the entrance is once again free. If, by the end of the second lap, a player fails to enter Emperor’s Alley to pay tribute to Caesar, that player draws the ire of the Emperor and is dis- qualified. Even if that player is the first to complete the race, the disgraced charioteer will receive no Laurels (points). 6 • There is no passing in Emperor’s Alley. • Several chariots can occupy Emperor’s Alley at the same time (but this runs the risk of causing a traffic jam, and you might get caught behind one or more opponent’s chariots). V. THE END OF THE RACE The first chariot to cross the finish line after paying tribute to Caesar and completing 3 laps around the course wins the race. This player receives 6 Laurel wreaths for the victory, which counts as 6 points. The number of spaces by which each charioteer exceeds the goal is irrelevant in determining placement. The second place player receives 4 points, third place receives 3, fourth place receives 2, and fifth place receives 1 point. The sixth place player receives honor and hope that he may fare better in the next race. All remaining race cards are discarded. VI. SETUP FOR THE NEXT RACE After the race is completed, the starting player for the next race is the player who placed last in the preceding race, with placement and play proceeding to the left as usual. The second race is made on the course that was not used in the first race. The third and fourth races are held on the courses already used, but the chariots now travel in the counter-clockwise direction. Whoever accumulates the most Laurels after 4 races is the winner of the tournament and the best charioteer in Rome! VII. TIPS, TACTICS AND VARIANTS • The interior track around curves is generally shorter than the exterior tracks. In order to conserve movement points, it is recommended that players take the interior tracks on curves as much as possible. If a player drives along the outside edge of the curves too often, he will run out of movement points in his race card deck and be unable to finish the race. Ave Caesar is the most fun when players try to force the opposing chariots into the outside lanes to gain advantage over the other charioteers. • Bottlenecks can be used to block opposing players and force them to skip their turns. • Before the beginning of the tournament, players can decide to use an alternate method of determining starting position.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Domitian's Arae Incendii Neroniani in New Flavian Rome
    Rising from the Ashes: Domitian’s Arae Incendii Neroniani in New Flavian Rome Lea K. Cline In the August 1888 edition of the Notizie degli Scavi, profes- on a base of two steps; it is a long, solid rectangle, 6.25 m sors Guliermo Gatti and Rodolfo Lanciani announced the deep, 3.25 m wide, and 1.26 m high (lacking its crown). rediscovery of a Domitianic altar on the Quirinal hill during These dimensions make it the second largest public altar to the construction of the Casa Reale (Figures 1 and 2).1 This survive in the ancient capital. Built of travertine and revet- altar, found in situ on the southeast side of the Alta Semita ted in marble, this altar lacks sculptural decoration. Only its (an important northern thoroughfare) adjacent to the church inscription identifies it as an Ara Incendii Neroniani, an altar of San Andrea al Quirinale, was not unknown to scholars.2 erected in fulfillment of a vow made after the great fire of The site was discovered, but not excavated, in 1644 when Nero (A.D. 64).7 Pope Urban VIII (Maffeo Barberini) and Gianlorenzo Bernini Archaeological evidence attests to two other altars, laid the foundations of San Andrea al Quirinale; at that time, bearing identical inscriptions, excavated in the sixteenth the inscription was removed to the Vatican, and then the and seventeenth centuries; the Ara Incendii Neroniani found altar was essentially forgotten.3 Lanciani’s notes from May on the Quirinal was the last of the three to be discovered.8 22, 1889, describe a fairly intact structure—a travertine block Little is known of the two other altars; one, presumably altar with remnants of a marble base molding on two sides.4 found on the Vatican plain, was reportedly used as building Although the altar’s inscription was not in situ, Lanciani refers material for the basilica of St.
    [Show full text]
  • Life in the Roman Empire a Roman City Typically Had a Forum
    CK_3_TH_HG_P091_145.QXD 4/11/05 10:56 AM Page 133 himself. Commodus spent much of his time not governing but racing chariots and fighting as a gladiator in the amphitheater. He fought hundreds of times and Teaching Idea killed lions, panthers, and elephants—and men—by the scores. In his famous his- Roman homes were lit with terra- tory, Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, the historian Edward Gibbon memo- cotta or bronze lamps. Have students rably described the character of Commodus as a man more intent on pursuing his make their own lamps using the own pleasure than leading his people. directions on Instructional Master 22, Commodus was strangled to death in his bath in 192 CE. After his death, the Making a Terra-Cotta Lamp. After Senate ordered that all mention of him and his reign be expunged from the doing this activity, have students records. write a description of why it would be important to have these lamps in a Another famously wicked emperor was Nero, who ruled Rome well before Roman house. Compare and contrast Commodus, from 54–68 CE. Nero was given a good education—his tutor was the the use of these lamps to the lights philosopher Seneca—but he used his powers as emperor to suit his own purposes. that students use in their own homes. In the second year of his reign, he grew resentful of his mother’s attempts to con- What are the similarities and differ- trol him and began scheming to get rid of her. After having his mother murdered, ences? What are the advantages and he later murdered his wife and then married his mistress.
    [Show full text]
  • Roman Entertainment
    Roman Entertainment The Emergence of Permanent Entertainment Buildings and its use as Propaganda David van Alten (3374912) [email protected] Bachelor thesis (Research seminar III ‘Urbs Roma’) 13-04-2012 Supervisor: Dr. S.L.M. Stevens Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 3 1: The development of permanent entertainment buildings in Rome ...................................... 9 1.1 Ludi circenses and the circus ............................................................................................ 9 1.2 Ludi scaenici and the theatre ......................................................................................... 11 1.3 Munus gladiatorum and the amphitheatre ................................................................... 16 1.4 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 19 2: The uncompleted permanent theatres in Rome during the second century BC ................. 22 2.0 Context ........................................................................................................................... 22 2.1 First attempts in the second century BC ........................................................................ 22 2.2 Resistance to permanent theatres ................................................................................ 24 2.3 Conclusion .....................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Ritual Cleaning-Up of the City: from the Lupercalia to the Argei*
    RITUAL CLEANING-UP OF THE CITY: FROM THE LUPERCALIA TO THE ARGEI* This paper is not an analysis of the fine aspects of ritual, myth and ety- mology. I do not intend to guess the exact meaning of Luperci and Argei, or why the former sacrificed a dog and the latter were bound hand and foot. What I want to examine is the role of the festivals of the Lupercalia and the Argei in the functioning of the Roman community. The best-informed among ancient writers were convinced that these were purification cere- monies. I assume that the ancients knew what they were talking about and propose, first, to establish the nature of the ritual cleanliness of the city, and second, see by what techniques the two festivals achieved that goal. What, in the perception of the Romans themselves, normally made their city unclean? What were the ordinary, repetitive sources of pollution in pre-Imperial Rome, before the concept of the cura Urbis was refined? The answer to this is provided by taboos and restrictions on certain sub- stances, and also certain activities, in the City. First, there is a rule from the Twelve Tables with Cicero’s curiously anachronistic comment: «hominem mortuum», inquit lex in duodecim, «in urbe ne sepelito neve urito», credo vel propter ignis periculum (De leg. II 58). Secondly, we have the edict of the praetor L. Sentius C.f., known from three inscrip- tions dating from the beginning of the first century BC1: L. Sentius C. f. pr(aetor) de sen(atus) sent(entia) loca terminanda coer(avit).
    [Show full text]
  • Rodolfo Lanciani, the Ruins and Excavations of Ancient Rome, 1897, P
    10/29/2010 1 Primus Adventus ad Romam Urbem Aeternam Your First Visit to Rome The Eternal City 2 Accessimus in Urbe AeternA! • Welcome, traveler! Avoiding the travails of the road, you arrived by ship at the port of Ostia; from there, you’ve had a short journey up the Via Ostiensis into Roma herself. What do you see there? 3 Quam pulchra est urbs aeterna! • What is there to see in Rome? • What are some monuments you have heard of? • How old are the buildings in Rome? • How long would it take you to see everything important? 4 Map of Roma 5 The Roman Forum • “According to the Roman legend, Romulus and Tatius, after the mediation of the Sabine women, met on the very spot where the battle had been fought, and made peace and an alliance. The spot, a low, damp, grassy field, exposed to the floods of the river Spinon, took the name of “Comitium” from the verb coire, to assemble. It is possible that, in consequence of the alliance, a road connecting the Sabine and the Roman settlements was made across these swamps; it became afterwards the Sacra Via…. 6 The Roman Forum • “…Tullus Hostilius, the third king, built a stone inclosure on the Comitium, for the meeting of the Senators, named from him Curia Hostilia; then came the state prison built by Ancus Marcius in one of the quarries (the Tullianum). The Tarquin [kings] drained the land, gave the Forum a regular (trapezoidal) shape, divided the space around its borders into building- lots, and sold them to private speculators for shops and houses, the fronts of which were to be lined with porticoes.” --Rodolfo Lanciani, The Ruins and Excavations of Ancient Rome, 1897, p.
    [Show full text]
  • De Ornanda Instruendaque Urbe Anne Truetzel
    Washington University in St. Louis Washington University Open Scholarship All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) 1-1-2011 De Ornanda Instruendaque Urbe Anne Truetzel Follow this and additional works at: https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/etd Recommended Citation Truetzel, Anne, "De Ornanda Instruendaque Urbe" (2011). All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs). 527. https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/etd/527 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Washington University Open Scholarship. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) by an authorized administrator of Washington University Open Scholarship. For more information, please contact [email protected]. WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY Department of Classics De Ornanda Instruendaque Urbe: Julius Caesar’s Influence on the Topography of the Comitium-Rostra-Curia Complex by Anne E. Truetzel A thesis presented to the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of Washington University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts August 2011 Saint Louis, Missouri ~ Acknowledgments~ I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Classics department at Washington University in St. Louis. The two years that I have spent in this program have been both challenging and rewarding. I thank both the faculty and my fellow graduate students for allowing me to be a part of this community. I now graduate feeling well- prepared for the further graduate study ahead of me. There are many people without whom this project in particular could not have been completed. First and foremost, I thank Professor Susan Rotroff for her guidance and support throughout this process; her insightful comments and suggestions, brilliant ideas and unfailing patience have been invaluable.
    [Show full text]
  • Read Ebook > the Circus Maximus and the Colosseum: the History
    6O7WQUKLJUMD ^ eBook // The Circus Maximus and the Colosseum: The History of Ancient Rome s... Th e Circus Maximus and th e Colosseum: Th e History of A ncient Rome s Most Famous Sports V enues (Paperback) Filesize: 2.44 MB Reviews This publication might be well worth a read through, and much better than other. It is amongst the most incredible book i actually have read through. I am delighted to tell you that here is the finest book i actually have read through inside my own life and could be he best ebook for possibly. (Aracely Hickle) DISCLAIMER | DMCA WHRHDX3IHYKK « Kindle « The Circus Maximus and the Colosseum: The History of Ancient Rome s... THE CIRCUS MAXIMUS AND THE COLOSSEUM: THE HISTORY OF ANCIENT ROME S MOST FAMOUS SPORTS VENUES (PAPERBACK) Createspace Independent Publishing Platform, 2018. Paperback. Condition: New. Language: English . Brand New Book ***** Print on Demand *****.*Includes pictures *Includes ancient accounts *Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading The ambitious and fearless emperors that built the legendary Roman Empire from scratch, the broad-shouldered and bronzed gladiators with their iconic plume helmets and glinting swords, and elaborate parties attended by toga-wearing Romans fueled by alcohol, violence, orgies, and other godless acts all paint a picture of Roman life. At the Circus Maximus, the guttural cheers of the spectators reverberated across the enormous open space, but their cries could hardly be heard over the rumble of the ground. On the ellipse-shaped track, 5 charioteers would skew their bodies and steer their magnificent vehicles around the curves.
    [Show full text]
  • Nota Bene-- C:\USERS\GRAF.65\DESKTOP
    CHAPTER F IVE THE L UPERCALIA F ROM A UGUSTUS TO C ONSTANTINE P ORPHYROGENITUS LUPERCALIA AFTER A UGUSTUS Like many other festivals of the city of Rome, the Lupercalia became almost invisible during the first three centuries of the Imperial epoch. Only because of their special social cachet did the Luperci and their rites not entirely become invisible during the imperial centuries. Theirs was the only priestly sodalitas that Augustus reserved for the knights, whereas all other sodalitates became the privilege of the senatorial aristocracy. To be made a lupercus turned into a highly- coveted status symbol of “near-aristocracy” that was publicly marked with the statue of the new lupercus already in Julio-Claudian times – a new habit of this age, as the Elder Pliny tells us, himself of an equestrian background 1. Inscriptions from both Rome and the provinces show how to be adlected a lupercus in Rome was viewed as an important early step of an equestrian cursus honorum ; sacris ____________________________ 1Plin. Nat. 34.18: Among the Roman innovations in the iconography of statues Lupercorum habitu tam noviciae sunt quam quae nuper prodiere paenulis indutae ; see Veyne (1960), 105. – On the transformation of the Lupercalia between Caesar and Augustus see Ferriès (2009). -2- Festivals in the Greek East lupercalibus functo , “to have performed one’s duty as a lupercus” remained a major career step through most of the imperial age 2. The last lupercus whom we meet in inscriptions is L. Crepereius Rogatus, vir clarissimus , a member of the senatorial elite of the earlier fourth century, a young man when Diocletian came to power 3.
    [Show full text]
  • Third Rome’ Circus Maximus As a Space of Fascist Simulation
    fascism 3 (2014) 20-45 brill.com/fasc The Factory of Illusions in the ‘Third Rome’ Circus Maximus as a Space of Fascist Simulation Aristotle Kallis Department of History, Lancaster University, Lancaster, United Kingdom [email protected] Abstract Although the site of the ancient Circus Maximus was one of the most loaded spaces of the Fascist ‘Third Rome’, it has received limited attention as a privileged site where a dizzying array of myths and illusions were entertained, simulated, and deposited as new Fascist layers on Rome’s urban and mnemonic palimpsest. Previously a decayed, ‘unsightly’, and overcrowded hodgepodge of layers of life, his- tory, and memory, it was substantially restored, ruthlessly emptied of its previous life, and then used for a multitude of Fascist rituals and projections (parades, cele- brations, exhibitions, mass spectacles). In this article, I explore the diverse facets of the circus’s transformation in the 1930s and argue that the site was used as a prime space of enacting and simulating the full thrust of the Fascist regime’s regenerative repertoire, involving erasure and disruption of layers of the past, new additive ele- ments and spatial practices, as well as a multitude of projections of a decidedly modern Fascist new order and temporality. Keywords Fascism – Third Rome – Circus Maximus – space – modernism – romanità – exhibi- tions – architecture The site of the Circus Maximus, the most impressive in scale ancient circus in Rome, has hosted a kaleidoscope of discordant memories across the two mil- lennia of its history. Religion and entertainment, grandiose construction and decay, spectacle and utility, grandeur and poverty – all have inscribed their traces on layers upon layers of soil and memory deposited on the site.
    [Show full text]
  • Pagan Revival’ in Action?
    THE TEMPLE OF FLORA OR VENUS BY THE CIRCUS MAXIMUS AND THE NEW CHRISTIAN TOPOGRAPHY: THE ‘PAGAN REVIVAL’ IN ACTION? Michael Mulryan Abstract This article argues that we can perceive a continuing and persistent pagan tradition in Rome throughout the 4th c., rather than a ‘revival’, through the archaeological, literary and calendrical evidence. Repairs of pagan structures continue to take place in the city in the mid- to late 4th c., notably of a Temple of Flora or Venus next to the Circus Maximus. Such temples were the foci for cultic festivals that were still taking place in the 4th c., and thereby represent the continued vibrancy of pagan traditions in the centre of Rome. This area of the city was home to other notably persistent pagan festivals, and so a newly built Christian church in the area does not seem to have affected matters. Is this an indication of a conciliatory and harmonious topography that saw pagan and Christian buildings working peacefully alongside each other in the Latin West? Introduction The late story of paganism in Italy and the West is not an easy one to tell. The fragmentary and potentially misleading evidence and its paucity, whether written, epigraphic or archaeological, have meant a lot of assumptions have been made on this subject based on very few facts. Two of these include: the occurrence of the so-called ‘pagan revival’ in the late 4th c., a paradigm which has only been challenged relatively recently; and the steady material decline of the temples in spite of this apparent resurgence.1 In this article I will confront these assumptions by examining one specific area of Rome, namely that around the Circus Maximus, and particularly a Temple of Flora or Venus, which was situated on the Circus’ south side at the foot of the 1 E.g.
    [Show full text]
  • The Colosseum As an Enduring Icon of Rome: a Comparison of the Reception of the Colosseum and the Circus Maximus
    The Colosseum as an Enduring Icon of Rome: A Comparison of the Reception of the Colosseum and the Circus Maximus. “While stands the Coliseum, Rome shall stand; When falls the Coliseum, Rome shall fall; And when Rome falls - the World.”1 The preceding quote by Lord Byron is just one example of how the Colosseum and its spectacles have captivated people for centuries. However, before the Colosseum was constructed, the Circus Maximus served as Rome’s premier entertainment venue. The Circus was home to gladiator matches, animal hunts, and more in addition to the chariot races. When the Colosseum was completed in 80 CE, it became the new center of ancient Roman amusement. In the modern day, thousands of tourists each year visit the ruins of the Colosseum, while the Circus Maximus serves as an open field for joggers, bikers, and other recreational purposes, and is not necessarily an essential stop for tourists. The ancient Circus does not draw nearly the same crowds that the Colosseum does. Through an analysis of the sources, there are several explanations as to why the Colosseum remains a popular icon of Rome while the Circus Maximus has been neglected by many people, despite it being older than and just as popular as the Colosseum in ancient times. Historiography Early scholarship on the Colosseum and other amphitheaters focused on them as sites of death and immorality. Katherine Welch sites L. Friedländer as one who adopted such a view, 1 George Gordon Byron, “Childe Harold's Pilgrimage, canto IV, st. 145,” in The Selected Poetry of Lord Byron, edited by Leslie A.
    [Show full text]
  • The Destruction of Ancient Rome
    MISCELLANEOUS. 237 labors a scientific coloring, and has consulted and critically discussed the psycho- logical and metaphysical literature of our day bearing on his topic. He is espe- cially concerned with the metaphysical proof of immortality from spirituality, and believes that in the belief in life eternal we have not an affair of sentiment, but one that admits of sound metaphysical demonstration. He has accordingly pro- ceeded psychologically and philosophically to establish that proof. The manifes- tations of our intellectual and voluntary activity are spiritual ; therefore, the ulti- mate source of these operations is likewise spiritual ; these are the phenomena, and consequently they presuppose a substance ; whence follows the reality of a spir- itual substance, of an indestructible and necessarily immortal self. His argument is founded upon the psychological study of the nature of human thought and the ego. Teleology is invoked only as the complement of the metaphysical proof. 11. THE DESTRUCTION OF ANCIENT ROME. At the southern extremity of the famed Palatine hill in Rome may still be seen the remains of the magnificent palace of the Emperor Septimius Severus towering in reminiscence of its ancient grandeur some 160 feet above the level of the modern streets. By measurements made to-day and compared with the de- scriptions and drawings of those who saw the Palatine in a better state of preserva- tion, it has been estimated by archaeologists that the original palace was 490 feet long, 390 feet wide, and 160 feet high. To-day it has almost completely dis- appeared, and only a few pieces of crumbling wall are left here and there against the cliff to tell the tale.
    [Show full text]