The Maxentius complex is located inside the Appia Antica Archaeological Park and was built in the reign of Emperor Maxentius (306–312 AD). It consists of the mausoleum, the villa and the circus of the same name at the III mile of the Regina Viarum. The research focuses on the geometric reconstruction of the Carceres of the Circus of Maxentius, which concerned not only the circumference arc underlying the arrangement of the Carceres with the towers, but also the geometric center of the circumference itself. The architectural composition of the circuses was conceived in function of the race, therefore each part assumed a precise role. The Carceres were the housing of the wagons before the race and were the place from which the race started. All the representations of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries have returned the geometric construction of the side containing the Carceres. Their alignment, in fact, was not arranged according to a straight line, but according to an arc of circumference whose geometric center fell on the right side of the field. The analysis of the Ioppolo plant was carried out using vector graphics software that allows you to draw an arc of circumference through three known points and to subsequently visualize, once traced the arch, the center of the circumference. The study of the geometry and proportional correspondence of the artefacts allows us to understand their meaning, not only in relation to the compositional and structural principles, but in relation to the use that was made of them and the different ways of use.
Cianci, M.G., Colaceci, S. (2021). Geometric Reconstruction of the Positioning of the Carceres in the Circus of Maxentius. In ICGG 2020 - Proceedings of the 19th International Conference on Geometry and Graphics (pp.835-846). Cham : Springer Nature [10.1007/978-3-030-63403-2_76].
Geometric Reconstruction of the Positioning of the Carceres in the Circus of Maxentius
Maria Grazia Cianci;Sara Colaceci
2021-01-01
Abstract
The Maxentius complex is located inside the Appia Antica Archaeological Park and was built in the reign of Emperor Maxentius (306–312 AD). It consists of the mausoleum, the villa and the circus of the same name at the III mile of the Regina Viarum. The research focuses on the geometric reconstruction of the Carceres of the Circus of Maxentius, which concerned not only the circumference arc underlying the arrangement of the Carceres with the towers, but also the geometric center of the circumference itself. The architectural composition of the circuses was conceived in function of the race, therefore each part assumed a precise role. The Carceres were the housing of the wagons before the race and were the place from which the race started. All the representations of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries have returned the geometric construction of the side containing the Carceres. Their alignment, in fact, was not arranged according to a straight line, but according to an arc of circumference whose geometric center fell on the right side of the field. The analysis of the Ioppolo plant was carried out using vector graphics software that allows you to draw an arc of circumference through three known points and to subsequently visualize, once traced the arch, the center of the circumference. The study of the geometry and proportional correspondence of the artefacts allows us to understand their meaning, not only in relation to the compositional and structural principles, but in relation to the use that was made of them and the different ways of use.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.