[SunkenCiv]

A mosaic showing the Carthage Circus. University of Chicago, Wikimedia Commons

[smokingfrog]

Maybe they were just trying to keep down the dust.

[bunkerhill7]

Actually the sprinkler systems were elephants spraying water on the wheels. The mosaic was done by a democrat. Carthaginians also raced elephants and donkeys there.

[KC Burke]

I have been on a jag of Greco/Roman era history. Just got a new one on the Punic Wars. While I have read a number of books focus on Hannibal, Cato the Elder, Scipio these are meant to take in the whole scope.

There is a lot of recent stuff that is very good — Anthony Everett is coming out with an overview of Greek history in December.

[edwinland]

It’s nice but I don’t see the “smart” part of this cooling “system” unless the guys who poured water on horses to cool them down had advanced physic degrees, or maybe they were the local Jeopardy champions?

Better headline:

“Man discovers weird trick for cooling horses”

[Robert DeLong]

One second-century charioteer won almost 36 million sesterces during his career – equivalent to $15 billion today.

Interesting story, thanks.

[HopeSprings]

In 1982, through Earthwatch, I actually spent two weeks helping excavate a corner of the circus in Carthage. All that was left at the time was a depression that had been plowed as a field. But we did come across seating and even a skeleton of a horse. Archeology teams have been racing to excavate key sites in Carthage as the popular suburb to Tunis grows.