Circus
among the Romans, a nearly oblong building without a roof, in which public chariot-races and exhibitions of pugilism and wrestling, etc., took place.
It was rectangular, except that one short side formed a half-circle; and on both sides, and on the semicircular end, were the seats of the spectators, rising gradually one above another, like steps. On the outside the circus was surrounded with colonnades, galleries, shops, and public places. The largest of these buildings in Rome was the Circus Maximus, capable, according to Pliny, of containing 260,000, and according to Aurelius Victor 385,000 spectators. At present, however, but few vestiges of it remain, and the circus of Caracalla is in the best preservation. The games celebrated in these structures were known collectively by the name of ludi circenses, circensian games, or games of the circus, which under the emperors attained the greatest magnificence.
The modern circus is a place where horses and other animals are trained to perform tricks, and where exhibitons of acrobats and various pageantries, including a large large amount of buffoonery, are presented. rocess