Roman Chariot

The Romans were influenced directly by the Greeks after they conquered mainland Greece in 146 BC. In the Roman Empire, chariots were not used for warfare, but for chariot racing, especially in circuses, or for victory processions, when they could be drawn by as many as ten animals that can drive the chariots. There were four divisions of charioteers, the person who lead the chariots, determined by the color of their costumes: the red, blue, green and white teams. The main center of chariot racing was the Circus Maximus, set in the valley between the Palatine and Aventine Hills in Rome. The track could hold 12 chariots, and the two sides of the track were separated by a raised center name the spina. Chariot races continued to enjoy great popularity in Byzantine times even after the Olympic Games had been legal, until their decline after the Nika riots in the 6th century. The starting gates were known as the Carceres.

An ancient Roman car or chariot drawn by four horses abreast together with the horses drawing it was called a Quadriga, from the Latin quadrijugi, which means the team of four. The term sometimes meant instead the four horses without the chariot or the chariot alone. A three-horse chariot, or the three-horse team drawing it, was a triga, from trijugi, means the team of three.