The Hippodrome of Constantinople: The Art and Architecture of Chariot Racing in the Ancient World

The Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara is pleased to present a lecture by historian Dr Allan Langdale. Dr. Langdale will present an illustrated talk titled “The Hippodrome of Constantinople: The Art and Architecture of Chariot Racing in the Ancient World”. There is a suggested donation of $10.00 to attend the lecture. Tickets available via our website. All are welcome.

When people think of ancient entertainment, they often think of the Colosseum and its gladiatorial contests or Greco-Roman theaters with their tragedies and comedies. Yet the most popular entertainment of the Roman and Byzantine Empires, by far, was chariot racing, which took place in hippodromes. Few hippodromes–or, as the Romans called them, circuses–still survive, making them less central in our imaginations. Join the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara for a lecture on the hippodrome of Constantinople by Dr. Allan Langdale, who will take us on a tour of hippodromes throughout the Romano-Byzantine world, with a focus on the hippodrome of the capital city of the Byzantine Eastern Empire, today known as Istanbul. The hippodrome in Istanbul is the only hippodrome that has some of its monuments still standing in situ, and each tells a fascinating story of the history of Constantinople and of the emperors, charioteers, and racing fans.

Allan Langdale is an art and architectural historian who has written several articles on architecture and four travel books on Mediterranean art and architecture, including In a Contested Realm, An Illustrated Guide to the Art, Architecture and Archaeology of North Cyprus (2010), Palermo, Travels in the City of Happiness (2015), and The Hippodrome of Istanbul / Constantinople: An Illustrated Handbook of its History (2019).