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The Roman city of Nemausus was a favorite of Augustus Caesar. Its residents thus had the privilege and wherewithal to build an opulent forum, an amphitheater in which 24,000 people could enjoy blood sports, and elaborate fortifications. The Romans believed their emperors were gods, so perhaps it’s the intercession of Augustus that has left modern Nîmes with two of the best preserved of all Roman buildings.
It’s difficult to get a picture, or even a view, of the whole
Amphitheater (les Arènes) from the outside. That’s
because it’s right in the center of the city, surrounded by a
major traffic roundabout. But it’s a persistent backdrop along the
streets that radiate from it.
You’ll get a better sense of the Amphitheater from the inside. Built
around 100 CE, the citizens of Nemausus gathered there to watch
spectacles ranging from Olympic-style sports to fights between various
combinations of humans and animals. Sometimes there would be public
executions for the amusement and edification of the crowd. The arena
had a velarium, an adjustable canopy to provide shade from the
sun, as well as numerous vomitoria, an apt name for a system of
corridors and stairways sufficient to allow 24,000 spectators in 34
tiers of seats (the tiers strictly segregated by their social class)
to exit in five minutes.
Today the Amphitheater is the site of bullfights (not much has changed
since Roman times, I guess) during three annual férias,
or festival seasons. Bullfights in Provence come in two varieties.
First there are the traditional Spanish corridas, with the same
mingling of blood, gore, and testosterone that is popular throughout
Spain and Mexico.
A less violent alternative to the mise à mort (“put to
death”) Spanish bullfight is the indigenous Provençal Course
Camarguaise. The object is to remove a rosette of flowers placed
on the bull’s head. The bull may possibly emerge from this contest
annoyed, but his life is in no danger. However, the bull’s sharp horns
afford no such guarantee to the rasteur who attempts to
extricate the rosette using a hand-held hook. The resemblance to
American rodeo is not entirely coincidental. The bulls come from the
Camargue region of Provence, where the gardiens who herd and
tend them are the French version of cowboys.
The Maison Carrée (“Square House”) is the other prized
Roman building in Nîmes. It’s considered the best preserved of
all Roman temples. Built in about 5 CE, it was apparently
dedicated to two nephews of Augustus Caesar.
Compared with the timeless elegance of the outside, the inside of the
Maison Carrée is rather plain. When there isn’t a modern art
exhibit, it holds an exhibit describing the history of the building
itself. But it’s worth going up the stairs into the pronaos or
portico (the enclosed outer vestibule) to see the columns and the
carved ceiling.
The 18th century Jardin de la Fontaine (“Fountain Garden”) offers a
bit of contrast to the more prominent Roman monuments. Strolling its
terraces, lawns, and groves of pines and cedars provides a very
pleasant morning or afternoon. But like so many things in Nîmes,
the garden has Roman connections. The “fountain” was, in Roman times,
a sacred spring. It was surrounded by a complex of buildings
(including a theatre and baths) that has only been partially
excavated.
At the south end of the garden is the “Temple of Diana.” Probably
dating from the 2nd century CE, its actual purpose is unknown.
At the north end of the garden (and up a steep hill that’s the
highest point in Nîmes) is the Tour Magne (“great tower”). It’s
all that remains of a line of 30 towers that defended the city
starting in around 15 BCE. The towers were built on a pre-Roman city
wall. If you’ve got good legs you can climb the 140 steps to the top.
An essential side trip from Nîmes is the Pont du Gard (“bridge
over the river Gard”). It actually isn’t a bridge, but part of an
elaborate Roman aqueduct that provided the water supply for Nemausus
from a source 50 kilometers away. It was built around 19 BCE.
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