STARTING GATES
This depiction of a chariot race with its perspective askew shows the
two sets of three egg-topped metae, the official with a palm branch
(symbol of victory), the obelisk in the center. To the right of the
obelisk may be the dolphin lap counters. The winged female figure
to the immediate right is Victory. In the lower right corner are
the water sprinkler and a pacesetter on horseback. On the right hand
side are the closed starting gates (carceres) with herms (busts
of Hermes on a pillar) between them. The strip between each herm
is the joining of the two doors of each starting gate. A catapult
mechanism allowed the doors to spring open, releasing the chariots in a
staggered fashion (furthest gate first and so on) so that by the time the
chariots reached the first metae, they could get a fairly even start.
Previous.