Cursus

Cursus (plural 'cursūs' or 'cursuses') was a name given by early British archaeologists such as William Stukeley to the large parallel lengths of banks with external ditches which they thought were early Roman athletic courses, hence the Latin name cursus, meaning "course". Cursus monuments are now understood to be Neolithic structures and represent some of the oldest prehistoric monumental structures of the British Isles. Relics found within them show that they were built between 3400 and 3000 BC. Over fifty have been identified via aerial photography while many others have doubtless been obliterated by farming and other subsequent landscaping activities.

They range in length from 50 yards to almost 6 miles and the distance between the parallel earthworks can be up to 100 yards. Banks at the terminal ends enclose the cursus.

Contemporary internal features are rare and it has been traditionally thought that the cursuses were used as processional routes. They are often aligned on and respect the position of pre-existing long barrows and bank barrows and appear to ignore difficulties in terrain. The Dorset Cursus, the longest known example, crosses a river and three valleys along its course across Cranborne Chase and is close to the henge monuments at Knowlton. It has been conjectured that they were used in rituals connected with ancestor worship, that they follow astronomical alignments or that they served as buffer zones between ceremonial and occupation landscapes. More recent studies have reassessed the original interpretation and argued that they were in fact used for ceremonial competitions. Finds of arrowheads at the terminal ends suggest archery and hunting were important to the builders and that the length of the cursus may have reflected its use as a proving ground for young men involving a journey to adulthood. Anthropological parallels exist for this interpretation.

Cursus (classical)

The Latin word 'cursus' can be generally translated into English as 'course'. The word derives from currere, to run. It may be applied, for example, to a course of study or of medical treatment or to a race-course.

Roman race-course.

At its simplest, the Roman race-course took the form of two posts; each called a discrimen or a meta, round which the runners, whether on foot, on horses or in chariots, raced. The normal arrangement was more formalised as two straights, separated by a spina but very close to each other and with a very tight turn at each turning point. It was the similarity in appearance of this Roman cursus to the Neolithic archaeological feature which led 18th century antiquarians to use the same name for the latter.

This combination of straight and tight turn combined the thrills of speed on the straights with those of danger as collisions and falls were likely on the turns.

The distinction between a cursus and a circus in connection with racing is not wholly clear. Compare the description above with that of the Circus Maximus.