A velarium ("curtain") was a type of awning used in Roman times.

These masts supported a velarium or awning that could be pulled over the audience to provide shade.

They originally supported a retractable awning, known as the velarium, that kept the sun and rain off spectators.

At first there was a decided echo with wind instruments, but the introduction of a 'velarium' below the true roof cured the defect.

Cubozoa (box jellyfish) have a box-shaped bell, and their velarium assists them to swim more quickly.

Halfway up the inside of the bell is the velarium, a horizontal ring of tissue partially blocking the aperture.

Between these pilasters are still visible the corbels upon which were supported the masts of the velarium which was drawn across the auditorium.

It is believed that sailors, with their background in sailmaking and rigging were employed to build, maintain and operate the velarium.

The underside of the umbrella includes a flap, or velarium, concentrating and increasing the flow of water expelled from the umbrella.

At Nîmes the exterior wall, measuring 436 by 331 feet across, is in only two storeys above which is an attic used for supporting the masts of the velarium.

Sailors, specially enlisted from the Roman naval headquarters at Misenum and housed in the nearby Castra Misenatium, were used to work the velarium.

The overhead awning (velarium) shielding the spectators for the Colosseum was saturated with scented water for dripping fragrant water on spectators' heads to keep them cool.

All stared upward, but saw nothing, for the canopy was still in the shadow of the velarium which covered all the outer edge of the cavea, leaving the centre open to the sky.

Among the most significant awnings in the ancient world was the velarium, the massive complex of retractable shade structures that could be deployed above the seating areas of the Roman Colosseum.

Various explanations have been advanced for their presence; they may have been a religious boundary, or an outer boundary for ticket checks, or an anchor for the velarium or awning.

Where, the huge velarium that Nero had stretched across the Colosseum at Rome, that Titan sail of purple on which was represented the starry sky, and Apollo driving a chariot drawn by white gilt-reined steeds?

The velarium that covered the Colosseum in Rome provided both shade and slight protection from rain, although the main use of the velarium was to create a ventilation updraft, creating circulation and a cool breeze.

From such mentions the umbrella does not appear to have been used as a defence from rain; this is curious enough, for it is known that the theatres were protected by the velarium or awning, which was drawn across the arena whenever a sudden shower came on.