Perhaps the history and culture of ancient Rome did not know anything grander than Colosseum (lat. Colosseus - "huge"; Italian. Colosseo), also known as the Flavian Amphitheater (lat. Amphitheatrum Flavium). Built during the large-scale reconstruction of Rome, the Colosseum, for 4 centuries, was the most prestigious place for entertainment for residents of the capital and the empire. The colossal arena, in which captive soldiers and slaves showed their fighting prowess, eventually became the hallmark of Rome.
Story
It is noteworthy that the idea to build such a colossal structure arose among the emperor Vespasian (lat. Titus Flavius Vespasianus) against the background of the architectural excesses of his predecessor. Sovereign Nero (Latin: Nero Clavdius Caesar), overthrown in 68 AD, left behind an obscene luxurious Golden Palace (the Golden House of Nero (Latin: Domus Aurea)) and a number of equally expensive buildings. Vespasian and his associates spent several years trying to restore order in the imperial lands and fill the treasury devastated by the extravagant Nero.
Building
In addition to state affairs, the new emperor did not lose sight of the needs of the Romans for cultural entertainment. Vespasian ordered a vast garden with a pond located in the capital to turn it into a new center of social life - an amphitheater. The beginning of construction work is considered the end of 71 - beginning of 72 AD The flat area between the three hills of Rome: Cailio (Celio), Esquiline (Esquilino) and Palatine (Palatino) is ideally suited for these purposes.
Such a large-scale construction required enormous costs: material and human. The recently ended war with the Jews brought Vespasian more than 100 thousand captive slaves, as well as the necessary funds. Slaves worked on the extraction of travertine and building stone 20 miles from Rome near Tivoli, and also worked hard, delivering materials to the capital.
The amphitheater was erected in the eastern part of the Roman Forum (lat.Roman Forum) by 80 AD At this point, Emperor Vespasian died, passing the reins to his son, Titus (lat. Titus Flavius Vespasianus). The receiver not only built the Colosseum in Rome, but noted the end of construction with a magnificent ceremony, and consecrated it with a generic name - the Flavian Amphitheater. The building accommodated from 50 to 80 thousand spectators, having in its assets an average figure of 65 thousand visitors. The Colosseum’s “repertoire” included gladiatorial battles, naval battles, fights involving wild animals, executions, recreation of historical battles, and even theatrical performances based on ancient myths.
Early centuries
The Colosseum quickly became a place of interest, so Titus, his brother Domitian (lat.Titus Flavius Domitianus) and the subsequent emperors of Rome regularly engaged in the improvement of the structure. In the 3rd century AD the amphitheater was too much damaged by the fire, so Alexander Sever (lat. Marcus Aurelius Severus Alexandrus) actually restored the building.
In the 5th century AD, the great Rome renounced the pantheon of pagan gods in order to finally convert to Christianity. Immediately, Emperor Honorius Augustus (Latin: Flavius Honorius Augustus) issued a ban on the conduct of gladiatorial battles, as contrary to the commandments of the new religion. However, the Colosseum retains the status of an entertainment establishment, offering viewers the persecution of wild animals. In the 5th century, Italy fell under the dominance of the West Goths, which led to the gradual destruction of the Flavian amphitheater.
Middle Ages
At the end of the 6th century, a small sanctuary was built inside the Coliseum, the arena began to serve as a cemetery, and in the niches and arches of the amphitheater there are trading shops and workshops. In 1200, the aristocratic family of Frangipane received the building in their full possession and took up its fortification.
In the mid-14th century, Rome was shocked by a powerful earthquake, which led to the destruction of the outer southern wall of the Colosseum. The building that began to crumble began to be actively used for the construction of medieval churches, castles, villas, hospitals, etc. Medieval architects showed particular zeal, breaking out bronze partitions from masonry. Without additional reinforcement, the walls of the gigantic amphitheater began to crumble several times more actively.
New time
Since the 16th century, the church has gained a great influence over the Coliseum. Pope Sixtus V planned to build a wool processing plant on the territory of the ancient monument. And in the 17th century, a new entertainment appeared in the amphitheater - bullfights. In the mid-18th century, Pope Benedict XIV proclaimed the Colosseum a sacred place for the Catholic Church, an early Christian shrine.
Subsequently, the pontificate made repeated attempts to restore the historical monument. Throughout the 19th century, large-scale work was carried out to excavate the amphitheater arena and to strengthen the damaged facade. The buildings acquired a modern look during the reign of the Duce of Mussolini (Benito Mussolini).
Our days
Today, the Colosseum has turned into one of the most famous sights of Rome. Every day, the ancient Roman amphitheater and its surroundings are visited by thousands of tourists, and the annual flow of visitors is several million.
Tip: You can enjoy all the splendor of the Coliseum by meeting the dawn during an unusual individual tour of the GID.ITALY4.ME team - we sincerely recommend falling in love with Rome in the right company.
Structure
The appearance of the Coliseum was borrowed from theaters typical of late Rome. In terms of the amphitheater has an ellipse, the dimensions of which are: 189 m by 156 m, with a base area of about 24 thousand m2. The height of the outer wall in the old days reached 48-50 m, and the perimeter - 545 m. The arena itself is represented by an oval with a width of 55 m and a length of 87 m. The arena was fenced off from the audience by a wall of five meters height.
Appearance
The construction of the outer wall took about 100 thousand m3 travertine. The stones laid without cement were fastened with metal piles with a total weight of 300 tons. The past centuries and a strong earthquake deprived the Colosseum of its former splendor. Only the northern segment survived from the original building. Everything else went into building materials for the medieval inhabitants of Rome. And only in the 19th century did the authorities of the capital begin to restore the historical monument.
The surviving part of the Coliseum consists of 3 tiers of arches installed on top of each other. The whole structure is crowned with attic, decorated with pilasters of the Corinthian order. In ancient Rome, each arch of the second and third tiers framed a statue depicting one of the divine patrons of the Latins.
Interior view
The architects of antiquity faced a difficult task: to provide easy access to the impressive size of the stands of the amphitheater. To this end, it was implemented 80 entrances to the underground floor of the building. 76 of them were intended for mere mortals - the remaining 4 - for August persons. The main northern exit was reserved for the emperor and his retinue. Four “elite” entrances were decorated with artificial marble and favorably with ordinary portals.
Antique spectators bought tickets for visiting the amphitheater, on which the row number and place were engraved.Visitors could get to their place through the vomitorium (lat. Vomitorium) - the aisles located under the stands. Also, with the help of vomitoriums, emergency evacuation of spectators from the Coliseum was provided.
According to historical records of the 4th century AD, the amphitheater accommodated up to 87 thousand spectators. Visitors were seated based on their social status. Separate lodges were provided for the emperor and the vestal virgins, in the north and south of the Colosseum, respectively. From these lodges opened the best view of the arena.
A little higher were the lodges of the nobility, in which personal places were created. Even higher were the stands of the Roman warriors - maenianum primum. The next level, maenianum secundum, was reserved for wealthy Romans, followed by places for ordinary people. Separate places were provided for various categories of citizens: boys with teachers, soldiers on dismissal, foreign guests, priests, etc.
In the time of Domitian, a gallery was added to the roof of the Colosseum, which allowed: slaves, women and the poorest spectators. Exceptionally standing places were supposed there.
Arena
The basis of the arena was a solid wooden platform 83 by 43 meters, generously sprinkled with sand on top, which was called "harena" in Latin. This flooring hid underneath a deep dungeon called the "hypogeum". In modern days, little remains of the original Roman arena, but hypogeum can be considered in detail. It consists of a system of two-level tunnels and stands located under the arena array. It was in this place that gladiators and wild animals were kept before they were released into battle.
80 vertical lifts provided the delivery of animals, including elephants to the Colosseum arena. Such complicated mechanisms required constant repair and updating. Hypogeum was connected by a chain of underground tunnels with various points of the amphitheater and had moves beyond it. Warriors and animals were brought to the place of presentation from nearby barracks and cribs. Also, a special move was allocated in the dungeon for the needs of the emperor and vestals.
Many mechanisms of various types were located in the dungeon. For example, the forerunners of elevators and structures that open the stands of especially dangerous predators. Scientists also discovered the remains of an ancient hydraulic system, which allowed you to quickly lower or raise the entire array of the arena!
Near the Coliseum there were several auxiliary institutions. As, for example, Ludus Magnus ("Big training ground"), otherwise - a school of gladiators. One of the 4 great gladiator schools delivered soldiers to the lists using a special underground tunnel. Also nearby was the Ludus Matutinus School, where warriors specializing in animal battles trained.
Interesting Facts
The internal content of the Coliseum was badly damaged by time, today in the working form about 1,500 seats. However, some world stars prefer this venue for their performances. Such celebrities include: Ray Charles, May 2002; Sir Paul McCartney; May 2003; Sir Elton John; September 2005; Billy Joel; July 2006
The image of the Coliseum has been used many times in art: in literature, cinema, computer games, music. The most striking examples are:
- strategic games of the series - Age of Empires, Civilization, Assassins's Creed;
- as the scenery for the films - “Roman Holiday” (Roman Holiday), 1953, “Gladiator” (Gladiator), 2000;
- the main image in the songs: Bob Dylan Bob Dylan - “When I Paint My Masterpiece” and the Russian rock band “Aria” - “Colosseum”.
Hotel overlooking the Coliseum
The most successful accommodation option in the immediate vicinity of the Coliseum is the Hotel Mercure Roma Centro Colosseo, which we wrote about in this review. The 4-star hotel, renovated in 2013, offers its guests comfortable rooms, taking into account personal preferences (for smokers, non-smokers, with children, disabled people). One of the main "features" of the institution is a terrace with views of Rome and the Flavian Amphitheater. A nice addition to it is a swimming pool on the roof of the building!
- Address: Via Labicana 144
- Phones: (+39) 06/770021 - Fax: (+39) 06/77250198
- Room rate: from 100 euros.
- Site: www.booking.com
Visit to the Coliseum
To visit the Coliseum and get acquainted with its incredible history, we recommend booking an individual tour with guides ITALY FOR ME.
The Eros Museum operates on the territory of the historical monument. Pope Benedict XVI (Latin Benedict XVI) included the Colosseum in the procession in honor of Good Friday as a place of worship for Christian shrines.
Tickets:
- A full trip ticket to the Coliseum will cost at least 12 euros. This price also includes a visit to the Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum. A 48-hour ticket is valid - once for each attraction. A reservation costs an additional 2 euros.
- The preferential ticket will cost 7.5 euros, it is valid for EU citizens aged 18 to 24 years.
- Tourists under the age of 18 can get free tickets at the box office, provided that parents have a reservation.
Book tickets it is possible by ph. +39 (0) 6 399 677 00 either on the website: www.coopculture.it
Working hours: from 8:30 to the pre-sunset hour:
- from 8:30 to 16:30 - from January 2 to February 15;
- from 8:30 to 17:00 - from February 16 to March 15;
- from 8:30 to 17:30 - from March 16 to the last Saturday of March;
- from 8:30 to 19:15 - from the last Saturday of March to August 31;
- from 8:30 to 19:00 - throughout September;
- from 8:30 to 18:30 - from the 1st to the last Sunday of October;
- from 8:30 to 16:30 - from the last Sunday of October to December 31.
How to get there
The Colosseum is located in the historic center of Rome, next to the Roman Forum and Piazza Venezia. See step-by-step instructions on how to get to any Roman attraction.
- Address: Piazza del colosseo
- Metro: line B (station Colosseo), line A (Manzoni), and then onto tram 3, heading south.
- Buses: No. 60.75.85.87.271.571.175.186.810, C3 and electric minibus No. 117.
- Tram: №3.
