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Colosseum (Colosseo), Rome

Overview

Interior of the Colosseum
Interior of the Colosseum

Photo by Rabax63 on Wikimedia Commons

Colosseum in Rome at Evening
Colosseum in Rome at Evening

Photo by Andreas Tille on Wikimedia Commons

Colosseum, originally known as Amphitheatrum Flavium, is the largest amphitheater in the world, with a capacity of 87,000 spectators. It is a symbol of the city or Rome and of Italy. It is a Roman amphitheater, used in ancient times for games, gladiator and animal fights, and re-enactments of famous battles. Its name comes either from the Latin adjective "colosseum", meaning "colossal", or from the fact that it was placed near the gigantic bronze statue of Nero, "Colossus of Nero", which at its 103 ft height, was almost as tall as the today's Statue of Liberty, which reaches 111 ft.

Description

Colosseum - exterior
Colosseum - exterior

Photo by Jaakko.luttinen on Wikimedia Commons

Colosseum - detail
Colosseum - detail

Photo by Diana Ringo on Wikimedia Commons

The Colosseum is an oval arena, built as a free-standing structure and framed by high walls consisting of columns and openings on four levels. The column model was taken from the three orders of ancient Greece: the Doric, Ionic, Corinthian styles. On the ground floor the columns are massive, simple, with a Doric capital (with a square cushion of stone at the top of the column). The next level has columns in Ionic style, decorated with the Ionic scroll, which resemble stylized ram horns. The next level uses the third Greek style, the Corinthian style, richly decorated with Ionic scrolls and plant elements such as stylized leaves and acanthus flowers. The last level the columns are decorated with new, original elements, created by the Romans, forming a new composite style, mixing elements from the three Greek styles.
Colosseum - caveat and structures under the arena
Colosseum - caveat and structures under the arena

Photo by Jean-Pol GRANDMONT on Wikimedia Commons

Colosseum - structures under the arena
Colosseum - structures under the arena

Photo by MGA73bot2 on Wikimedia Commons

The interior has a seating area, accommodating up to 87,000 spectators, with special boxes and platforms at the north and south ends for the Emperor and senatorial class. The next tier above occupied by the noble class, the roman patricians, then a lower part section for the wealthy citizens and lastly the upper part for poor citizens. The arena had two levels of underground network of tunnels and cages called hypogeum (meaning "underground"). It was added by Emperor Domitian, and they were used for holding the gladiators and animals before the contests. They were connected by tunnels to the outside the arena. The underground structures were covered with wooden floors and sand, the latin word for sand being "arena" or "harena". Around the Colosseum were other buildings used during the games, like stables, training areas for gladiators, and storage spaces.

History

The Colosseum's construction was started by Vespasian in 71 AD and was finished shortly after his death by his son Emperor Titus in 80 AD. It was built on an area which was devastated by the Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD, and then seized by Nero to build his palace Domus Aurea (meaning "Golden House"), which had an artificial lake in the front. Vespasian built the Colosseum on the exact site of the "tyrant" Nero's lake as a gesture to show the returning of the land to people and thus highlight the difference between the two reigns. He was able to complete the first two floors before his death in 79, after which his son Emperor Titus added the third and fourth floors and finished the amphitheater. It was inaugurated with the 100 days of games, with animal fights in the morning, executions of criminals at noon, and re-enactments of famous battles and gladiator fights in the afternoon. The gladiator fights were stopped around the 6th century. In the medieval time the arena was used as a cemetery, and a chapel was built inside it. Today, this church is the Santa Maria della Pietà at the Colosseum. Around 847 AD, the external south wall collapsed during an earthquake. Then around 1200 AD it was used as a fortified castle by the Frangiapani family. During the 15th through 18th centuries it was used as a quarry and stripped for its stone, which was reused for the construction of other buildings around. Later Church officials tried to find different roles for Colosseum, and began restoration projects to remove the overgrown vegetation and repairing the interior. The biggest restoration took place between 2011 and 2016, sponsored by the shoe firm Tod's. It was the first full cleaning and repair of the Colosseum. The restored amphitheater was unveiled on July 1, 2016. Today the Colosseum is one of the Rome's most popular attractions, a symbol of the city.