Roman Colosseum

At the end of the Via dei Fori Imperiali, between the Esquiline, Palatine and Celian Hills, rises one of the greatest wonders of Roman civilization: the Colosseum.

This immense amphitheater, whose imposing remains still allow us to admire its ancient splendor, was begun by Vespasian in 72 A.D. and completed by his son Titus in 80 A.D. It was built by Jewish prisoners.

The Colosseum had the same function as a modern giant stadium, but die favorite spectacles in Roman times were the games of the Circus (ludi circenses), which probably had been invented in the late Republican era, with the intention of cultivating the warlike spirit that had made Romans the conquerors of the world.

This was the origin of the professional gladiators, who were trained to fight to die death, while wild beasts of every sort increased die horror of the show'. Dion Cassius said that 9000 wild animals were killed in the one hundred days of celebrations which inaugurated the amphitheater. After die animals were killed and removed, the arena was often filled with w'ater in order to stage naval batdes. The Emperor Constantine and his successors tried to put an end to the gladiatorial fights, but at first the Romans did not want to give up their customary shows. 

At the beginning of the 5th century, a monk called Telemachus came from the east and one day entered the arena and tried to put himself between the gladiators. He appealed to the people to give up their horrid games. The crowd hurled insults, sarcasm, and ultimately rocks, stoning the intruder to martyrdom. But that day the games were brought to an end. 

The Colosseum is elliptical in shape, 187 meters at its longest end and 155 meters at its shortest. The height of the external ring reaches 50 meters from ground level. It was designed to accommodate an estimated 80,000 spectators. Around the exterior run three orders of arches, respectively adorned with Doric, Ionian and Corinthian columns, and a fourth floor with Corinthian pilasters. Of the 80 arches that make up the elliptical ring, four correspond to the entrances at the four axes, of which only die entrance of honor reserved for the Emperor remains.

In the center of the podium, called the suggestum, was the Emperor’s seat; the rest of the podium was occupied by senators and members of the court. Then came the sections for the knights and civil and military tribunes. The Colosseum was usually uncovered, but in case of rain it was covered by an immense velarium, which was maneuvered by two squads of sailors belonging to the fleets of Ravenna and Cape Misenum. These two squads also took part in the naval battles which were often staged in the amphitheater.

When this amphitheater was in its full glory, it must have been a stupendous site of Roman greatness. But even today, after so many centuries, the Colosseum is the pride of Rome and a marvel to its visitors.

Nonetheless the history of the amphitheater is not without long periods of abandon and neglect. The end of the Roman Empire was marked by two earthquakes (in 442 and 508), which caused great damage to the structure.

The Colosseum was nonetheless still in use under Theodoric, ruler of the Romano-Barbaric kingdom of the Goths, who in 523 authorized the staging of the venationes, the traditional hunt of the wild beasts. From that point began the total abandon that saw the Colosseum used as a cemetery, a fortress, and above all, after the earthquake of 1349, as a quarry tor - building materials. 

The marble which once covered it almost entirely was reused in the busy period of construction during the Renaissance. In order to halt the serious decay of the Colosseum, Pope Benedict XIV (1740-1758) consecrated the old amphitheater by setting up a Way of the Cross and raising a cross on the site, which lias been connected to thousands of Christian martyrs. Though Christians were certainly among the many w ho were killed here, there is no historical evidence that Christians were ever massacred in the Ciolosseum.

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