History – Colosseum Rome Tickets

Building Materials of the Colosseum

Colosseum Rome Tickets — Tue, 02 Apr 2019 06:44:32 +0000

Materials used in the construction of the Colosseum were chosen carefully. In the below of the building, heavier materials such as tuff and lime were used, which was known as grading.

Roman builders know and discovered different techniques to build this giant edifice. Stronger but lighter mortar, bricks and volcanic stone were used by them.

The Materials used in Colosseum:

1 – Travertine: The limestone which was used in the main pillars and walls were strong and brought from Tibur. It was generally white or yellow.
2 – Tuff: Tuff is softer than travertine and it brings elasticity. However; since it was not resistant to the fire, the damage was bigger in cases of big fires in Colosseum.
3- Concrete: Concrete was invented by the Romans. It was cheap, quick to make, and easy to use. To make concrete, the Romans dropped pieces of rubble into sticky mortar made of lime (a powder of burned chalk or limestone), water, and pozzolana (a volcanic ash). The mortar hardened as it dried, holding the concrete together. Rubble gives concrete its strength. Big lumps of heavy rubble were used in the Colosseum’s foundations. Small lumps of light rubble were used in the upper walls.
4- Bricks: Bricks were mixed with water, sand and tiles.
5 – Iron / Bronze Clamps: In order to bind stones together these clamps were used.
6 – Marble: Marble is used both in decoration and the entrances of the cavea in Colosseum. Some of the columns are also made of marble. The first three marble rows were for the nobles and special guests.
7 – Lime: Lime was used as binder for the cement by adding water. It was made of limestone which is heated.
8 – Mortar: Mortar is mixture of cement/sand and water. There were two types of mortar: The first one is lime mortar – the one we mentioned above, and pozzolanic mortar – the volcanic ash which is an aluminous material reacted with calcium hydroxide.
9 – Stone: Stone was used on the outside walls of Colosseum and the sections of the building that took the most weight. Big lifting cranes hoisted stone blocks into the air. They were powered by roman slaves walking around and around a treadwheel. Inside walls of Colosseum and underground passages (called Hypogeum) were built using heavy concrete and brick. The upper levels were built with less heavy materials, such as wood, bricks, and the lightest concrete.

Interior of Colosseum, ancient Roman amphitheater. – Building Materials of the Colosseum –

Ancient Roman brickwork – Building Materials of the Colosseum.

Antique original brick wall – Building Materials of the Colosseum.

Inside of Colosseum in Rome, Italy

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Ludus Magnus

Colosseum Rome Tickets — Wed, 04 Jul 2018 07:04:48 +0000

Just east of the Roman Colosseum are the remains of the largest barracks for gladiators in Rome: the Ludus Magnus. The building is of brick-faced concrete throughout and the building was started by emperor Domitian and completed some time during the reign of emperor Hadrian.

Its precise location was uncertain until 1937, although its layout was partially known from the Forma Urbis Romae (a marble map of Rome from the era of Septimius Severus, which has come down to us in fragments). Begun in 1937 and continued between 1957 and 1961, the excavations brought to light only the north section of the building, but looking at it one can easily imagine the curved structure of the cavea. With the help of a fragment of the Forma Urbis on which the name of the building appears, it is possible to give a precise and complete description of the complex.

Reconstruction Sketch of Ludus Magnus in Ancient Rome

Reconstruction Sketch of Ludus Magnus in Ancient Rome-2

It is thought that the building was probably three floors high with up to 145 rooms altogether. Ludus Magnus consisted of an elliptical arena with a long axis of 62 m and a short one of 45 m surrounded by the stands of a small cavea originally faced with marble slabs. The cavea was large enough to hold nine terraces and had room for approximately 2500 spectators.

The main entrance to the arena was located on the long axis, while there were boxes for public authorities on the short one. The courtyard functioned like an amphitheater and this was where the gladiators did their training.

Ludus Magnus

On the north side of the excavated area, facing Via Labicana, one can see a fairly well-conserved row of little cells provided with stairs leading to the upper floors. The warriors lived in the Ludus in a permanent state of captivity and were subjected to a severe program of everyday training.

Remains of Ludus Magnus, Rome, Italy

A tunnel connected the arena directly to the east entrance of the Colosseum. The original construction dates back to the era of Domitian and must have caused the demolition of a residential neighborhood of the late-republican and Augustan periods, of which there is clear evidence (the remains of a tessellated floor can be seen on the south side of the area, in the direction of the Celian hill). The remains of the cavea and the arena, on the other hand, belong to a restoration carried out under Trajan. There must have been other buildings similar to the Ludus Magnus overlooking the square: the Ludus Matutinus, where the venatores were trained, and the Ludus Dacicus and Ludus Gallicus, which were named after the gladiators who lived there.

Remains of the Ludus Magnum, near the Coliseum, the only one of the four garret barracks built by Diocletian still partially visible today

Rome, Italy. Ancient Roman ruins of Ludus Magnus – historic gladiator school.

We must also imagine in the immediate vicinity all the auxiliary buildings we know were connected with the Colosseum, such as the spoliarium (where the corpses were collected after the fights in the arena), the samarium (where wounded gladiators were taken), and the armamentarium (where weapons were stored). Probably further north, in addition, there were the Castra Misenatium, where the sailors in charge of the velarium lived, and the Summum Choragium, where the machinery used in staging the games was stored.

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Meta Sudans

Colosseum Rome Tickets — Mon, 02 Jul 2018 07:17:51 +0000

Meta Sudans is a marble-faced fountain and erected by Domitian (between ad 89 and 96 A.D.) in front of the Via Sacra. It was the largest monumental fountain in the ancient city.

Meta Sudans was restored by Constantine the Great and took its name from its resemblance to the pillar (meta) that marked the turning point in the circus, hence its name, and sudans for the water that gushed out of it.

Meta Sudans Photo Gallery:

The ancient sources record that the house that was the birthplace of Augustus stood in this part of the valley: the conical shape, so original for a fountain, has therefore been explained by scholars as an allusion to the betyl, the aniconic symbol of Apollo, the god whom Augustus recognised as his patron. It was located at the point where four or five Augustan regions — the II, III, IV, and X, and perhaps the I – and as many major streets converged.

The Meta Sudans in a period photograph, before the demolitions ordered by Mussolini for reasons relating to traffic. As the Governor of Rome Boncompagni Ludovisi wrote in September 1933:«… the conservation of the two of the base of Nero’s Colossus and the Meta Sudans…is undoubtedly a very serious obstacle… obliging the cars… to turn in a tight circle…»

Arch of Constantine and Meta Sudans, 18 th century Italian drawing. Meta Sudans detail.

The fountain consisted of a cone (17 meters tall, with a diameter of 7 meters) and a large circular tub with a diameter of 16 meters. Its original appearance can be reconstructed from coins ofthe period, which portray the niches of the base and the floral element on the tip of the cone.

A photograph documenting the tourist gathering outside of the remains of the Meta Sudans fountain complex adjacent to the Arch of constantine and the Colosseum in Rome

The circular remains of Meta Sudans, a great Roman fountain can be seen by the Arch of Constantine. In 1936, Mussolini ordered it’s demolition and all that can be seen is this circle in the grass

Imaginary reconstruction of the Colosseum, of the Meta Sudans of the Colossal bronze Statue of Nero.

What remained of the monument, which is still clearly visible in photographs from the beginning of the century, was demolished, together with the nearby base of the Colossus, when Via dei Trionfi and Via dell ‘Impero were built in 1933.

SOURCES:

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Seating in the Colosseum

Colosseum Rome Tickets — Sat, 23 Jun 2018 00:11:30 +0000

Since the games were public spectacles, entrance was free. However, people needed tickets. The entry tickets told them which entrance to use and where to sit. Each arched entrance had a number carved above it. The number was matched to the entry ticket.

The design of Colosseum was so clever that fifty thousand hurrying people could enter, show their entry tickets, and be seated in 15 minutes.

The stands were divided into sections according to precise social categories. Emperor Augustus carefully regulated the separation of the different classes at all public spectacles.

Colosseum, reconstructed section showing how the cavea was divided.

Sections of the Colosseum (Maeniaum)

1 – Ima Cavea (Auditorium)

This part was reserved for the Emperor, the Senators, Vestal Virgins and the equites.
Senators’ full names were written specially on their seats.
Sometimes in this section the magistracies, ambassadors, diplomats, school teachers and their students from noble families ( the Pontifices) were also hosted.
The Emperor would sit on the place on which now you can see a cross in order to the Christians that died in Colosseum. There was an Imperial Box which was called the “Cubiculum” in which he would use his own chair – the bisellium.
There were four marble steps.
There were latrines in this section.
A fence was stretched around the outside of the arena and rollers & high nets were also hung to protect the spectators.
Gravediggers, actors and farmer gladiators were not allowed to watch the games.

Flavian Amphitheater, interior. East section of the senatorial podium as reconstructed in the 1930’s.

2- Maenianum Primum

This section had 8/9 marble terraces.
Generally equites would use this part.

2-a. Maenianum Secundum Imum

This section had 19/20 terraces.
This part seperated for the ordinary citizens and plebeians.

2-b Maenianum Secundum Summum

It had numbered sections.
There were 10/11 terraces which were selected for poor plebeians.

4-Maenianum Secundum in Ligneis

This section was added during the reign of Domitian.
It was also known as attic.
It would host the lowest class of people and slaves.
These 10/11 wooden terraces would also reduce the stress on the external walls.

Flavian Amphitheater, interior. The service gallery and the inscription regarding the restoration of the stands in the middle of the fifth century A. D. Names of senators are carved on the other side

Brick structure that supported the seating terraces over tunnels and walkways that once held tigers and gladiators under the floor of the Colosseum

«Having been outraged by the insult to a senator who, at a crowded show in Puteoli, had not been offered a seat by anyone, [Augustus] ordered regulations to prevent the disorderly and haphazard distribution of seats. He had a senatorial decree issued providing that at every public performance the front row of seats be reserved for senators. He separated soldiers from civilians. He assigned special seats to married commoners and a special section to boys not yet come of age, as well as one to their tutors nearby. He banned badly dressed spectators from the best seats, and confined women to the highest rows, whereas they had previously sat together with men.
He assigned a separate section, facing the praetor’s box, to the Vestal Virgins. He did not allow any women at all to watch athletic contests. Indeed, when the crowd called for a boxing match during the Pontifical Games he postponed it until the following morning, and he issued an edict announcing that he did not want women to go to the theater before ten o‘clock»
(Suetonius, August, 44, 3-4).

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Abandonment and reuse of the Colosseum

Colosseum Rome Tickets — Fri, 22 Jun 2018 23:26:36 +0000

Colosseum was struck in the early 5th century by earthquakes that weakened its structure and caused, with the ruins that accumulated in the hypogeum, the start of the gradual interment of its underground spaces. As its structures decayed and there was increasing difficulty in keeping it in good repair, the city’s ruling class and emperors, most of whom were now Christians, felt growing indifference or even aversion for the bloody gladiatorial shows.

Despite the efforts of Constantine and his successors to abolish gladiatorial combats they were finally banned only in 404 by Honorius. The last known games were held under the reign of the Ostrogoth king Theodoric (A.D. 473-526).

Maarten van Heemskerck: Self-portrait with the Colosseum. 1533

The Amphitheater’s loss of its original function led over the centuries to the transformation and decay of its structures. For example, the innumerable gaps in the outer travertine façade are simply the holes made to remove the metal brackets that held the blocks together.

The whole building suffered, particularly the interior and south side, to the point where the outer circle on the south side was eventually demolished, as can be seen today. The north side, however, was saved because it is stood on a major urban axis, the thoroughfare that ran from the Palatine, the seat of political power, and the city centre to the Lateran, the seat of the papacy.

The Colosseum, a symbol of antiquity and of the city of Rome

At the start of the 12th century, the noble family of the Frangipane, which at that time controlled the whole area from the Forum Boarium to the Palatine, built themselves a fortified residence in the eastern area of the Colosseum. All trace of this, as of the other post-ancient and medieval structures, was obliterated by the 19th-century excavations.

The plunder gradually turned several monumental buildings under construction at that time, especially St. Peter’s. The Church subsequently turned the arena into a holy place: from the early sixteenth century it housed a chapel and from 1720, along its perimeter, the Stations of the corridors. Meanwhile, systematic plunder had already begun of the blocks of travertine, the marble sections of the monument into real quarries, and even led to the demolition of the south exterior ring. The Colosseum also served as a general container: in it, people built themselves animal pens, small houses, and craft workshops.

Giovanni Paolo Panini – Capriccio of Roman monuments with the Colosseum and Arch of Constantine

A stricter conservation policy was urged in vain by Roman humanists in the fifteenth century. Indeed, excavation activity actually increased to provide materials for the Cross. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries the demolitions slacked off and the first, half-hearted conservation measures were adopted. During the nineteenth century, the first systematic excavations were undertaken by Carlo Fea (between 1812 and 1815) and Pietro Rossi (in 1874-1875). The excavations brought to light again the subterranean structures of the arena, thus making it necessary to remove the shrines and the chapel, which was originally located in the east section of the cavea. During the same period, the first significant reinforcement and restoration work was carried out.

Coliseum. Exterior was seen from the podium of the temple of Venus and Rome. 1860-1860. Biblioteca di archeologia e storia dell’arte (Rome, Italy)

Between 1805 and 1807 Raffaele Stern built the brick abutment in the east section, while in 1827 Giuseppe Valadier restored the wall of the same exterior ring on the opposite side. Finally, the work carried out by G. Salvi and L. Canina between 1831 and 1852 regarding the interior structure in the south and north sections. Further restoration, especially in the cavea and the cellars, took place in the 1930s.

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Colossus of Nero

Colosseum Rome Tickets — Fri, 22 Jun 2018 07:36:52 +0000

The name Amphitheatrum-Colyseus appeared for the first time in the eleventh century as a designation for the building, which had previously been called “Amphitheatrum Caesareum”, and was later extended in the name regio Colisei to the entire valley. It derives from the colossal bronze statue of Nero, which stood in the immediate vicinity. Commissioned from the sculptor Zenodoros and inspired by the famous Colossus of Rhodes created by Chares of Undos at the beginning of the third century B.C., it portrayed the emperor standing and decorated the vestibule of the Domus Aurea on the site now occupied by the Temple of Venus and Rome.

«… a colossal statue of Nero, 120 feet tall, stood in the vestibule of the house. The size of the latter was such that it had three colonnades a mile long and a pool that ivas more like a sea, surrounded by buildings as large as cities. On the other side were villas with fields, vineyards and pastures, and woodlands full of all kinds of domestic and wild animal»
(Suetonius, Nero, 31, 1).

Its gigantic size – it was about 35 meters tall, as can be calculated from the proportions of the base and a passage from Piiny the Elder – made it the largest bronze statue ever made in the ancient world. Thus Hadrian, in order to build the Temple of Venus and Rome, had to use a cart pulled by twenty-four elephants to move the statue from its original location.

Reconstruction of the Colossus of Nero – National Geographic

The Meta Sudans, the Arch of Titus, the Temple of Venus and Rome, and the Cobssus as reconstructed by E. Coquart (1863)

The pedestal of the Colossus of Nero. Rome, 1920. Via Roma Ieri Oggi.

Vespasian had it transformed into a radiate image of the Sun, while Commodus preferred to characterize it with the attributes of Hercules and his physiognomy. When the latter emperor died, the Colossus again became the image of Helios and remained such during the reign of Septimius Severus, as demonstrated by the coins of the period portraying the god with his left hand resting on a helm and his right one holding a globe. At first a symbol of immortality and later of the Eternal City, it continued to be an object of worship even in the Christian era.

The Colossus was probably destroyed during the Sack of Rome (410 A.D.), or perhaps it fell as a result of one of the earthquakes of the fifth century. His bronze was almost certainly reused by Pope Gregory the Great (540- 604 A.D.) who had it melted down to produce the cannons of Castel Sant’Angelo. The base of the statue, of which only a few vestiges still exist today, was demolished in 1933, when Via dell’lmpero and Via dei Trionfi were built.

Zoomed area of the aerial photo of the base of the Colossus of Nero. Photo: https://www.roger-pearse.com

Base of the Colossus of Nero, Coliseum, Rome, Italy. 1929

Tourists in area of base The Colossus of Nero in Rome city. Now nothing remains of the Colossus of Nero save for the foundations of the pedestal.

Base of the Colossus of Nero – Colosseum under snow.

Reconstruction Sketchs of Colossus of Nero:

SOURCES:

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What Was the Colosseum Used for?

Colosseum Rome Tickets — Sat, 09 Jun 2018 08:53:52 +0000

The Colosseum is the best amphitheatre of the classical times. The biggest ever before the very first irreversible amphitheatre of Rome is positioned in the facility of Rome, in Italy. Its building began in between 70 and 72 AD, under the emperor Vespasian and also was completed under the emperor Titus in 80 AD.

Colosseum might hold, it is approximated, in between 50,000 and 80,000 viewers, having an audience of some 65,000; it was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea fights (for just a brief time as the hypogeum was quickly completed with systems to support the other activities), animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of well-known fights, and dramas based upon Classical folklore. The structure stopped to be utilized for entertainment in the early middle ages period. It was later used for such functions as housing, workshops, quarters for a spiritual order, a fortress, a quarry, and a Christian shrine.

The Colosseum from the Palatine Hill by Carlo Labruzzi

Although partly messed up by earthquakes and stone-robbers, the Colosseum is still a renowned icon of Imperial Rome. It is among Rome’s most popular traveler destinations as well as has connect to the Roman Catholic Church, as each Excellent Friday the Pope leads a torchlit “Method of the Cross” procession that begins in the location around the Colosseum.

How was the Colosseum used in the Middle Era?

Pirro Ligorio, Antiquae Urbis Romae, 1561

The majority of the factor for the enormous structure spending plans for Imperial Rome involved the spoils of conquest, and taxes paid by the nations managed by Rome. While the circulation of funds (and the accessibility of servants) continued, structures were well (fairly) preserved, or taken down and changed.

When the Empire collapsed, the circulations of brand-new money likewise collapsed; new structure stopped, even structures that were partly total. Upkeep undoubtedly slowed, if not stopped. As Rome were vulnerable to earthquakes, structures were regularly harmed or damaged and were left that method.

With completion of the empire, Rome decreased substantially, and the culture altered with the increase of Christianity. Gladiatorial games were out, and there were barely people rich enough to sponsor such grand entertainments or great deals of people to enjoy them anyhow. However the Colosseum was used in little bits of pieces through the Middle Ages, and not simply as a practical quarry for its marble confrontings. A little church was constructed into it rather at an early stage, parts of open area were used as graveyards, and the numerous specific niches and chambers saw usage as houses and stores. This sort of use just pertained to an end in the 18th century, when the Pope stated it a holy site, on the premises that Christian martyrs had actually passed away there. At it ends up, that’s most likely not real of the Colosseum, however that marks the structure’s real relocation from an occupied structure to a historic landmark.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, the Catholic Church turned most pagan sites into Churches to maintain exactly what they might (Pantheon). The city constructed on top of exactly what existed (that’s why the roadways around the Colosseum today are some 20 feet greater than the initial roadways to-from the Colosseum.

Constantine constructed the very first St Peter’s Basilica on Vatican Hill, however the first “Vatican” for the Church (or head office in Rome) was at St John Lateran. When throughout the Renaissance, the new Vatican City and the new St Peter’s Basilica was being built, a great deal of the building materials were ‘repurposed’ from the Colosseum (which had actually been a Church residential or commercial property for a long period of time).

The Colosseum was well constructed to last for 2000 years, even in the state it remained in.

Cross of the Colosseum ( Coliseum, Colosseo ,also known as the Flavian Amphitheatre )

Cross of the Colosseum ( Coliseum, Colosseo ,also known as the Flavian Amphitheatre ) (2)

close up on memory board on wall of ancient ruins of Colosseum in Rome Italy

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Colosseum Capacity

Colosseum Rome Tickets — Sun, 20 May 2018 11:17:11 +0000

Built in the 70s AD, the ancient elliptical amphitheatre was originally called the Amphitheatrum Flavium, and was the biggest arena in the Roman Empire. This brilliant building had 80 entryways and could seat around 50,000-60.000 (Colosseum Capacity) spectators who would come to view sporting events and games. These occasions consisted of gladiatorial fights, wild animal hunts and, believe it or not, ship naval battles.

There was a highly complicated system of gathering and channelling water from all parts of the edifice. Since it accommodated tens of thousands of people for days on end, it must have been equipped with the basic facilities, such as latrines, fountains, etc. In this respect, the capacity of the Colosseum is still debated by scholars. There are various theories, but jud-ging by the ancient sources and measurements of the building, the most likely estimate is that it could seat almost 60.000 people.

Made from stone and concrete, this splendid monument was constructed with the man power of tens of thousands of slaves. (using over 60,000 Jewish slaves.).

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Colosseum Definition

Colosseum Rome Tickets — Sat, 19 May 2018 19:27:30 +0000

The name ‘Colosseum’ is derived from the Latin word ‘colosseus’ meaning colossal. This was in reference to the gigantic statue of the Emperor Nero which had actually been formerly erected near the site of the Colosseum.

In Middle Ages (circa 7th. c. A.D) the sources initially begin to use the name Colosseus (or Colysaeus) to the Flavian Amphitheatre. This name, probably, referred not so much from the dimensions of the structure however from the colossal statue erected by Nero which remained in the vicinity of the amphitheatre.

Some mediaeval writers speak of it, with that halo of mystery that surrounded pagan things, as the Temple of the Sun; others, remembering the words of the Christian writer Tertullian, described it with indignation and fear as a temple consecrated to all the devils. But later did the studies of humanists like Poggio Bracciolini and Flavio Biondo recover the true function of the building and recognise it as the Flavian Amphitheatre of which the ancient sources speak.

The 30-meter (100 foot) high bronze statue was initially located inside Nero’s private palace in the center of Rome. The statue was eventually transferred to an area outside the Flavian Amphitheatre where it represented a couple of centuries till it disappeared from history. Its fate stays unknown. It was potentially destroyed during the Sack of Rome in 410, or fallen throughout an earthquake. Today, nothing stays of the Colossus of Nero except for the structures of the pedestal near the Colosseum. Lots of natural disasters ravaged the structure of the Colosseum, however it was the earthquakes of 847 AD and 1231 AD that caused most of the damage you see today.

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When was the Colosseum built?

Colosseum Rome Tickets — Sat, 19 May 2018 17:58:05 +0000

Found just east of the Roman Forum, the enormous stone amphitheater known as the Colosseum was built around A.D. 70-72 by Emperor Vespasian of the Flavian dynasty as a gift to the Roman citizens. In A.D. 80, Vespasian’s son Titus opened the Colosseum; formally referred to as the Flavian Amphitheater; with 100 days of games, consisting of gladiatorial combats and wild animal fights.

There is no indication anywhere regarding the name of the Colosseum’s Architect. Nobody knows due to the fact that no engraving tells us his name. The building was erected to the glory of the Flavian Family.

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