The Colosseum or Coliseum is today the most recognisable of
Rome's Classical buildings. Even 2,000 years after it was built, and despite
centuries when the abandoned building was pillaged for building materials, it
is instantly recognisable ... a Classical template for the stadia of today. It
was the first permanent amphitheatre to be raised in Rome, and the most
impressive arena the Classical world had yet seen. And with accommodation for
60,000 seated and 10,000 standing, all of whom could enter and leave in a
matter of minutes, courtesy of 80 entrances, this is a structure that the
designers of modern sports stadia could learn from.
In 68AD Emperor Nero died and with him the Julio-Claudian
dynasty. Vespasian was made emperor by the Senate in the following year and
decided the city needed a new amphitheatre. Just like a modern politician, such
gestures simultaneously pleased the populace and would (hopefully) leave a
lasting monument to the emperor's greatness. Well maybe. The city's first
amphitheatre in stone had been built in 29BC by Statilius Taurus, but Caligula
(12-41AD) had adjudged it too small and started building his own.
Claudius succeeded Caligula and immediately halted his
grand plan. And when Nero ruled Rome he eschewed the Statilius arena and made
plans for his own, to be built in the Campus Martis. A magnificent building by
all accounts, but razed in the fire that swept Rome in 64AD.
So Rome needed a new arena and a line drawn under the
profligate and acquisitive rule of Nero, who had built a personal empire in the
heart of Rome, taking public land to build his palace, the Domus Area. Very
impressive it was too, with a vast artificial lake in the parklands of Nero's
residence, but Vespasian elected to make a gift of the land back to the people
of Rome - a gesture of reconciliation after the excesses of the Julio-Claudian
dynasty. The wisest Roman rulers always realised that the Emperors were
ultimately elected (not gods) and that they ruled by the consent of the
populace.
Remarkably it took only 10 years to built the arena.
Remarkable because this was one of the most impressive pieces of architecture
the world had seen.
The Colosseum is a huge ellipse with tiered seating, with
an elliptical arena within. It combined a mix of materials including (a
surprise for modern visitors here perhaps) concrete for the foundations. The
Romans invented the super-strong material, and it allowed them to build larger,
more stable buildings. Travertine stone (mined from the hills of Latium around
Rome) was used for the piers and arcades. Tufa (softer volcanic rock) was used
as infill between the piers on the walls of the lower two levels. Concrete
faced with brick was used for the upper levels and for the ceiling vaults. The
characteristic rounded arches that the builders used also provided great
strength and support, spreading the weight of the upper tiers.
There was a mix of styles too. The Romans may not have been
architectural innovators on a par with the Greeks, but they could replicate the
detail. The three tiers of arcades had a facade of three-quarter columns and entablatures,
with a succession of architectural orders: Doric on the first storey, Ionic on
the second, Corinthian on the third. The attic storey bore Corinthian pilasters
and little square windows in alternating bays. Along the top were brackets and
sockets to support the velarium, a canopy providing shade ... the first sports
arena with a retractable roof.
Eighty radiating walls supported the rising tiers of
seating for the 50,000 seated spectators and for the stairs and passages that
linked the vast complex. Within the outer walls, staircases joined the levels,
and the Colosseum had much in common with a modern football stadium.
The whole thing covered some six acres, measuring 188 x 156
metres (615 ft x 510 ft), with the base of the building covering about 6 acres.
Vaults span between eighty radial walls to support tiers of seating and for
passageways and stairs. The facade rose to 48.5m, about the height of 15 modern
storeys. The new arena was alternatively known as the Amphitheatrum Caesareum
(hunting theatre) a reflection of the hunting games that took place alongside
the gladiatorial contests.
The arena had a wooden floor spread with sand to absorb the
blood (our word 'arena' derives from the Roman harena meaning sand). Beneath
this, a subterranean complex of passages and rooms, cages for the lions and
tigers, food stores for the spectators, robing room for the spectators, had
been built within the dip of Nero's old lake. Trap doors from here opened onto
the floor of the arena itself, providing continual surprises for the spectators
(and contestants) within.
Vespasian began his amphitheatre 72 AD and his son Titus
opened it in 80AD with a games lasting 100 days (one gets intimations of the
hubris and decadence that led to the eventual fall of Rome here). The building
wasn't actually finished when it opened (nothing changes) but Domitian, Titus's
brother, saw it to a conclusion.
The most popular games were hunts (venationes) and
gladiatorial games (munerae). Domitian constructed four ludi, the prisons where
gladiators were trained, next to the arena. There were also bestiarii,
gladiators who fought lions, tigers and other beasts. The Catholic Church today
claims the Colosseum as a shrine to the Christian martyrs they say were fed to
the lions ... though some historians dispute this popular image.
The Colosseum saw around 450 years of service as Rome's
entertainment centre. Architectural historians have read many alterations and
additions to Vespasian's original structure. In 217AD the higher storeys were
wrecked by fire, and there were earthquakes in 442, 470 and 847AD. The last
recorded gladiatorial contest was in 404AD, the last hunt in 523AD. It would be
tempting to think that Romans had become softened and civilised as Christianity
took hold, but the decline is probably down to a lack of cash. The Roman empire
was faltering. A series of invasions by Goths, Huns and others were weakening
their hold and the revenue being pulled in from its territories ... and Games
were expensive.
By the tenth century AD, the Colosseum had been abandoned
and Rome was a shadow of its imperial height. Houses and shops were built
within the structure, many of them hacking off chunks of the tufa to build
with. Now it was used as a defensive wall, a fortress against invaders. During
the Renaissance, Rome rose again, and more stone was pilfered from the
Colosseum for new palazzi. Restoration began in the 18th century Its
destruction was hastened during the renaissance and later by its use as a
source of building materials, until restoration started again in the eighteenth
century.
More recent restoration has focused on simply maintaining
the Colosseum ... nobody seriously talks about rebuilding it in its entirety,
and a €20m restoration project was completed in 2000. Today, lit from within on
a Roman night, the Colosseum never fails to make visitors catch their breath:
it is still recognisably the building started nearly 2,000 years ago to
entertain the Roman public.
Large parts of the Colosseum are accessible to wheelchair
users and there is a lift to some of the upper levels - please mention that
you'll be wanting to use the lift/elevator at the moment you pick up your
tickets - you will likely be given a sort of pass for the lift.
tickitaly.com
Post a Comment