Colosseum, Rome

No tradition existed in Rome in the Middle Ages which associated the martyrs in any way with the Coliseum. It was only in the 17th c. that this amphitheatre came to be regarded as a scene of early Christian heroism.
It were pious personages like Carlo Tomassi and several popes (Clement X, Benedict XIV) who first closed the exterior arcades and made the Coliseum become a sanctuary.
It is a fact that when the Coliseum stood in grave danger of demolition it was saved by the pious belief which placed it in the category of monuments of the early Martyrs.

But are there real historical grounds for regarding it so?
In the Catholic Church the specialists of the acts of the Saints and Martyrs are the Bollandists, they are Jesuits and have strong links with Belgium where they started and continue their hagiographical work.
According to father H. Delehaye, a famous Bollandist, it is probable that some of the Christians were killed by wild beasts in the Coliseum but there is just as much reason to suppose that they met their death in one of the other places dedicated to the cruel amusements of imperial Rome: the Circus Flaminius, the Stadium of Domitian, etc.
Little attention was paid by the Christians of the first age to the actual place of a martyr's sufferings so that historical evidence is inconclusive.

Open all days from 08.30 h.
Closing times in 2011:
16/02 - 15/03 = 17.00 h (last entry 1 hour before closure)
16/03 - 26/03 = 17.30 h
27/03 - 31/08 = 19.15 h(
01/09 - 30/09 = 19.00 h
01/10 - 30/10 = 18.30 h
31/10/11 - 15/02/12 = 16.30 h
Attention: closed on 1/01 and 25/12 !

NEW: Diego Della Valle, owner of Tod's shoe company, will invest 25 million euros in the RENOVATION of the Coliseum. The amphitheater looks black from the pollution and the vibrations of the nearby subway make bricks fall down. The renovation would start late this year and will last for 2,5 years. The monument will remain open to the public.

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As the popular name suggests this is colossal! Of course, the real name of the place is the Flavian Amphitheatre and the term Colosseum or Colosseo actually came from the massive statue of Nero which used to be beside the amphitheatre - but it's one of those happy coincidences of history I guess that the name "Colosseo" fits the building too.

The setting isn't the greatest with busy roads roaring around the place but once your inside they won't bother you. Getting inside is the challenge.

You can buy a joint ticket for the Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. I would strongly suggest going early to the Forum and buying the ticket there and visiting the Colosseum later in the day. If you get to teh Forum early enough there is no queue there whilst there were queues outside the colosseum long before it opened.

Once armed with your ticket from the Forum you then have to negotiate the entrance. There are 3 seperate lines at the entrance. The one to the right is for people with no ticket and goes back for what seems like eternity. The one on the left is for organised tour groups who are prebooked. The one in the middle is for individual visitors who already have tickets - this is where you want to be. There is of course a further complication - the tour groups try to congregate at the entrance to this middle line and so you have to time it just right to dash between groups to get to the barriers. You can't get past them whilst they are there they are too big and crowded together - trust me, we did try several times. Just wait for that gap between 2 groups and go for it! Once you've reached that barrier it's plain sailing and you'll be inside within a minute.

When you emerge into the interior of the Colosseum you will finally appreciate the awesome size of this building. It really isn't evident from outside. Take your time to wander round. Take some good photos - you'll want to remember this in years to come. You might have to wait to get to the best places to get the best photos as it can be very busy.

The end of the games occurred in the 5th c. The taste of the public changed, the declining Empire entered in a military and financial crisis. The expenses needed to organize the shows were so enormous that the function of the amphitheatre became obsolete.
Although damaged by earthquakes in the fifth century, it seems that the Coliseum remained nearly intact till the 8-9th century.
In the 11th c. it became the property of the Frangipani family, with whose palace it was connected by a series of constructions. In the 14th c. the Coliseum belonged to the municipality of Rome; a third of the building was used as hospital. Very bad for the Coliseum was the earthquake of 1349 by which the western and southern portion of the shell collapsed. The enormous mass of stone mainly travertine of this part of the structure served as a quarry for the Romans. Four churches were erected in the vicinity from this material. Many thousands of cartloads of travertine from the Coliseum were carried off by contractors.
It should be noted that in the Middle Ages the Coliseum was not considered as a sanctuary of the martyrs. This idea developed only in the 17th c. where an end was put to the plunder.

The growing vegetation in the wall cracks increased the damage to the structure.
Since 1643 botanists are studying the plants and their variation over the centuries at the Coliseum (684 species have been identified). A well-documented history of flora shows the monument's progress from slum to tourist attraction!

Open all days from 08.30 h.
Closing times in 2011:
16/02 - 15/03 = 17.00 h (last entry 1 hour before closure)
16/03 - 26/03 = 17.30 h
27/03 - 31/08 = 19.15 h(
01/09 - 30/09 = 19.00 h
01/10 - 30/10 = 18.30 h
31/10/11 - 15/02/12 = 16.30 h
Attention: closed on 1/01 and 25/12 !

Tickets available at the Coliseum but also at the "biglietterie" of the Palatino, via di San Gregoriano, 30 or Piazza Santa Maria Nova, 53 at 200m from the Coliseum (also the ticket offices of the Forum as the ticket is a combined one).
Price combined ticket: normal 12 €, reduced 7,50 € for EU citizens between 18 and 24 years old.
Free for EU citizens less than 18 or 65 years old.

NEW: Exhibition on NERO, 12/04 - 18/09/2011, at Colosseo and Foro Romano.

NEW: Diego Della Valle, owner of Tod's shoe company, will invest 25 million euros in the RENOVATION of the Coliseum. The amphitheater looks black from the pollution and the vibrations of the nearby subway make bricks fall down. The renovation would start late this year and will last for 2,5 years. The monument will remain open to the public.

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The Colosseum's history is a fantastic, almost mythological and definitely medieval existance. The construction of the Colosseum started in 72 AD under Emperor Vespasian and completed in 80 AD under Titus. The largest elliptical amphitheatre ever built in the Roman Empire.

Used as the stage for competitions between gladiators and various animals acquired from around the world. The animals would be kept beneath the Colosseum floor. Gladiators were essentially criminals that were allowed to fight for their freedom if they won (not in all cases).
The spectators were all the Roman dignitaries and citizens. Invited by the emperor, tickets would be issued to attend. It was quite organized and everyone knew, in advance, where they would be sitting. (This is the quick, short story version)

Today, the Colosseum appears to be partially dismantled. Stripped of the beautiful marble that once lined the skeleton that is left. This marble was taken and used to build the churches during the rebuilding of Rome.

I will recommend you participate in a group tour when you visit the Colosseum because the tour guides will give you a lot of information that helps you to understand the history of the Roman empire. You don't need an individual tour guide. Save your money and join a group once you arrive there. They will take care of purchasing your entrance tickets and your wait is not that long. We paid €25 per person for a combined tour of the Colosseum and the Roman Forum.

Exit the Colosseo metro station and you're right there.

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What surprised me most with the Flavian amphitheatre is that this huge construction with a circumference of about 540 m and 50 m high was build within a period of only six years (excepting some decorative elements who took more time).
The construction of the Coliseum is a brilliant example of the efficiency of the Imperial Roman organisation.
The main material is travertine of which it is estimated that 100 thousand m³ were used, with 6000 tons of concrete (so called "Roman concrete") for the vaults and 300 tons of iron clamps to fasten the stone blocks together. I read that to speed up the construction the building site was divided in four operational sectors - quadrants attributed to four different contractors following a meticulous plan.
If nothing is known about the architect of the Coliseum, we know from Suetone that Emperor Vespasien puts hands at work and removed and carried a load of rubble on his back.
VT members who are interested in the technique of this antique building can find full details on
www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Roman_Colosseum.html.

The money for the building came according to an inscription whose translation means:
"Emperor Caesar Vespasian Augustus had this new amphitheatre erected with the spoils of war" probably the Palestinian war and the plundering of the Temple of Jerusalem.

The spectacle inside the amphitheatre was not as glorious as the construction.
For the inauguration in 80 AD by the Emperor Titus there were 100 days of "munera" i.e. fights with gladiators and "venationes" fights with wild animals.
The difference between Greek and Roman mentality was very visible here. Romans liked strong emotions; entertainment showing more dignity like athletic competitions was not in favour with the Roman public as it was with the Greeks.

Open all days from 08.30 h.
Closing times in 2011:
16/02 - 15/03 = 17.00 h (last entry 1 hour before closure)
16/03 - 26/03 = 17.30 h
27/03 - 31/08 = 19.15 h(
01/09 - 30/09 = 19.00 h
01/10 - 30/10 = 18.30 h
31/10/11 - 15/02/12 = 16.30 h
Attention: closed on 1/01 and 25/12 !

Tickets available at the Coliseum but also at the "biglietterie" of the Palatino, via di San Gregoriano, 30 or Piazza Santa Maria Nova, 53 at 200m from the Coliseum (also the ticket offices of the Forum as the ticket is a combined one).
Price: normal 12 €, reduced 7,50 € for EU citizens between 18 and 24 years old.
Free for EU citizens less than 18 or 65 years old.

NEW: Exhibition on NERO, 12/04 - 18/09/2011, at Colosseo and Foro Romano.

NEW: Diego Della Valle, owner of Tod's shoe company, will invest 25 million euros in the renovation of the Coliseum. The amphitheater looks black from the pollution and the vibrations of the nearby subway make bricks fall down. The renovation would start late this year and will last for 2,5 years. The monument will remain open to the public.

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We're spoiled in our modern statiums. I can't even imagine how uncomfortable it would be to sit on those marble benches. I was amazed how how large it actually was in the inside, it looked so small from the outside. And what they talked about in history class finally made since with the boats and stuff.

It's impossible to get surprised in some monuments, so popular that TV frequently delivers them at our homes.

That happened in Rome with its most famous monuments. The Colosseum is stunning but... we knew! Anyway, its mandatory to get in, and there are always some unknown details.

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Oh, come on...I don't have to tell you to see the Coloseum. You know you have to!

It is really neat to come around the corner and then all the sudden it's there. You start wiggling in your seats or jumping up and down. You've waited so long and here it is!

Do be careful because some people have to wait a long while to get into the tours. Some people say they are not worth entering but I really wish I had. I love to see that sort of stuff. Some people things it's expensive. Ummm you're in Rome... splurge! If you pay over $1000 to get there with airfare why not spend $20 to go see the inside of one of the most famous ruins in the world?!? Also, don't forget to see my Coloseum Warnings!!

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While you are there don't forget to check out the Arch of Constantine right beside it. You can't get too close to it but you can definitely enjoy it.

More info at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arch_of_Constantine