The Colosseum

The Colosseum: a monumental structure that has begun to fall into ruins, yet it is still an impressive sight to visit today. Located in Rome, Italy, the site attracts many people from all over the world to marvel at the structure. Some may be confused as to what it really is. It's a giant amphitheater in the center of the city of Rome. At one point it could hold over 50,000 people, and is a very important part of the city of Rome.

Construction began between 70 and 72 AD under the emperor Vespasian, who chose for it to be built just east of the Roman Forum. Completed in 80 AD under Titus, it was definitely the largest amphitheater ever built in the Roman Empire. The land that was used for construction of this structure had actually been Nero's private lake, but it was drained. The Colosseum was originally referred to as the "Flavian Amphitheater," but eventually came to be known as the Colosseum which, by definition, means "an oval large stadium with tiers of seats; an arena in which contests and spectacles are held." (The Free Online Dictionary) Materials used for the Colosseum included limestone blocks as well as brick, and then white marble was used over the materials to finish it off. Although no one really knows exactly how the Colosseum was constructed, there have been many educated theories as to how it was built and also how it is still standing practically 2,000 years later. Oxen were definitely a source of strength to move large pieces of the structure, as well as assisting horizontal work. Probably about 50% of the work was used by actual humans. The work wasn't necessarily dangerous; it was more of a vigorous project to work on. Workers would be exhausted, but back then, there were no regulations on overworking them. Building the Colosseum was definitely a difficult process, but it was totally worth it.

Known as one of the greatest architectural buildings in the world, it is quite an impressive sight inside and out. It is roughly in an eliptical shape. The building itself stands on a base of two steps, and above there are three floors of arcades built in as well as a fourth story with windows. There are approximately 80 arches on every floor divided by pillars with a half column. The arena inside measures around 76 by 44 meters, and had a floor made with wooden planks. The inside of the arena didn't fair too well after all of these years, but there are still many visible parts as to where people used to sit as well as the actual arena part.

Back in the day, going to the Colosseum wasn't a tourist attraction. It was a totally different experience. Before opening the colosseum to spectators, there would usually be a great festival as well as a parade. This large celebration was very popular and exciting for the citizens as well as even the emperor. It involved many wild animal acts, providing a surplus of entertainment. The parade itself had musicans playing, dancers dancing, and jugglers juddling. Romans also had a liking for animal acts, so they'd have wild beasts do tricks for the crowd, and many displays of rare and untamed animals were going on. The parade would lead to the Colosseum, and from there, the people would enter. (Colosseum Events)

Upon entering, the audience climbed sloping ramps to their seats. Seats were organized by gender as well as social classes. The higher the social status, the better the seat would be. Poor people as well as females would generally stand or sit on wooden benches in the fourth tier. A great feature was that, if there were very hot weather conditions, an enormous awning could be stretched overhead to protect the crowd from sun rays. Many events would take place in this theater. There would be many different shows in games that would last over one hundred days. The games would continue from dawn until dusk. During these games there would typically be around three thousand gladiator duels. There were also imperial games, where they would exhibit thousands and thousands of pairs of gladiators in a sequence that could last for several months at a time. Another type of games were the Gladiatorial games, which could last up to twelve days