231. The Colosseum, originally the
Flavian Amphitheatre, Rome, 72-80 CE (Italy)

This immense elliptical theatre, greatest of all Roman arenas, was begun by the Emperor Vespasian and completed by Domitian. Here huge crowds of up to 50,000 people came to witness violent gladiatorial contests and cruel spectacles involving wild animals and prisoners. Its inaugural games, in 80 CE, lasted for one hundred days. In contrast to Greek theatres, the Roman typology was usually free-standing. Construction was of stone masonry and concrete, with white travertine cladding. Demonstrating the Roman genius for crowd control, seats were accessed via an efficient system of vaulted corridors or vomitoria. For Renaissance architects, the Colosseum was exemplary for the decorative application of the Orders (from bottom to top: Doric, Ionic and two variations of the Corinthian) on its arcaded exterior. Along the uppermost level of the Colosseum can be seen the remains of stone sockets which once served to anchor wooden masts; from these were hung a huge canvas shade (velarium) which gave spectators partial protection from sun and rain. The nickname ‘Colosseum’ apparently derives from a colossal statue of Nero that once stood nearby.