What You Will See At The Colosseum In Rome

Saturday, November 28th, 2009 at8:44 am by Wanda

The Coliseum in Rome

Did you know that the iconic Colosseum (sometimes spelled Coliseum) in Rome is now officially one of the ‘new’ Seven Wonders of the World’? The campaign for ‘new’ wonders was the brainchild of a Swiss businessman called Bernard Weber. He wanted people to vote for the wonders…“So everybody can decide what the new seven wonders should be and not some government, not some individuals, not some institutions.” The Seven are not ranked and they were voted for by over 100 million people! Here’s why the Colosseum is so popular.

It’s an elliptical (almost oval) shaped Amphitheater which was built sometime between 70 and 82 AD right in the middle of Rome. Visitors find it odd that such an ancient monument sits next door to cafes and has traffic whizzing nearby. The building was started by Emperor Vespasian and completed by the next Emperor, Titus. They were part of a Roman Imperial Dynasty called Flavian, which ruled the Roman Empire from 69 to 96 AD. For this reason, the Colosseum was originally called Amphitheatrum Flavium.

The Codex Calendar dated 354 says that the Colosseum held 87,000 spectators although historian believe it was nearer to 50,000, which is still an amazing size for such an ancient building. The seats were tiered, with the highest of society sitting at the top. The Emperor sat at the North End and the Vestal Virgins sat at the South. Even today, you can see the names of Roman Senators from the 5^th Century carved into the stone seats.

What Was It Used For?

It was host to many spectacles. Most people think of Gladiator fights and these certainly took place here. There were also great celebrations, shows including wild animals (tigers, lions, rhinos, elephants, bears, panthers and crocodiles) and prisoners being killed by animals too.

Some of the shows were on a gigantic scale. The Emperor Trajan is said to have held a celebration in 107 AD that lasted for 123 days. 10,000 gladiators were involved in contests with 11,000 animals!

Historians estimate that around half a million people and over one million wild animals died during games at the Colosseum.

What’s Left Of The Colosseum’s Marble?

The Colosseum was famed for its’ marble columns, marble barriers, marble decorations and marble seats for Senators. Archaeologists have discovered 65 column capitals, 9 column bases and pieces of barriers.

Why Are There So Many Holes In The Stones?

The blocks of Travertine stone which made up the Colosseum were originally connected by clamps made of iron. During Medieval times, these were plundered and only the holes are left. Historians believe that 300 tons of metal were used to make the clamps so it’s hardly surprising that there are so many holes!

What Are The Cubicles?

There are many cubicles around the bottom of the amphitheater’s arena. It is believed that this is where the wild animals were kept during the shows. Some think that the animals could only use a narrow corridor which runs underground. They may have entered their cages via a succession of gates, which would have left the main corridors open.

How Many People Visit The Colosseum Each Year?

The Colosseum is the top most visited monument in Italy with 4,440,500 people flocking to see it every year! Not surprisingly, the line for tickets can be very long so if you want to visit, it’s strongly advised that you book in advance. Or, try one of the following:

Go to the entrance to Palatine Hill. There, you can buy a ticket which allows you entrance to the Colosseum, Palatine Hill, and the Roman Forum. The ticket is valid for two days so you can take your time enjoying each attraction.
If you want to buy your ticket before you travel, you can purchase the same ‘combination’ ticket mentioned above and print it out before you leave home when you buy it here.
Buy a Roma Pass or Archeologia Card.

Roma Pass. This is great value as it gives you free transportation for three days and free admission to two museums or sites and then reduced admission to more than forty museums, archaeological sites, exhibitions and events. Make sure that you use one of your ‘free passes’ on the Colosseum. You can buy these online, at all of the Tourist Information Offices in Rome, the train station, Fiumincino Airport, travel bureau, hotels, bus stations, and even from newspaper stands…so you will definitely avoid the Colosseum line! This pass is 23 Euros / $32.84 / £20.20 and is valid for three days, so it’s worth planning what you would like to see beforehand to get your money’s worth.

Archeologia Card This gives you admission to the Colosseum, the Palatine Hill, the Baths of Caracalla, many Roman National Museum Sites, the Tomb of Cecilia Metella and the Villa of the Quintili. You can buy the card from the entrance of any of these, except the last two. It costs 27 Euros / $38.52 / 23.70 and gives you seven days of free admission (one visit per site). This card doesn’t include free transportation, so be sure to take enough money for getting around.

Under 18’s and over 65’s can get into the Colosseum for free.

The huge numbers of visitors mean that the Colosseum brings in an annual income of around 30 million Euro! That’s $42,596,491 or £26,371,249! The Romans would have been amazed!

The Colosseum Cats

No visitor to the Colosseum can miss the cats! Rome is cat city. It has 300,000 of them and around 1,200 of them live in the Colosseum full time. They are tended by women known as ‘gattare’ who feed them, give them medical help and even sterilize them!

No trip to Rome is complete without a visit to its’ most famous attraction. The Colosseum has known to much life and death that is it amazing to stand inside it and try and imagine the joy, spectacle and absolute terror that people must have felt within its’ walls. We are so lucky that it still exists today. I wonder how many of our buildings will last for 2,000 years?