The ColosseumThe Colosseum was Imperial Rome's monument to warfare. Like a cathedral of death it towered over the city and invited its citizens, 50,000 at a time, to watch murderous gladiatorial games. It is now visited by two million visitors a year (Hitler was among them). Award winning classicist, Mary Beard with Keith Hopkins, tell the story of Rome's greatest arena: how it was built; the gladiatorial and other games that were held there; the training of the gladiators; the audiences who revelled in the games, the emperors who staged them and the critics. And the strange after story - the Colosseum has been fort, store, church, and glue factory. |
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ancient Rome animal hunts antiquity Arch of Titus archaeological archaeologists arches architect architectural arena arena floor audience beasts bouts building Caesar Capitoline Hill celebrate certainly Chapter Christian Circus Maximus citizens city of Rome classical classical antiquity Coliseum Colosseo Colosseum commemorate Commodus corridor cross crowd cruelty culture death Dio’s displays Domitian elite empire entrance evidence example excavations fact famous fight fighters gladiatorial combat gladiatorial shows gladiators graffiti Handbook helmets historian illustration imagine imperial included inscriptions Italian killed later less London Marcus Aurelius Martial martyrdom martyrs medieval Meta Sudans metres modern monument Mussolini Nero Nero’s nineteenth century original palace perhaps perimeter wall plans Pompeii Pope popular reconstructed Ridley Scott Roman amphitheatre Roman feet Rome’s ruin seating second century seems senators sesterces slaughter slaves specta spectacles spectators status stone story Suetonius suggest surviving theatre tion Titus tourist Trajan’s translation venues Vespasian visitors wild