Daniel Pagan
Professor Thurmond
7 April 2016
Greek/Roman
The Colosseum and its glory!
Blood, death, animals, and gladiators, this is what the ancient romans loved! The the terrifying Arena of Death, the Flavian Amphitheater, or better known as the Roman Colosseum. This is one of the greatest architectural achievements in history. It is an oval amphitheater in the center of the city of Rome, Italy. The Colosseum was designed for gladiatorial contest and public spectacles. Earlier Roman theaters were usually built into hillsides, the Colosseum on the other hand is a free-standing structure that is essentially two Roman theaters built back-to-back. Built of concrete and sand, it is the largest amphitheater ever built. The outer wall required …show more content…
Nero, the emperor during the Great Fire of Rome, used the area for his personal use. He built the Domus Aurea, with gardens, pavilions, and even with a lake. To make sure the area was supplied with water, a complicated system of aqueducts was made. He also placed a bronze statue in the arena called “Colossus of Nero”. Under Vespasian and his successors, the Colossus was preserved, but the Domus Aurea was not as lucky, it as destroyed. The place became the location for the Flavian Amphitheater or as we know it the Roman Colosseum, was made as a monument to celebrate great victories. Vespasian wanted to give the area to the people so the people could use it and enjoy it, unlike Nero who used it for his own personal interest. It was built in the middle of the city, which was unusual for amphitheater because they were usually located in the suburbs. This showed how important the Colosseum was because it was in the middle of the …show more content…
The Colosseum was used for nothing more then just a battle field to the death for gladiators. The building was extremely impressive, especially the dimensions. It was 156 meters wide, and 189 meters long, with the area of 6 acres. The height of the wall is 48 meters tall. The oval shaped arena is 287ft long and 180ft, that arena was surrounded by a wall about 15ft high. The historical Colosseum could fit around 60,000 Romans who could come in through 80 different entrances. Above the wooden arena, there were four floors, each one having complex and having different rooms, staircases, halls, and a lot of seats. The floors above were for the women and lower classes, and the lower floors were for the devoted citizens of Rome. There were various different hallways between the arena floor and cages, where the animals could appear to the visitors. The colossal monument was covered with a huge awning (a sheet of canvas or other material stretched on a frame and used to keep the sun or rain off a storefront, window, doorway, or deck), the Velarium. 1,000 men or more were used to install it and it had to be installed by anchoring it to the ground. The Velarium was used to protect the visitors from the heat and from getting any sun
Professor Thurmond
7 April 2016
Greek/Roman
The Colosseum and its glory!
Blood, death, animals, and gladiators, this is what the ancient romans loved! The the terrifying Arena of Death, the Flavian Amphitheater, or better known as the Roman Colosseum. This is one of the greatest architectural achievements in history. It is an oval amphitheater in the center of the city of Rome, Italy. The Colosseum was designed for gladiatorial contest and public spectacles. Earlier Roman theaters were usually built into hillsides, the Colosseum on the other hand is a free-standing structure that is essentially two Roman theaters built back-to-back. Built of concrete and sand, it is the largest amphitheater ever built. The outer wall required …show more content…
Nero, the emperor during the Great Fire of Rome, used the area for his personal use. He built the Domus Aurea, with gardens, pavilions, and even with a lake. To make sure the area was supplied with water, a complicated system of aqueducts was made. He also placed a bronze statue in the arena called “Colossus of Nero”. Under Vespasian and his successors, the Colossus was preserved, but the Domus Aurea was not as lucky, it as destroyed. The place became the location for the Flavian Amphitheater or as we know it the Roman Colosseum, was made as a monument to celebrate great victories. Vespasian wanted to give the area to the people so the people could use it and enjoy it, unlike Nero who used it for his own personal interest. It was built in the middle of the city, which was unusual for amphitheater because they were usually located in the suburbs. This showed how important the Colosseum was because it was in the middle of the …show more content…
The Colosseum was used for nothing more then just a battle field to the death for gladiators. The building was extremely impressive, especially the dimensions. It was 156 meters wide, and 189 meters long, with the area of 6 acres. The height of the wall is 48 meters tall. The oval shaped arena is 287ft long and 180ft, that arena was surrounded by a wall about 15ft high. The historical Colosseum could fit around 60,000 Romans who could come in through 80 different entrances. Above the wooden arena, there were four floors, each one having complex and having different rooms, staircases, halls, and a lot of seats. The floors above were for the women and lower classes, and the lower floors were for the devoted citizens of Rome. There were various different hallways between the arena floor and cages, where the animals could appear to the visitors. The colossal monument was covered with a huge awning (a sheet of canvas or other material stretched on a frame and used to keep the sun or rain off a storefront, window, doorway, or deck), the Velarium. 1,000 men or more were used to install it and it had to be installed by anchoring it to the ground. The Velarium was used to protect the visitors from the heat and from getting any sun