History:

The Colosseum was originally called the 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] Amphitheatre after its builders, the emperors 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] and 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?], both of the Flavian family. Construction began around 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] AD in a low lying area between the Palatine, Esquiline, and Caelian hills that had once formed the pond of 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?]'s Domus Aureus. The amphitheatre probably came to be called the "Colosseum" because a colossal 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] of Nero once stood near it.

The Colosseum was completed in 80 AD and seated more than 50,000 spectators. Its opening was celebrated with 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] days of games in which thousands of animals and gladiators were killed. Occasionally the Colosseum was 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?]ed in order to stage small naval battles, though these more commonly took place in large basins, called naumachias, that were specially dug for that purpose. The emperor had his own entrance to the Colosseum, and from his private "box seat" he decided the 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] of defeated gladiators.

The floor of the arena was 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] covered with sand. Beneath the floor was a maze of 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?], and temporary holding pens for the animals. A hand-operated 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] was used to raise the 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] from the basement up to the arena floor. The walls of the subterranean passageways can still be seen today, although the Italian government has decided to refloor the Colosseum.

For all its beauty, the Colosseum is also a marvel of ergonomics and efficiency. It is estimated that 50,000 people could enter and be seated in 15 minutes. The reason for this is that the Romans invented 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] and assigned 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?]. Before the game, a spectator would pick up a ticket which had a number that corresponded to one of the 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] entrance arches which all had numbers above them (the 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?]th arch was for the emperor). The ticket also had a level, and a seat number. 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] had reserved seats with their names carved in the marble base - some of these can still be seen today. The basic structure of the Colosseum and the ticket system is still used today for many gaming events, from bullfights in Spain to baseball games in America.

The Colosseum was used regularly for almost 400 years, and has suffered through earthquakes, neglect, and the pillaging by popes who took its marble for their own buildings.

Architecture:

The Colosseum is 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?], sitting on a NW to SE axis. The building's core is constructed of 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] and a relatively soft, porous rock called 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?]. The exterior is clothed in 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] marble, a brilliant white stone that was later favored by Michelangelo for his sculptures. Originally the Colosseum had 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood stories, but a fourth was added by Alexander Severus when he refurbished the building around 230 AD.

The bottom three stories have 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] arches each; the stories are separated by a thin architrave (a horizontal band running around the entire Colosseum). The columns in one story line up exactly with those in the story above it. The arches on the bottom story are separated by 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] columns (the columns are 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?], which means the column shafts are actually part of the wall making it impossible to walk behind the columns). The second story has engaged 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] columns, and the third has 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?]. The fourth story is a solid wall with thin Corinthian 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] (rectangular columns that are also engaged). The space between the pilasters is filled alternately with 40 small, rectangular windows and 40 bucklers (now lost).

The unique combination of strong support columns with airy 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] and thin architraves makes the Colosseum look sturdy, yet open and soaring. The Doric column is the oldest type - it is strong, simple, and even severe in appearance, making the first story appear to be a strong foundation. Moving up the building, the columns become progressively "newer" and more refined, lending a lightness to the 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] stories.

There was no roof on the Colosseum, but in the summer great 100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?] sheets were rigged to the top to form an awning, called the "100707980animalsarchesbrickcanvasCorinthianDoricelevatorelipticalengagedfateFlavianfloodIonicNeropassagewayspilastersseatingSenatorsstatuethreeticketsTitustravertinetufauppervelariumVespasianwood[?]", that kept the sun off everyone inside. These sheets were so large and unwieldy that sailors from the the nearby port of Ostia were brought in to manage them. With the awning attached, the Colosseum must have looked something like a grand barge that could sail away.

Acknowledgement: T. M. M. Ryan