View of the Colosseum Arena
View of the Colosseum Arena
Saturday, 6 April. A view of the Colosseum base at about 10 am. The Colosseum’s present immensity, which is only a part of its original size, is staggering. Begun under the Emperor Vespasian in 70 CE and completed under his successor Titus in 80 CE, the Colosseum was the largest amphitheater in the Roman world and could seat approximately 50,000 people, with very efficient entry and exit ways. In addition to gladiatorial combats, the Colosseum also was home to staged animal hunts and mock naval battles. During the central Middle Ages, the Colosseum became the fortified residence of, initially, the Frangipane family and then the Annibaldi families. Built upon the relatively unstable soil of a filled Neronian lake associated with Nero’s vast and luxurious Domus Aurea (Golden House) on the Palatine, the Colosseum was extensively damaged in 1349 when its southern wall collapsed.