THE COLOSSEUM

The Colosseum

The Colosseum

Introduction

The Colosseum, is also known as coliseum, The Roman People, wrote the satirist Juvenal in the first few decades of the second century CE, once used to rule…but now they wish for two things only: Bread and Games. And the Roman people had been amply provided with both: the frumentationes (free distribution of grain to between 200,000 to 300,000 members of the plebs) had been going on since the beginning of the Republic, and magnificent buildings and sites such as the Colosseum and the Circus Maximus offered entertainment many times a year. The emperors supplied the grain, the games, and the impressive buildings, aware of the efficiency of these means of social control (Quennell 1971).

Discussion

The Roman Colosseum was built in less than 10 years. Planning was begun in 69 CE, after the death of Nero in 68, and finished in 80 CE, under the reign of Titus, one of the sons of the popular Emperor (Titus Flavius) Vespasianus, who died a year before its inauguration. The construction was paid for by the spoils of the Judaic war, which provided much gold and many captives, who were sold as slaves. The poet Martial, alive at the time, praised the monument and made clear that from its planning stages throughout its execution, the Colosseum was always meant to rival the other Seven Wonders of the World, such as the Pyramids or the Hanging Gardens of Babylon (Gabucci 2001). Coins were struck that carried its image. It was known as the Flavian amphitheater until the 8th century CE, when its current name gradually came into use. It was called the colossus after the giant 100-foot-tall statue of Nero that had been placed beside it, Nero's head having been replaced with the head of Apollo. The Colosseum was built on the ...