Giacobbe Giusti, Voie Sacrée (Rome)

Giacobbe Giusti, Voie Sacrée (Rome)

Via Sacra passing through the Forum, with the Basilica Julia on the righ

Giacobbe Giusti, Voie Sacrée (Rome)

L’arco di Tito a Roma, sullo sfondo del Colosseo (lato est)

Giacobbe Giusti, Voie Sacrée (Rome)

La montée vers l’arc de Titusdepuis l’arc de Constantin.

 

Giacobbe Giusti, Voie Sacrée (Rome)

L’arco di Tito, presso cui inizia la via Sacra.

Alexander Z. – Opera propria

Rome, Arch of Titus.

 

 Voie Sacrée.

Voie Sacrée Sacra Via Giacobbe Giusti, Voie Sacrée (Rome)
Montée de la Via Sacra depuis le Forum Romanumen direction de l’arc de Titus (Clivus Sacer).
Lieu de construction	Regio IV Templum Pacis Forum Romain, Velia
Date de construction	Fondation de Rome
Type de bâtiment	Voie romaine, rue
Le plan de Rome ci-dessous est intemporel. Localisation du point d’entrée de la voie dans le Forum Romain, de la Summa Sacra Via et de l’extrémité orientale du « tracé court » dans la Rome antique (en rouge)
Coordonnées	41° 53′ 32″ nord, 12° 29′ 07″ est
Liste des monuments de la Rome antique

Giacobbe Giusti, Voie Sacrée (Rome)

Panneau moderne placé près du coin sud-est du temple de Vénus et de Rome.

Giacobbe Giusti, Voie Sacrée (Rome)

La montée vers l’arc de Titus depuis l’arc de Constantin.

Giacobbe Giusti, Voie Sacrée (Rome)

Die Via Sacra vom Palatin aus betrachtet

La Voie Sacrée(en latin : Sacra Via, plus rarement Via Sacra) est la plus ancienne et la plus célèbre des ruesde la Rome antique. Avec la Nova Via, ce sont les deux seules rues de la ville à être qualifiées de viaeavant l’avènement de l’Empire et l’apparition de nouvelles viae comme la Via Tecta sur le Champ de Mars.

Localisation

La voie traverse plusieurs quartiers du centre historique de Rome, reliant les Carinae sur les pentes occidentales du mont Oppius, quartier à la mode à la fin de la République¹, au Forum Romain et l’Arx. Elle est placée dans la Regio IVpar les catalogues régionnaires².

Fonction

Pierre Grimal voit dans son tracé un decumanus, un des axes traditionnels de toute fondation de cité romaine³.

Aux ides de chaque mois, consacrés à Jupiter, des prêtres sacrificateurs emportent les idulia sacra nécessaires à l’accomplissement du rite, dont un bélier (idulis ovis)⁴, de l’autel de Strenia jusque sur l’Arx en empruntant la Sacra Via, voie que les augures inaugurent depuis la colline^2,5. Les entrailles du bélier castré sacrifié par le Flamen Dialis sont déposées devant le temple de Jupiter Capitolin, situé sur l’autre sommet du Capitole. Si la procession passe par l’Arx auparavant, c’est peut-être en souvenir d’un culte plus ancien rendu à Jupiter sur le plus haut des deux sommets du Capitole⁴. La voie pourrait tirer son nom de ces idulia sacra transportés mensuellement tout au long de son parcours⁵.

Histoire

Son origine, très ancienne, pourrait remonter à la fondation de Rome. Il ne s’agit alors que d’un chemin longeant le cours d’eau qui descend la vallée séparant la Velia du Palatin, vers la dépression plus tard occupée par le Forum, une zone dans laquelle on retrouve trois murs construits entre le viii^e et le vi^e siècle av. J.-C. qui devaient servir à délimiter les zones habitées. Avec les travaux de drainage et d’assainissemententrepris par les Tarquins, il est devenu possible de transformer ce chemin en véritable via, une des plus anciennes routes de Rome⁶ avec la Nova Via dont le tracé est quasiment parallèle et qui remonte également à l’époque royale⁷. Par extension, le terme Sacra Via désigne aussi le quartier qui se développe le long de la rue et dont les habitants sont appelés Sacravienses⁸.

Description

Tracé court

Établir le tracé de la Voie Sacrée dans Rome demeure problématique pour les archéologues et les historiens étant donné que pour le décrire, les auteurs antiques utilisent des monuments comme points de repère dont on ne connaît pas la localisation avec précision, comme le temple de Jupiter Stator, la Porta Mugonia et l’autel de Strenia. De plus, la topographie entre le Forum et le Colisée a fortement changé au cours de l’histoire de Rome, surtout après le règne de Néron⁹. Du fait de nombreuses incertitudes, plusieurs hypothèses ont été proposées. Toutes ont en commun un « tracé court » d’environ 70 mètres qui débute au sommet de la Velia, près d’un temple dédié au culte des Lares, de la résidence du Rex sacrorum, du temple de Jupiter Stator et du plus tardif arc de Titus¹⁰. Cette section de la rue est appelée Summa Sacra Via. La voie conduit ensuite jusqu’à l’extrémité orientale du Forum Romain, section appelée Sacer Clivus, jusqu’à la Regia ou à l’arc de Fabius. Le fait d’emprunter cette rue dans ce sens se dit Sacra Via descendere^{a 1} ou deducere^{a 2,11}. La Sacra Via pourrait porter ce nom car elle borde des lieux de cultes qui occupent une place importante dans la religion romaine comme les sanctuaires des Lares, de Jupiter et de Vesta, d’où un caractère éminemment sacré².

Tracé étendu communément admis

Selon Varron^{a 3} et Festus^{a 4}, la Sacra Via est plus étendue¹². La voie aurait été dès son origine le chemin emprunté par les processions religieuses. Son point de départ coïnciderait avec l’autel de Strenia (sacellum Streniae), dont on ne connaît rien sinon qu’il se situerait dans la région des Carinae, quelque part au nord-est du site plus tard occupé par le temple de Vénus et de Rome⁹. La voie monterait ensuite jusqu’au sommet de la Velia puis redescendrait jusqu’au Forum qu’elle traverserait d’est en ouest, jusqu’au Comitium, puis monterait vers le Capitole et mènerait sur l’Arx par le Gradus Monetae, plus tard remplacé par l’escalier des Gémonies². Toutefois, Varron précise que l’usage commun limite la voie au « tracé court » décrit précédemment, de la Velia à la Regia¹³. De nos jours, le terme de Sacra Viahérité de Festus et Varron englobe tout le trajet, depuis les Carinae jusqu’à l’Arx¹³, qui pourrait correspondre à la voie mise au jour en 1901 par Giacomo Boni.

« À ce mont [Caelius] touchent les Carènes […] Ce lieu, d’abord appelé Carènes à cause de sa contiguïté, fut ensuite nommé Cerolia, parce que c’est là, près de l’oratoire de Strénia, que commence la voie Sacrée, qui aboutit à la citadelle [Arx], par où les sacrificateurs passent tous les mois pour se rendre à la citadelle, et par laquelle les augures, venant de la citadelle, ont coutume d’inaugurer. On ne connaît communément de la voie Sacrée que la partie où l’on commence à monter en venant du Forum. »

— Varron, Lingua Latina, V, 47

« Quelques-uns pensent que la voie Sacrée fut ainsi nommée parce que l’alliance entre Romulus et Tatius y fut conclue. Selon d’autres, ce nom lui est venu de ce que les prêtres y passent pour aller faire les sacrifices iduliens. Il ne faut donc point, comme le vulgaire le suppose, l’appeler Sacrée depuis le palais du roi jusqu’à la maison du roi des sacrifices, mais aussi depuis la maison du roi jusqu’à l’oratoire de Strenia, et encore depuis la maison du roi jusqu’à la citadelle. Verrius dit qu’il ne faut pas l’appeler Sacravia d’un seul mot, mais séparer les deux mots, comme on le fait pour les autres voies, Flaminia, Appia, Latine de même qu’il faut écrire Nova via (la voie Neuve, en deux mots), et non Novavia (en un seul mot). »

— Festus, De Significatione Verborum, 372.8-16 L

Tracés étendus alternatifs

Depuis les années 80, l’archéologue italien Filippo Coarelli propose une refonte complète de la topographie de la zone comprise entre le Forum et le Colisée, dite « révolution coarellienne ». En s’appuyant sur les descriptions de Varron et Festus et en identifiant la domus regis sacrificuliévoquée par Festus à la domus publica qui agrandit la Maison des vestales vers l’est, il montre que les informations données par les deux auteurs concordent⁹. Il émet de plus l’hypothèse que toutes les mentions de la Sacra Via dont on dispose dans les sources littéraires et épigraphiques se réfèrent au « tracé court ». Selon Coarelli, le tracé de la Sacra Via s’écarte du tracé communément admis à hauteur de la basilique de Maxence. La voie bifurquerait vers le nord avant de se diriger vers l’est et d’atteindre les Carinae situées sur la Via dei Fori Imperiali, derrière le portique du temple de Vénus et de Rome. Selon cette hypothèse, le temple de Romulus et le temple de Jupiter Stator ne font qu’un, une théorie qui ne fait pas l’unanimité étant donné que le temple est traditionnellement placé au sud de la Sacra Via tandis que le temple dit « de Romulus » longe son côté nord¹⁴.

Le tracé proposé par l’archéologue Maria Antonietta Tomei reste commun au tracé de Giacomo Boni de la Regia jusqu’à l’arc de Titus. Elle situe le sacellum Streniae sur le Palatin, dans la zone occupée plus tard par le temple d’Élagabal et identifie le temple de Jupiter Stator avec les vestiges d’un podium situé le long du Clivus Palatinus. Ainsi, selon son hypothèse, la Sacra Via tourne vers le sud juste avant d’atteindre l’arc de Titus, suit le Clivus Palatinussur une centaine de mètres puis tourne vers l’est une fois dépassés les vestiges du podium¹⁴.

Notes et références

• Sources antiques :

1. ↑ Cicéron, Lettres à Atticus, IV, 3, 3
2. ↑ Salluste, Histoires, II, 45
3. ↑ Varron, Lingua Latina, V, 47
4. ↑ Festus, De Significatione Verborum, 290

• Sources modernes :

1. ↑ Richardson 1992, p. 71.
2. ↑ ^{a, b, c et d} Richardson 1992, p. 338.2.
3. ↑ Grimal 1990.
4. ↑ ^a et b Richardson 1992, p. 339.1.
5. ↑ ^a et b Lewandowska 2016, p. 44.
6. ↑ Lewandowska 2016, p. 40-41.
7. ↑ Lewandowska 2016, p. 41.
8. ↑ Lewandowska 2016, p. 42.
9. ↑ ^a, b et c Ziolkowski 2015, p. 569.
10. ↑ Lewandowska 2016, p. 45.
11. ↑ Platner et Ashby 1929, p. 456.
12. ↑ Platner et Ashby 1929, p. 456-457.
13. ↑ ^a et b Platner et Ashby 1929, p. 457.
14. ↑ ^a et b Ziolkowski 2015, p. 570.

Bibliographie

• (en) Samuel Ball Platner et Thomas Ashby, A topographical dictionary of Ancient Rome, Londres, Oxford University Press, 1929, 608 p.
• Pierre Grimal, Les villes romaines, Presses universitaires de France, coll. « Que sais-je ? », 1990 (ISBN 9782130524533)
• (en) Lawrence Richardson, A New Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992, 488 p.(ISBN 0801843006)
• (en) Filippo Coarelli, Rome and environs : an archaeological guide, University of California Press, 2007, 555 p. (ISBN 978-0-520-07961-8)
• (en) Adam Ziolkowski, « Reading Coarelli’s Palatium or the Sacra Via yet again », Journal of Archaeology, vol. 28,‎ 2015, p. 569-581
• (pl) Dominika Lewandowska, « Sacra Via : restitutio ad fontes », ΣΧΟΛΗ,‎ 2016, p. 39-72

Articles connexes

Le terme de « Voie Sacrée » a été repris plusieurs fois :

• dans le domaine archéologique pour désigner la voie menant au sanctuaire ou à l’acropole d’une cité antique ;
• après la Première Guerre mondiale pour qualifier la route stratégique françaisedesservant Verdun.

Forum Romain Liste des édifices du Forum Romain
Vicus Iugarius Vicus Tuscus Sacra Via Rostres Graecostasis Comitium Lacus Servilius Vélabre Subure Arc de Fabius Puteal Libonis Tribunal Aurelium Basilique Sempronia Tabularium Temple de la Concorde Temple de Castor Fontaine de Juturne Temple de Vesta Regia Basilique Fulvia puis Æmilia Sanctuaire de Vénus Cloacina Lacus Curtius Temple de Saturne Curie Hostilia Basilique Porcia Tullianum Senaculum Autel de Saturne Mundus Volcanal Basilique Opimia	Clivus Capitolinus Vicus Tuscus Sacra Via Vélabre Forums impériaux Basilique Julia Temple de Castor Fontaine de Juturne Temple de Vesta Regia Basilique Æmilia Sanctuaire de Vénus Cloacina Lacus Curtius Temple de César Temple d’Antonin et Faustine Arc d’Auguste Curie Julia Temple de Saturne Tabularium Carcer Temple de la Concorde Temple de Vespasien Portique des Dieux Conseillers Rostres Arc de Septime Sévère Umbilicus Urbis Rostres de César Lapis niger Milliaire d’or Arc de Tibère
Plan du forum à la fin de l’époque républicaine.	Plan du forum à la fin de l’Empire.

•  Portail de la Rome antique

Catégories :

• Voie romaine
• Monument romain à Rome
• Forum Romanum
• Rome R. X Campitelli

The Via Sacra (Latin: Via Sacra) (Sacred Road) was the main street of ancientRome, leading from the top of the Capitoline Hill, through some of the most important religious sites of the Forum (where it is the widest street), to the Colosseum.

The road was part of the traditional route of the Roman Triumph that began on the outskirts of the city and proceeded through the Roman Forum. In the 5th century BC, the road was supported by a super-structure to protect it from the rain.^{[citation needed]}Later it was paved and during the reign of Nero it was lined with colonnades.

The road provided the setting for many deeds and misdeeds of Rome’s history, the solemn religious festivals, the magnificent triumphs of victorious generals, and the daily throng assembling in the Basilicas to chat, throw dice, engage in business, or secure justice. Many prostitutes lined the street as well, looking for potential customers.

Course

While the western stretch of the Via Sacra which runs through the Forum follows the original ancient route of the road, the eastern stretch between the end of the forum and the Colosseum, which passes underneath the Arch of Titus, is a redirection of the road built after the Great Fire of Rome in AD 64.^[1] In the Republic and Early Empire, the route forked to the north near the House of the Vestals and passed through a saddle in the Velian Hill, now occupied largely by the Basilica of Maxentiusand the modern Via dei Fori Imperiali. As part of his rebuilding program following the fire, Nero essentially straightened the road by redirecting it between the Velian and Palatine Hills, creating grand colonnades on either side for shop stalls and commerce.^[2]

Sources

• Filippo Coarelli (2014). Rome and Environs. University of California Press. p. 81-82.
• L. Richardson, jr. A New Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome: Sacra Via.

References+

1. Jump up^ Coarelli. Rome and Environs. p. 82.
2. Jump up^ Coarelli. Rome and Environs. p. 82.

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voie_Sacr%C3%A9e_(Rome)

http://www.giacobbegiusti.com

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

 

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

 

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

 

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Il Colosseo con la Meta Sudans tra il 1890 e il 1900

 

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

 

Location	Regio IV Templum Pacis (« Temple of Peace »)
Built in	70–80 AD
Built by/for	Vespasian, Titus
Type of structure	Amphitheatre
Related	List of ancient monuments in Rome

The Colosseum or Coliseum (/kɒləˈsiːəm/kol-ə-SEE-əm), also known as the Flavian Amphitheatre (Latin: Amphitheatrum Flavium; Italian: Anfiteatro Flavio[aŋfiteˈaːtro ˈflaːvjo] or Colosseo[kolosˈsɛːo]), is an oval amphitheatrein the centre of the city of Rome, Italy. Built of concrete and sand,^[1] it is the largest amphitheatre ever built. The Colosseum is situated just east of the Roman Forum. Construction began under the emperor Vespasian in AD 72,^[2]and was completed in AD 80 under his successor and heir Titus.^[3] Further modifications were made during the reign of Domitian (81–96).^[4] These three emperors are known as the Flavian dynasty, and the amphitheatre was named in Latin for its association with their family name (Flavius).

The Colosseum could hold, it is estimated, between 50,000 and 80,000 spectators,^[5][6] having an average audience of some 65,000;^[7][8] it was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectaclessuch as mock sea battles (for only a short time as the hypogeum was soon filled in with mechanisms to support the other activities), animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on Classical mythology. The building ceased to be used for entertainment in the early medieval era. It was later reused for such purposes as housing, workshops, quarters for a religious order, a fortress, a quarry, and a Christian shrine.

Although partially ruined because of damage caused by earthquakes and stone-robbers, the Colosseum is still an iconic symbol of Imperial Rome. It is one of Rome’s most popular tourist attractions and also has links to the Roman Catholic Church, as each Good Friday the Pope leads a torchlit « Way of the Cross » procession that starts in the area around the Colosseum.^[9]

The Colosseum is also depicted on the Italian version of the five-cent euro coin.

The Colosseum

The Colosseum’s original Latin name was Amphitheatrum Flavium, often anglicized as Flavian Amphitheatre. The building was constructed by emperors of the Flavian dynasty, following the reign of Nero.^[10] This name is still used in modern English, but generally the structure is better known as the Colosseum. In antiquity, Romans may have referred to the Colosseum by the unofficial name Amphitheatrum Caesareum (with Caesareum an adjective pertaining to the title Caesar), but this name may have been strictly poetic^[11][12] as it was not exclusive to the Colosseum; Vespasian and Titus, builders of the Colosseum, also constructed an amphitheater of the same name in Puteoli (modern Pozzuoli).^[13]

The name Colosseum has long been believed to be derived from a colossal statue of Nero nearby^[4] (the statue of Nero was named after the Colossus of Rhodes).^{[citation needed]} This statue was later remodeled by Nero‘s successors into the likeness of Helios (Sol) or Apollo, the sun god, by adding the appropriate solar crown. Nero’s head was also replaced several times with the heads of succeeding emperors. Despite its pagan links, the statue remained standing well into the medieval era and was credited with magical powers. It came to be seen as an iconic symbol of the permanence of Rome.

In the 8th century, a famous epigram attributed to the Venerable Bedecelebrated the symbolic significance of the statue in a prophecy that is variously quoted: Quamdiu stat Colisæus, stat et Roma; quando cadet colisæus, cadet et Roma; quando cadet Roma, cadet et mundus (« as long as the Colossus stands, so shall Rome; when the Colossus falls, Rome shall fall; when Rome falls, so falls the world »).^[14] This is often mistranslated to refer to the Colosseum rather than the Colossus (as in, for instance, Byron‘s poem Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage). However, at the time that the Pseudo-Bede wrote, the masculine nouncoliseuswas applied to the statue rather than to what was still known as the Flavian amphitheatre.

The Colossus did eventually fall, possibly being pulled down to reuse its bronze. By the year 1000 the name « Colosseum » had been coined to refer to the amphitheatre. The statue itself was largely forgotten and only its base survives, situated between the Colosseum and the nearby Temple of Venus and Roma.^[15]

The name further evolved to Coliseum during the Middle Ages. In Italy, the amphitheatre is still known as il Colosseo, and other Romance languages have come to use similar forms such as Coloseumul(Romanian), le Colisée (French), el Coliseo (Spanish) and o Coliseu(Portuguese).

Construction, inauguration, and Roman renovations

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Colosseum

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

Sestertius of Titus celebrating the inauguration of the Colosseum (minted 80 AD).

A map of central Rome during the Roman Empire, with the Colosseum at the upper right corner

The site chosen was a flat area on the floor of a low valley between the Caelian, Esquiline and Palatine Hills, through which a canalisedstream ran. By the 2nd century BC the area was densely inhabited. It was devastated by the Great Fire of Rome in AD 64, following which Neroseized much of the area to add to his personal domain. He built the grandiose Domus Aureaon the site, in front of which he created an artificial lake surrounded by pavilions, gardens and porticoes. The existing Aqua Claudiaaqueductwas extended to supply water to the area and the gigantic bronze Colossus of Nero was set up nearby at the entrance to the Domus Aurea.^[15]

Cross-section from the Lexikon der gesamten Technik (1904)

Although the Colossus was preserved, much of the Domus Aurea was torn down. The lake was filled in and the land reused as the location for the new Flavian Amphitheatre. Gladiatorial schools and other support buildings were constructed nearby within the former grounds of the Domus Aurea. Vespasian’s decision to build the Colosseum on the site of Nero’s lake can be seen as a populist gesture of returning to the people an area of the city which Nero had appropriated for his own use. In contrast to many other amphitheatres, which were located on the outskirts of a city, the Colosseum was constructed in the city centre; in effect, placing it both symbolically and precisely at the heart of Rome.

Construction was funded by the opulent spoils taken from the Jewish Temple after the Great Jewish Revolt in 70 AD led to the Siege of Jerusalem. According to a reconstructed inscription found on the site, « the emperor Vespasian ordered this new amphitheatre to be erected from his general’s share of the booty. » Along with the spoils, estimated 100,000 Jewish prisoners were brought back to Rome after the war, and many contributed to the massive workforce needed for construction. The slaves undertook manual labor such as working in the quarries at Tivoli where the travertine was quarried, along with lifting and transporting the quarried stones 20 miles from Tivoli to Rome.^[16] Along with this free source of unskilled labor, teams of professional Roman builders, engineers, artists, painters and decorators undertook the more specialized tasks necessary for building the Colosseum.

Construction of the Colosseum began under the rule of Vespasian^[4] in around 70–72 AD (73-75 AD according to some sources)^[16] The Colosseum had been completed up to the third story by the time of Vespasian’s death in 79. The top level was finished by his son, Titus, in 80,^[4] and the inaugural games were held in A.D. 80 or 81.^[16]Dio Cassius recounts that over 9,000 wild animals were killed during the inaugural games of the amphitheatre. Commemorative coinage was issued celebrating the inauguration.^[17] The building was remodelled further under Vespasian’s younger son, the newly designated Emperor Domitian, who constructed the hypogeum, a series of underground tunnels used to house animals and slaves. He also added a gallery to the top of the Colosseum to increase its seating capacity.^[18]

In 217, the Colosseum was badly damaged by a major fire (caused by lightning, according to Dio Cassius^[19]) which destroyed the wooden upper levels of the amphitheatre’s interior. It was not fully repaired until about 240 and underwent further repairs in 250 or 252 and again in 320. Gladiatorial fights are last mentioned around 435. An inscription records the restoration of various parts of the Colosseum under Theodosius II and Valentinian III (reigned 425–455), possibly to repair damage caused by a major earthquake in 443; more work followed in 484^[20] and 508. The arena continued to be used for contests well into the 6th century. Animal hunts continued until at least 523, when Anicius Maximus celebrated his consulship with some venationes, criticised by King Theodoric the Great for their high cost.^[15]

Medieval

Map of medieval Rome depicting the Colosseum

The Colosseum underwent several radical changes of use during the medieval period. By the late 6th century a small chapel had been built into the structure of the amphitheater, though this apparently did not confer any particular religious significance on the building as a whole. The arena was converted into a cemetery. The numerous vaulted spaces in the arcades under the seating were converted into housing and workshops, and are recorded as still being rented out as late as the 12th century. Around 1200 the Frangipani family took over the Colosseum and fortified it, apparently using it as a castle.

Severe damage was inflicted on the Colosseum by the great earthquake in 1349, causing the outer south side, lying on a less stable alluvial terrain, to collapse. Much of the tumbled stone was reused to build palaces, churches, hospitals and other buildings elsewhere in Rome. A religious order moved into the northern third of the Colosseum in the mid-14th century ^[21] and continued to inhabit it until as late as the early 19th century. The interior of the amphitheater was extensively stripped of stone, which was reused elsewhere, or (in the case of the marble façade) was burned to make quicklime.^[15] The bronze clamps which held the stonework together were pried or hacked out of the walls, leaving numerous pockmarks which still scar the building today.

Modern

The Colosseum in a 1757 engraving by Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Giacobbe Giusti, COLOSSEUM

1747 view by Giovanni Paolo Panini, emphasizing the semi-rural environs of the Colosseum at the time

During the 16th and 17th century, Church officials sought a productive role for the Colosseum. Pope Sixtus V (1585–1590) planned to turn the building into a wool factory to provide employment for Rome’s prostitutes, though this proposal fell through with his premature death.^[22] In 1671 Cardinal Altieri authorized its use for bullfights; a public outcry caused the idea to be hastily abandoned.

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Allied troops consult a guidebook outside the Colosseum after liberation in 1944

In 1749, Pope Benedict XIVendorsed the view that the Colosseum was a sacred site where early Christians had been martyred. He forbade the use of the Colosseum as a quarry and consecrated the building to the Passion of Christ and installed Stations of the Cross, declaring it sanctified by the blood of the Christian martyrs who perished there (see Significance in Christianity). However, there is no historical evidence to support Benedict’s claim, nor is there even any evidence that anyone before the 16th century suggested this might be the case; the Catholic Encyclopediaconcludes that there are no historical grounds for the supposition, other than the reasonably plausible conjecture that some of the many martyrs may well have been.^[23]

Interior of the Colosseum, Rome(1832) by Thomas Cole, showing the Stations of the Cross around the arena and the extensive vegetation

Later popes initiated various stabilization and restoration projects, removing the extensive vegetation which had overgrown the structure and threatened to damage it further. The façade was reinforced with triangular brick wedges in 1807 and 1827, and the interior was repaired in 1831, 1846 and in the 1930s. The arena substructure was partly excavated in 1810–1814 and 1874 and was fully exposed under Benito Mussolini in the 1930s.^[15]

The Colosseum is today one of Rome’s most popular tourist attractions, receiving millions of visitors annually. The effects of pollution and general deterioration over time prompted a major restoration programme carried out between 1993 and 2000, at a cost of 40 billion Italian lire ($19.3m / €20.6m at 2000 prices).

In recent years the Colosseum has become a symbol of the international campaign against capital punishment, which was abolished in Italy in 1948. Several anti–death penalty demonstrations took place in front of the Colosseum in 2000. Since that time, as a gesture against the death penalty, the local authorities of Rome change the color of the Colosseum’s night time illumination from white to gold whenever a person condemned to the death penalty anywhere in the world gets their sentence commuted or is released,^[24] or if a jurisdiction abolishes the death penalty. Most recently, the Colosseum was illuminated in gold in November 2012 following the abolishment of capital punishment in the American state of Connecticut in April 2012.^[25]

Because of the ruined state of the interior, it is impractical to use the Colosseum to host large events; only a few hundred spectators can be accommodated in temporary seating. However, much larger concerts have been held just outside, using the Colosseum as a backdrop. Performers who have played at the Colosseum in recent years have included Ray Charles (May 2002),^[26]Paul McCartney (May 2003),^[27]Elton John (September 2005),^[28] and Billy Joel (July 2006).

The Colosseum today as a background to the busy metropolis

Physical description

Exterior

Original façade of the Colosseum

Unlike earlier Greek theatres that were built into hillsides, the Colosseum is an entirely free-standing structure. It derives its basic exterior and interior architecture from that of two Roman theatres back to back. It is elliptical in plan and is 189 meters (615 ft / 640 Roman feet) long, and 156 meters (510 ft / 528 Roman feet) wide, with a base area of 24,000 square metres (6 acres). The height of the outer wall is 48 meters (157 ft / 165 Roman feet). The perimeter originally measured 545 meters (1,788 ft / 1,835 Roman feet). The central arena is an oval 87 m (287 ft) long and 55 m (180 ft) wide, surrounded by a wall 5 m (15 ft) high, above which rose tiers of seating.

The outer wall is estimated to have required over 100,000 cubic metres (3,531,467 cubic feet) of travertine stone which were set without mortar; they were held together by 300 tons of iron clamps.^[15]However, it has suffered extensive damage over the centuries, with large segments having collapsed following earthquakes. The north side of the perimeter wall is still standing; the distinctive triangular brick wedges at each end are modern additions, having been constructed in the early 19th century to shore up the wall. The remainder of the present-day exterior of the Colosseum is in fact the original interior wall.

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The exterior of the Colosseum, showing the partially intact outer wall (left) and the mostly intact inner wall (center and right)

The surviving part of the outer wall’s monumental façade comprises three stories of superimposedarcadessurmounted by a podium on which stands a tall attic, both of which are pierced by windows interspersed at regular intervals. The arcades are framed by half-columns of the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian orders, while the attic is decorated with Corinthian pilasters.^[29] Each of the arches in the second- and third-floor arcades framed statues, probably honoring divinities and other figures from Classical mythology.

Two hundred and forty mast corbels were positioned around the top of the attic. They originally supported a retractable awning, known as the velarium, that kept the sun and rain off spectators. This consisted of a canvas-covered, net-like structure made of ropes, with a hole in the center.^[4] It covered two-thirds of the arena, and sloped down towards the center to catch the wind and provide a breeze for the audience. Sailors, specially enlisted from the Roman naval headquarters at Misenum and housed in the nearby Castra Misenatium, were used to work the velarium.^[30]

Entrance LII of the Colosseum, with Roman numerals still visible

The Colosseum’s huge crowd capacity made it essential that the venue could be filled or evacuated quickly. Its architects adopted solutions very similar to those used in modern stadiums to deal with the same problem. The amphitheatre was ringed by eighty entrances at ground level, 76 of which were used by ordinary spectators.^[4] Each entrance and exit was numbered, as was each staircase. The northern main entrance was reserved for the Roman Emperor and his aides, whilst the other three axial entrances were most likely used by the elite. All four axial entrances were richly decorated with painted stucco reliefs, of which fragments survive. Many of the original outer entrances have disappeared with the collapse of the perimeter wall, but entrances XXIII (23) to LIV (54) survive.^[15]

Spectators were given tickets in the form of numbered pottery shards, which directed them to the appropriate section and row. They accessed their seats via vomitoria (singular vomitorium), passageways that opened into a tier of seats from below or behind. These quickly dispersed people into their seats and, upon conclusion of the event or in an emergency evacuation, could permit their exit within only a few minutes. The name vomitoria derived from the Latin word for a rapid discharge, from which English derives the word vomit.

Interior seating

The raked areas that once held seating

According to the Codex-Calendar of 354, the Colosseum could accommodate 87,000 people, although modern estimates put the figure at around 50,000. They were seated in a tiered arrangement that reflected the rigidly stratified nature of Roman society. Special boxes were provided at the north and south ends respectively for the Emperor and the Vestal Virgins, providing the best views of the arena. Flanking them at the same level was a broad platform or podium for the senatorialclass, who were allowed to bring their own chairs. The names of some 5th century senators can still be seen carved into the stonework, presumably reserving areas for their use.

Diagram of the levels of seating

The tier above the senators, known as the maenianum primum, was occupied by the non-senatorial noble class or knights (equites). The next level up, the maenianum secundum, was originally reserved for ordinary Roman citizens (plebeians) and was divided into two sections. The lower part (the immum) was for wealthy citizens, while the upper part (the summum) was for poor citizens. Specific sectors were provided for other social groups: for instance, boys with their tutors, soldiers on leave, foreign dignitaries, scribes, heralds, priests and so on. Stone (and later marble) seating was provided for the citizens and nobles, who presumably would have brought their own cushions with them. Inscriptions identified the areas reserved for specific groups.

Another level, the maenianum secundum in legneis, was added at the very top of the building during the reign of Domitian. This comprised a gallery for the common poor, slaves and women. It would have been either standing room only, or would have had very steep wooden benches. Some groups were banned altogether from the Colosseum, notably gravediggers, actors and former gladiators.^[15]

Each tier was divided into sections (maeniana) by curved passages and low walls (praecinctiones or baltei), and were subdivided into cunei, or wedges, by the steps and aisles from the vomitoria. Each row (gradus) of seats was numbered, permitting each individual seat to be exactly designated by its gradus, cuneus, and number.^[31]

Arena and hypogeum

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The Colosseum arena, showing the hypogeum now filled with walls. The walls were added early in the Colosseum’s existence when it was decided it would no longer be flooded and used for naval battles.

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Latin inscription in the Colosseum

The arena itself was 83 meters by 48 meters (272 ft by 157 ft / 280 by 163 Roman feet).^[15] It comprised a wooden floor covered by sand (the Latin word for sand is harena or arena), covering an elaborate underground structure called the hypogeum (literally meaning « underground »). The hypogeum was not part of the original construction but was ordered to be built by Emperor Domitian. Little now remains of the original arena floor, but the hypogeum is still clearly visible. It consisted of a two-level subterranean network of tunnels and cages beneath the arena where gladiators and animals were held before contests began. Eighty vertical shafts provided instant access to the arena for caged animals and scenery pieces concealed underneath; larger hinged platforms, called hegmata, provided access for elephants and the like. It was restructured on numerous occasions; at least twelve different phases of construction can be seen.^[15]

Detail of the hypogeum

The hypogeum was connected by underground tunnels to a number of points outside the Colosseum. Animals and performers were brought through the tunnel from nearby stables, with the gladiators’ barracks at the Ludus Magnus to the east also being connected by tunnels. Separate tunnels were provided for the Emperor and the Vestal Virgins to permit them to enter and exit the Colosseum without needing to pass through the crowds.^[15]

Substantial quantities of machinery also existed in the hypogeum. Elevators and pulleys raised and lowered scenery and props, as well as lifting caged animals to the surface for release. There is evidence for the existence of major hydraulic mechanisms^[15] and according to ancient accounts, it was possible to flood the arena rapidly, presumably via a connection to a nearby aqueduct. However, the construction of the hypogeum at Domitian’s behest put an end to the practise of flooding, and thus also to naval battles, early in the Colosseum’s existence.

Supporting buildings

The Colosseum – a view from the Oppian Hill

The Colosseum and its activities supported a substantial industry in the area. In addition to the amphitheatre itself, many other buildings nearby were linked to the games. Immediately to the east is the remains of the Ludus Magnus, a training school for gladiators. This was connected to the Colosseum by an underground passage, to allow easy access for the gladiators. The Ludus Magnus had its own miniature training arena, which was itself a popular attraction for Roman spectators. Other training schools were in the same area, including the Ludus Matutinus(Morning School), where fighters of animals were trained, plus the Dacian and Gallic Schools.

Also nearby were the Armamentarium, comprising an armory to store weapons; the Summum Choragium, where machinery was stored; the Sanitarium, which had facilities to treat wounded gladiators; and the Spoliarium, where bodies of dead gladiators were stripped of their armor and disposed of.

Around the perimeter of the Colosseum, at a distance of 18 m (59 ft) from the perimeter, was a series of tall stone posts, with five remaining on the eastern side. Various explanations have been advanced for their presence; they may have been a religious boundary, or an outer boundary for ticket checks, or an anchor for the velarium or awning.^[15]

Right next to the Colosseum is also the Arch of Constantine.

Use

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Pollice Verso (Thumbs Down) by Jean-Léon Gérôme, 1872

The Colosseum was used to host gladiatorial shows as well as a variety of other events. The shows, called munera, were always given by private individuals rather than the state. They had a strong religious element but were also demonstrations of power and family prestige, and were immensely popular with the population. Another popular type of show was the animal hunt, or venatio. This utilized a great variety of wild beasts, mainly imported from Africa and the Middle East, and included creatures such as rhinoceros, hippopotamuses, elephants, giraffes, aurochs, wisents, Barbary lions, panthers, leopards, bears, Caspian tigers, crocodilesand ostriches. Battles and hunts were often staged amid elaborate sets with movable trees and buildings. Such events were occasionally on a huge scale; Trajan is said to have celebrated his victories in Dacia in 107 with contests involving 11,000 animals and 10,000 gladiators over the course of 123 days. During lunch intervals, executions ad bestias would be staged. Those condemned to death would be sent into the arena, naked and unarmed, to face the beasts of death which would literally tear them to pieces. Other performances would also take place by acrobats and magicians, typically during the intervals.

During the early days of the Colosseum, ancient writers recorded that the building was used for naumachiae (more properly known as navalia proelia) or simulated sea battles. Accounts of the inaugural games held by Titus in AD 80 describe it being filled with water for a display of specially trained swimming horses and bulls. There is also an account of a re-enactment of a famous sea battle between the Corcyrean (Corfiot) Greeks and the Corinthians. This has been the subject of some debate among historians; although providing the water would not have been a problem, it is unclear how the arena could have been waterproofed, nor would there have been enough space in the arena for the warships to move around. It has been suggested that the reports either have the location wrong, or that the Colosseum originally featured a wide floodable channel down its central axis (which would later have been replaced by the hypogeum).^[15]

Sylvae or recreations of natural scenes were also held in the arena. Painters, technicians and architects would construct a simulation of a forest with real trees and bushes planted in the arena’s floor, and animals would then be introduced. Such scenes might be used simply to display a natural environment for the urban population, or could otherwise be used as the backdrop for hunts or dramas depicting episodes from mythology. They were also occasionally used for executions in which the hero of the story – played by a condemned person – was killed in one of various gruesome but mythologically authentic ways, such as being mauled by beasts or burned to death.

Today

A panorama of the interior of the Colosseum in 2016

The Colosseum today is now a major tourist attraction in Rome with thousands of tourists each year paying to view the interior arena, though entrance for citizens of the European Union (EU) is partially subsidised, and entrance is free for EU citizens under eighteen or over sixty-five years of age.^[32] There is now a museum dedicated to Eros located in the upper floor of the outer wall of the building. Part of the arena floor has been re-floored. Beneath the Colosseum, a network of subterranean passageways once used to transport wild animals and gladiators to the arena opened to the public in summer 2010.^[33]

The Colosseum is also the site of Roman Catholic ceremonies in the 20th and 21st centuries. For instance, Pope Benedict XVI led the Stations of the Cross called the Scriptural Way of the Cross (which calls for more meditation) at the Colosseum^[34][35] on Good Fridays.^[9]

Restoration

In 2011 Diego Della Valle, head of the shoe firm Tod’s, entered into an agreement with local officials to sponsor a €25 million restoration of the Colosseum. Work was planned to begin at the end of 2011, taking up to two and a half years.^[36] Due to the controversial nature of using a public–private partnership to fund the restoration, work was delayed and began in 2013. As of 2014 the restoration is estimated to be complete by 2016. The restoration is the first full cleaning and repair in the Colosseum’s history.^[37] The first stage is to clean and restore the Colosseum’s arcaded façade and replace the metal enclosures that block the ground-level arches. The project plans to create a services center and to restore the galleries and underground spaces inside the Colosseum, including recreating the wooden floor that once covered the underground spaces.^[38]

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Significance in Christianity

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The Christian Martyrs’ Last Prayer, by Jean-Léon Gérôme (1883)

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View of the interior of the Colosseum, by C. W. Eckersberg(1815)

The Colosseum is generally regarded by Christians as a site of the martyrdom of large numbers of believers during the persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire, as evidenced by Church history and tradition.^[39][40][41] On the other hand, other scholars believe that the majority of martyrdoms may have occurred at other venues within the city of Rome, rather than at the Colosseum, citing a lack of still-intact physical evidence or historical records.^[42][43] These scholars assert that « some Christians were executed as common criminals in the Colosseum—their crime being refusal to reverence the Roman gods », but most Christian martyrs of the early Church were executed for their faith at the Circus Maximus.^[44][45] According to Irenæus (died about 202), Ignatius of Antioch was fed to the lions in Rome around 107 A.D and although Irenaeus says nothing about this happening at the Colosseum, tradition ascribes it to that place.^{[46][47][48][49]}

In the Middle Ages, the Colosseum was not regarded as a monument, and was used as what some modern sources label a « quarry, »^[50]which is to say that stones from the Colosseum were taken for the building of other sacred sites.^[51] This fact is used to support the idea that, at a time when sites associated with martyrs were highly venerated the Colosseum was not being treated as a sacred site.^[52] It was not included in the itineraries compiled for the use of pilgrims nor in works such as the 12th century Mirabilia Urbis Romae (« Marvels of the City of Rome »), which claims the Circus Flaminius – but not the Colosseum – as the site of martyrdoms.^[53] Part of the structure was inhabited by a Christian religious order, but it is not known whether this was for any particular religious reason.

Pope Pius V (1566–1572) is said to have recommended that pilgrims gather sand from the arena of the Colosseum to serve as a relic, on the grounds that it was impregnated with the blood of martyrs, although some of his contemporaries did not share his conviction.^[54] A century later Fioravante Martinelli listed the Colosseum at the head of a list of places sacred to the martyrs in his 1653 book Roma ex ethnica sacra. Martinelli’s book evidently had an effect on public opinion; in response to Cardinal Altieri’s proposal some years later to turn the Colosseum into a bullring, Carlo Tomassi published a pamphlet in protest against what he regarded as an act of desecration. The ensuing controversy persuaded Pope Clement X to close the Colosseum’s external arcades and declare it a sanctuary.^[55]

 

 

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Cross dedicated to the Christian martyrs, placed in 2000 by Pope John Paul II.

At the insistence of St. Leonard of Port Maurice, Pope Benedict XIV (1740–1758) forbade the quarrying of the Colosseum and erected Stations of the Cross around the arena, which remained until February 1874.^[56]Benedict Joseph Labre spent the later years of his life within the walls of the Colosseum, living on alms, before he died in 1783.^[56] Several 19th century popes funded repair and restoration work on the Colosseum, and it still retains its Christian connection today. A Christian cross stands in the Colosseum, with a plaque, stating:

The amphitheater, one consecrated to triumphs, entertainments, and the impious worship of pagan gods, is now dedicated to the sufferings of the martyrs purified from impious superstitions.^[46]

Other Christian crosses stand in several points around the arena and every Good Friday the Pope leads a Via Crucis procession to the amphitheater.

Flora

Plants on the inner walls of the Colosseum

The Colosseum has a wide and well-documented history of flora ever since Domenico Panaroli made the first catalogue of its plants in 1643. Since then, 684 species have been identified there. The peak was in 1855 (420 species). Attempts were made in 1871 to eradicate the vegetation, because of concerns over the damage that was being caused to the masonry, but much of it has returned.^[15] 242 species have been counted today and of the species first identified by Panaroli, 200 remain.

The variation of plants can be explained by the change of climate in Rome through the centuries. Additionally, bird migration, flower blooming, and the growth of Rome that caused the Colosseum to become embedded within the modern city centre rather than on the outskirts of the ancient city, as well as deliberate transport of species, are also contributing causes. One other romantic reason often given is their seeds being unwittingly transported on the animals brought there from all corners of the empire.

Works modeled on, or inspired by, the Colosseum

• The Kongresshalle, or « Congress Hall », (1935, unfinished) at the Nazi Party Rally grounds, Nuremberg, Germany
• The Summer Olympic Gamesmedal from 1928 to 2000, designed by Giuseppe Cassioli, features a depiction of the Colosseum. At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens the Colosseum was replaced by a depiction of the Panathinaiko Stadium
• The exterior of the Vancouver Public Library in British Columbiaresembles the current state of the Colosseum. It was designed by Moshe Safdie.
• The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum entrance was inspired by the Colosseum.
• The Palazzo della Civilta Italiana was very closely modelled on the Colosseum. It was built for Mussolini for the Universal Exhibition of 1942 but the exhibition never happened due to the outbreak of World War II. The architects were Giovanni Guerrini, Ernesto Bruno La Padula, and Mario Romano.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colosseum

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