Colosseum

30 Exciting Facts about the Colosseum

1. Location: The Colosseum rises in the very heart of Rome, on the edge of the ancient city center. Just beside it stand the Arch of Constantine and the Roman Forum, two of the most striking monuments of Roman history.
2. Significance: The Colosseum is the largest amphitheater ever built, designed to hold up to 80,000 spectators. Today it is one of the world’s most iconic landmarks and a symbol of both Rome and Italy.
3. Seven Wonders: In 2007, the Colosseum was voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in a global poll organized by the New7Wonders Foundation. The initiative was launched by Swiss filmmaker Bernard Weber, and millions of people cast their votes online, by phone, or via text message. The results were officially announced on July 7, 2007, in Lisbon.
4. Predecessor structure: Before the Colosseum was built, the site was occupied by an artificial lake created by Emperor Nero as part of his lavish palace complex, the Domus Aurea. After the Great Fire of 64 AD, he turned the area into a private pleasure ground with gardens, pavilions, and a colossal statue. It was Emperor Vespasian who drained the lake to construct an amphitheater for the Roman people.
5. Construction history: Emperor Vespasian likely commissioned the Colosseum around 70 AD at the start of his reign, seeking to distance himself from the unpopular Nero. The design drew inspiration from earlier amphitheaters in Capua and Verona. The building was completed in 80 AD by his son Titus, who had succeeded him after his death. Under Domitian, Vespasian’s younger son and Titus’s brother, the Colosseum was expanded with new facilities for a wider range of shows, as well as a wooden upper tier reserved for women and the poor.
6. Building materials: The Colosseum was built with vast amounts of travertine, tuff, brick, and concrete. The travertine came from quarries near Tivoli, about 20 kilometers from Rome, and was hauled in on ox-drawn carts along specially prepared roads. It was used for the façade and main pillars, while concrete shaped the interior vaults, stairways, corridors, and support structures. Enriched with volcanic ash, this Roman concrete was exceptionally resistant to cracks and greatly contributed to the building’s longevity.
7. Workforce: Much of the Colosseum’s construction relied on the forced labor of Jewish prisoners captured during the Jewish War (66–73 AD), along with slaves from across the empire. They carried out the hardest physical work, making the rapid completion of the monument possible. Roman architects and engineers oversaw the project, with logistical support from the army.
8. Financing: The Colosseum was financed not through taxes, but with treasures seized during the Jewish War. The historian Suetonius describes the riches taken from the Temple in Jerusalem and brought to Rome. A striking reminder of this is the Arch of Titus, which shows soldiers carrying the seven-branched candelabrum, silver trumpets, and other sacred objects through the streets of the city.
9. Opening celebration: In 80 AD, Emperor Titus inaugurated the Colosseum with an extraordinary festival that ancient sources claim lasted 100 days. During this period, crowds witnessed gladiator combats, animal hunts, and lavish spectacles. Whether the games were staged on every single day remains uncertain, but the opening went down as one of the greatest events in Roman history.
10. Gladiatorial games: Gladiator contests at the Colosseum were the most spectacular entertainments of ancient Rome. Slaves, prisoners of war, and even volunteers fought in carefully staged duels, armed with weapons such as swords, nets, or tridents. The battles were extremely dangerous but not always fatal. The fate of a defeated fighter was usually decided by the sponsor of the games—often the emperor or a senior magistrate—who often took cues from the shouts and gestures of the crowd. Some gladiators achieved immense fame and, in rare cases, even earned their freedom.
11. Origins of gladiatorial games: Gladiator combat did not originate in Rome but among the Etruscans of central Italy and the Campanians of southern Italy. At the funerals of prominent men, prisoners were forced to fight, their blood offered as a sacrifice to honor the dead. Rome adopted this custom in the 3rd century BC, reshaping it from a religious ritual into a public spectacle.
12. Animal hunts: Animal hunts were a staple of the Colosseum’s program, usually staged in the morning before the gladiator games. Specially trained fighters faced exotic beasts brought from across the empire, including lions, bears, elephants, and rhinoceroses. Sometimes animals were even set against each other, such as lions against bears or rhinoceroses against bulls.
13. Naval battles: The first mock naval battle at the Colosseum took place during its opening in 80 AD under Emperor Titus. At that time, the arena floor could be flooded so that small ships could reenact historic sea fights. However, the clay-and-masonry base quickly leaked, and the water soon drained away. Under Domitian, the construction of the hypogeum permanently changed the arena floor, making such spectacles impossible. Later, naval battles were staged on artificial lakes outside the city. How large these shows were, and how often they occurred, is still debated.
14. Public executions: Public executions were a regular feature of the schedule, usually held in the morning before the animal hunts. The condemned were killed in brutal fashion—by crucifixion, burning, or being thrown to wild beasts. These punishments were often staged as theatrical performances, complete with scenery and effects that emphasized their gruesome nature.
15. Spectators: Entry to the Colosseum was free for all Roman citizens, paid for by emperors or wealthy magistrates eager to display their generosity. Seating followed a strict hierarchy, from the emperor in his private box down to women and the city’s poorest residents in the highest tiers. Many spectators brought their own food, and archaeologists have found remains of bread, olives, figs, and wine. Leftovers were often discarded on the ground, and during long events the stench became unbearable.
16. Dimensions: The Colosseum has an elliptical footprint measuring 188 meters long and 156 meters wide. With a circumference of 527 meters and an original height of 52 meters, it was among the tallest buildings of the ancient world. The arena itself measured 86 by 54 meters, built on a wooden platform covered with a thick layer of sand. The sand absorbed blood and allowed for quick cleaning. The Latin word for sand, harena, is the origin of the modern word “arena.”
17. The end of the games: Events at the Colosseum slowly came to an end as funding became scarce and the empire’s political order crumbled. Gladiatorial combat was banned in 404 AD by Emperor Honorius after Christianity denounced it as cruel and immoral. Animal hunts continued for a while longer, with the last recorded event taking place in 523 AD under Theoderic the Great. This brought to a close a tradition that had shaped Roman public life for more than four centuries.
18. Hypogeum: The hypogeum was an underground maze of corridors, cages, and lifts built beneath the Colosseum by Emperor Domitian at the end of the 1st century AD. Here, gladiators, animals, and stage sets were prepared and then brought dramatically into the arena through trapdoors and hoists. With its narrow chambers, cages, and advanced stage technology, the hypogeum turned the games into perfectly choreographed shows that constantly astonished the audience.
19. Religious rituals: The games were not only entertainment but also carried a religious significance. Before the performances began, gladiators, musicians, priests, and statues of the gods entered the arena in a solemn procession, accompanied by sacrifices to Jupiter, Mars, or Nemesis. Even the death of a gladiator could be seen as a ritual offering, meant to honor the gods and place the people under divine protection. With the Christianization of Rome, this religious framework gradually lost its meaning.
20. Efficient organization: Admission to the Colosseum was managed with small pottery shards used as tickets, each marked with the assigned entrance and seat. In total, there were about 80 entrances, including four richly decorated gates reserved for the emperor and his distinguished guests. Thanks to a highly sophisticated system of corridors, the so-called vomitoria, tens of thousands of visitors could find their seats or exit the amphitheater within minutes—a principle still used in modern stadiums today.
21. Statues: The arcades of the Colosseum once displayed numerous statues, likely representing gods, mythical heroes, imperial symbols, and emperors. Each of the three arcaded levels had 80 arches, leaving space for as many as 240 figures. These statues were probably three to five meters tall and made of marble or bronze. Over the centuries, most were melted down or reused as building material.
22. Velarium: A giant awning, known as the velarium, could be stretched over the upper tiers of the Colosseum to shade around two-thirds of the seats. It consisted of enormous linen sails fastened to about 240 masts. Operated through an intricate system of ropes and winches, it was managed by skilled sailors of the Roman fleet.
23. Decay: The Colosseum was badly damaged in the 5th and 6th centuries and later by the great earthquake of 1349, which caused large sections of the outer walls to collapse. What had once been a dazzling monument was reduced to a massive ruin. From the late Middle Ages through the 17th century, it served as a quarry, supplying marble, travertine, and iron for the construction of palaces, churches, and fountains across Rome.
24. Dwelling place: From the 9th century onward, people settled inside the Colosseum, turning parts of the structure into homes, workshops, and even stables. Small houses were built within the arches, and several churches were also added. After devastating earthquakes in the 14th century, much of the structure collapsed, and by the 16th century the Colosseum was no longer used as a place of residence.
25. Sacred site: In 1744, Pope Benedict XIV declared the Colosseum a holy site, believing it to be a place of Christian martyrdom. A martyr is someone who refuses to renounce their faith despite persecution and even death. Because many believed for centuries that Christians had been executed here, the pope had a cross erected in the arena, introduced the Stations of the Cross, and permanently banned the removal of stone. His decree ultimately saved the monument from further destruction.
26. Exotic plants: In the 17th century, botanists found more than 300 plant species growing in the Colosseum, many of them unknown in Rome. One explanation is that seeds of exotic plants were carried in by animals brought from Africa and Asia for the games. The arena thus became an unintended botanical garden, although most of these plants have since disappeared due to restoration and maintenance.
27. Death penalty: Since 1999, the Colosseum has stood as a worldwide symbol against capital punishment. Whenever a country abolishes the death penalty or suspends an execution, the monument is lit up in color for 48 hours.
28. Gigantic statue of Nero: Next to the Colosseum once stood a bronze statue over 30 meters tall, originally commissioned by Nero as a monument to himself. After his death, it was reworked into an image of the sun god and moved beside the amphitheater by Emperor Hadrian with the help of 24 elephants. In the Middle Ages, the statue vanished, most likely melted down.
29. Origin of the name: The structure was originally known as the Amphitheatrum Flavium, named after the Flavian dynasty that built it. The name “Colosseum” first appeared in the 8th century, referring to Nero’s colossal statue that had once stood nearby—though it was already gone by then. People began calling it “the amphitheater by the colossus,” from which the name Colosseum eventually derived.
30. UNESCO World Heritage: Since 1980, the Colosseum has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site “Historic Centre of Rome.” This protected area also includes world-famous landmarks such as the Roman Forum, the Imperial Fora, the Circus Maximus, the Trevi Fountain, and the Spanish Steps.