"A noble wreck in ruinous perfection."--BYRON.
The vast amphitheatre erected in the centre of ancient Rome by
Vespasian was known to the ancient Romans as the Flavian Amphitheatre.
It was begun by the Flavian emperors A.D. 72, and dedicated A.D. 80.
It is 157 feet high, and is 1900 feet in circumference, and was built
by the captive Jews after the fall of Jerusalem. Originally the upper
story was of wood, but this was burned down, and it was rebuilt with
travertine stone like the rest of the edifice. Martial tells us that
its site was formerly occupied by the artificial lakes of Nero; and
Marcellinus (xvi. x. 14) says, "The vast masses of the amphitheatre so
solidly erected of Tiburtine stone, to the top of which human vision
can scarcely reach." All the brickwork we now see are repairs at
various dates after the dedication; but there is enough travertine
left at different points to show that it was originally built of this
stone, as recorded by the historian. For nearly five hundred years it
was the popular resort of the Roman populace and their betters. There
were eighty arches of entrance, and it held one hundred thousand
people, and could be emptied in ten minutes; such were the order kept
and regulations observed that there was no confusion. It was devoted
to the exhibition of wild beasts, their fighting together, gladiators
fighting together, or with beasts, and naval fights. On these latter
displays the stage or arena was moved, water let in, and naval fights
represented in real earnest.
Suetonius ("Vespasian," vii.), says, "He began an amphitheatre in the
middle of the city, upon finding that Augustus had projected such a
work." _Ibid._ ("Titus," vi.): "He entertained the people with most
magnificent spectacles, and in one day brought into the amphitheatre
five thousand wild beasts of all kinds."
The last display was given by Theodoric in 523; and in 555 the lower
part was destroyed by a flood from the Tiber, when the whole of Rome
was under water for seven days. From then we must date the ruin of the
Flavian Amphitheatre--the Romans themselves hastening on the work,
using the material for building purposes.
"Which on its public shows unpeopled Rome,
And held uncrowded nations in its womb."--JUVENAL.
It is held by the Roman Church, on the authority of an inscription
found in the Catacombs, that the architect of the Colosseum was one
Gaudentius; but that inscription only says that he was employed there.
We believe the architect to have been Aterius, whose monument is now
in the Lateran, and upon which several buildings are represented of
which he was no doubt the architect, also the machine used to raise
the stones into their places. He flourished at the end of the first
century, and, no doubt, these buildings shown in relief upon his tomb
were erected by him, the dates agreeing; for if not, why should they
be there represented?
First, we have an arch which says on it, "Arcus ad Isis." Now if we
compare this with the Arch of Constantine, we find it is the same
without the attic. Then we have the amphitheatre without the upper
story; then an arch (query, Arch of Domitian?). Then another arch with
the words, "Arcus in Sacra Via Summa:" compare this with the Arch of
Titus, and, minus the restorations, it will be found to be the same.
Then there is a temple agreeing with the descriptions of that of
Jupiter Stator upon the Palatine. All these buildings were erected or
rebuilt about this time, and from being recorded on this monument of
the Aterii, tend to show that Aterius was the architect of them.
When perfect, the Colosseum consisted of four stories--the lowest, of
the Doric order, 30 feet high; the second, Ionic, 38 feet high; the
third, Corinthian, about the same height; and the fourth, also
Corinthian, 44 feet high. The holes in the cornice with the corbels
below them were to receive the masts that supported the _velaria_ on
the outside.
The numerous holes in the stone were made in the middle ages for the
purpose of extracting the iron cramps that kept the stones from
shifting. The long diameter is 658 feet, the shorter 558 feet; the
arena is 298 feet by 177 in its widest part.
The last performance was a bull-fight, held at the expense of the
Roman nobles, in the year 1332. Many martyrs are said to have perished
in the Colosseum during the persecutions of the early Christians, and
among others S. Ignatius, who was brought from Antioch to be devoured
by wild beasts. Benedict XIV. consecrated the building to the
Christian martyrs, A.D. 1750.
In excavating the Basilica of S. Clement, the Rev. Father Mullooly
found (1870) the remains of S. Ignatius, and had them carried with
great ceremony over the scene on the anniversary of his martyrdom.
At the present day there remains sufficient to indicate the
construction of the building, though but a small portion of the
immense outer shell, which originally both adorned and formed an
impenetrable girdle round the whole, has been preserved. In the
interior, a great deal of rebuilding has been necessary for its
preservation.
Vast as the building is, its construction is easily understood; a
simple segment of the whole serving to show how all the others succeed
one another like the cells of a bee-hive.
[Illustration: THE COLOSSEUM.]
The upper part was originally of wood only, and was burned, having
been set on fire by lightning. The three lower stories only are of the
time of the Flavian emperors; the upper story was rebuilt and added in
the third century, and only finished in the time of the Gordiani, as
is shown by the coins representing it. The imperial entrance was from
the Esquiline side, between the arches Nos. 38, 39, which is without
number. Commodus constructed an underground passage from the arena to
the Palatine, which has not yet been discovered, his so-called passage
(_on the right in entering_) being that by which the dead bodies were
carried from the arena. Dion Cassius says: "Upon the last day of the
sports his helmet was taken off and fell through the door where the
dead used to be carried out."
The area, basement, or ground-floor, was flooded for the naval fights.
Surrounding this were the dens, in front of which was a channel for
fresh water for supplying the animals with drink--a spring still
supplies it; about ten feet above was the movable stage, sprinkled
with sand for the combats, and hence called the arena. A few feet
above the arena was the podium, or seat of the emperor, vestal
virgins, &c., protected from the arena by iron bars. Behind the podium
was a double portico, which ran round the whole building. Fragments of
the marble chimeras, with long wings, that ornamented the seats of the
podium have been found.
The three successive tiers were called _cavea_. Above these was a tier
for the people; above this one for the "gods;" thus making six in all.
The amphitheatre seated eighty-seven thousand people, and there was
standing room for thirteen thousand more.
The walls standing upon the area, composed of tufa, travertine, and
brick, old material re-used, were built at a period long after the
building was dedicated, when the naval fights being abandoned there
was no longer any occasion for a movable stage or arena as before.
They contained the machinery for the stage above, and for the lifts or
_pegmata_ to send men or beasts from the area to the arena. Probably
these are the walls thus alluded to by Dion Cassius: "He [Commodus]
divided the theatre into four parts by two partitions that cut through
diametrically, and by right angles, to the end that from the galleries
that were round about he might with greater ease single out the beasts
he aimed at."
[Illustration: PLAN OF THE EXCAVATIONS BELOW THE ARENA OF THE
COLOSSEUM.]
"The emperor having employed himself in shooting from above ...
descended afterwards to the bottom of the theatre, and there slew some
other private beasts, whereof some made toward him, others were
brought to him, and others were shut up in dens. Returning after
dinner, he used the exercises of a gladiator, with a shield in his
right hand, and in his left a wooden sword. After him fought those
whom he had chosen in the morning at the bottom of the theatre."
Also, in his life of Septimius Severus, he says: "There was a kind of
cloister made in the amphitheatre, in the form of a ship, to receive
them [the wild beasts]. On a sudden there issued out bears, lions,
ostriches, wild asses, and foreign bulls."
The walls before us are of very bad construction, evidently repairs of
a late date: they are the work of either Lampridius, prefect of Rome
under Valentinian III., 425-455, who repaired the steps and renewed
the arena; or of Basilius, who restored the podium and arena after
their destruction by an earthquake in 486--this we learn from two
inscriptions standing at the entrance. Half way, on each side, two
large passages have been discovered choked up with mud: they were the
aqueducts to bring the water for the _naumachiæ_ from the reservoirs
upon the Esquiline and Cælian Hills respectively; from the small
openings in the blind arches the water also poured out over the top of
the dens, thus forming cascades all round. At the end opposite the
present entrance a long passage has been opened, above the level of
the area floor; below this passage is the great drain, with the
remains of the iron grating[6] to prevent large objects going down:
this and the passage were closed by flood-gates on naval
representations, which can be clearly seen in the construction. On the
right and left of this passage, connected with it, but at a lower
level, two dens have been cleared out, 27 yards long by 5 wide,
containing six holes in the floor, in the centre of square blocks of
stone, and these holes are faced with bronze, evidently the sockets
into which metal posts were fixed to which the beasts were chained. On
the fragments depicting scenes from the arena, the animals are shown
with a long piece of rope or chain dangling from their necks, which
seems to bear out our idea that they were attached to posts fixed in
these sockets, and that as they were wanted the chain or rope was cut,
and they were free to rush upon the arena.
The corbels round the front of the line of arches under the podium are
in pairs, and between them the masts were inserted to support the
awning on the inside, as the holes and corbels supported the masts on
the outside; for we find on examination that those inside are exactly
in a line with those outside at the top of the building. These corbels
are 29 inches deep, and from them to the level of the area is 10 feet,
and to the present surface 11 feet; between each pair of corbels are
chases 19½ inches wide, ending on a block of travertine for the masts
to rest on, the chases coming down 1½ yards below the corbels, which
are 15 feet apart. They probably helped to support the arena, and
show what the height of this wooden arena must have been, and that
from its vast size it must have had a framework and supports: the
numerous holes on the area, in travertine, were for the heels of the
supports; one of these, a square one, has remains of the decayed
timber in it.
In the central passage, resting on the area and extending as far as
the excavations, is an ancient wooden framework in a decomposed state.
Various suggestions have been made as to its use,--we suppose it to be
the framework and joists of the flooring covering the central passage;
others, a sort of tramway for running the cages along,--but till the
whole space has been cleared out it is impossible to arrive at a
correct estimate of its use.
Honorius, A.D. 404, having abolished the gladiatorial combats,
probably the last display of wild beasts was that given by King
Theodoric at the beginning of the sixth century.
The soil cleared out in the passage, dens, galleries, and area was
found to be composed of mud deposited during a flood or floods by the
Tiber, the composition of which may still be seen in parts of the long
passage not yet cleared. The most remarkable of these floods, which
lasted some days and did immense damage to the city, were those of
A.D. 555, 590, 725, 778, 1476, 1530, 1557, and 1598.
We may presume, from the nature of the soil, that at some early date,
probably A.D. 555, one of those terrible floods reached the Colosseum,
and on the waters retiring a great deposit of mud was left, covering
the old area floor and filling up the various passages and galleries,
and that the authorities, instead of clearing out this deposit, added
to it to make a solid floor, and used the arena above; for after that
date we have no record of its being used, with the exception of the
bull-fight.
_By applying to the custodian, the visitor can ascend to the top_,
where a most magnificent view is enjoyed, the only way to get a good
idea of its size and oval shape, and where the construction of the
upper galleries can be studied. It will be seen that the arches
forming the tiers of seats have at some date been filled in with
brickwork, of the time of Alexander Severus and the Gordiani. The
water-courses for keeping the building cool in hot weather can also be
traced. The highest wall of all, the inside brick casing of which is
partly gone, is built of fragments evidently not originally intended
for the purpose for which they are used, corresponding to a great
extent with the construction of the walls upon the area.
The Colosseum was for a long time used as a quarry, from which several
of the palaces in Rome were built.
Should the visitor be fortunate enough to see the ruin under
moonlight, or when it is illuminated with Bengal lights, he will see
it in its grandeur, for "it will not bear the brightness of the day."
[Illustration: _SECTION OF SEATS AND ARCHES OF THE COLOSSEUM._]