The Roman Colosseum has been a massive architecture accomplishment and a spectacle to visit since the day it began construction at about 70 A.D. to 80 A.D. At the time of its construction, the Roman society was becoming a dominant power throughout the world and Rome itself was an urban city with a growing population. This growing population needed a theater for entertainment purposes, as the idea of the colosseum was born. A grand amphitheater measuring 620 by 513 feet, the colosseum became the largest in the Roman world as a free-standing structure made of concrete and stone. The colosseum was not dug into a hillside like many of its predecessors, it was built on a concrete foundation. Piers supported the concrete vaults that served to support …show more content…
With the massive amount of people gathering here, there needed to be a vast amount of entrances and paths to access all the areas of the colosseum. Spectators had to enter the colosseum through the ground level but to gain access to the many levels they had to use one of two annular corridors and then use a set of three stories of stairs. In my opinion, the pathways formed a rather acceptable way of travel through the colosseum. The stage area consisted of wooden planks which could be removed, and the area underneath could be flooded with water. Audiences caught sight of gladiator combats, hunts, wild animal fights and other larger combats in the colosseum. With the technology and the design capabilities of the time, the Colosseum plan and design was a successful one even if the spectators may have had minimal room. The seating was raised all around as so everyone could see the center from all directions, the flow of traffic was sufficient for everyone to travel throughout the arena, and the structure could withstand the massive amount of gravity loads and lateral loads stressed unto it for many years. As I stated earlier, the façade of the colosseum gave viewers and bystanders a clear representation that this structure was for a large number of people to gather for a form of entertainment as well as create an esthetically pleasing sight in the Roman
Rome’s most famous landmark, Colosseum is a large Amphitheatre that could hold up to 50,000 people seated, which is located in Rome, Italy. The Colosseum was used as a royal treat, entertainment where gladiators would fight with wild beast in front of people, animal hunt, theatre performances and public executions for public entertainment and also the King himself. Most of the public event was held at Colosseum. The Roman Colosseum was built between 69 to 79 CE by the Vespasian emperor.
Two positives of the Colosseum are it was a gift to the people and it entertain the people. The negatives is that it was human vs. human and human vs. animals
When discussing the historical and cultural aspects it is important to take into consideration the culture, religion, political, social, economic and artistic aspects of the time period.The construction of the Colosseum occurred during the Flavian Dynasty, between 69 CE to 96 CE. The construction of this massive amphitheater began in 70 CE under the reign of emperor Vespasian and ended sometime around 80 CE under the reign of his son Titus (Vespasian, 2013). During this time period Vespasian was greatly known for his reorganization of the army and the expansion of the membership of the senate, which ultimately dealt with the political, economic and military aspect of the Roman history and culture.
seating and the easiest access to the Colosseum. Even though many people think that the
The Parthenon is an amazing Greek temple that was built 2,500 years ago. Even the architects of today have numerous questions about how it was constructed and how it has held up through its eventful past. The Parthenon's detailed appearance is not its only meaningful quality. The Parthenon was constructed as a temple to the goddess, Athena, and as an icon of the Greek people themselves. The Parthenon represents the Greek ideals of humanism, idealism, and rationalism.
The foundation of Greek culture was balance, reason, and harmony which can be unveiled in their art. As the civilization heavily revolved around religion, massive temples were built to serve the Gods. Greeks believed in many Gods, meaning they had polytheistic views . This notion of polytheism passed down to the Romans who adopted nearly the exact same deities and built similar architecture as well. One of the most famous buildings of worship was the Greek Parthenon built around 447-432 B.C.E, worshipping the goddess Athena . While building these brilliant pieces of art, concepts regarding laws and the natural world from philosophers were being incorporated in the structure. Pillars were often built in temples and various buildings in both Greek and Roman cultures. Doric, ionic, and Corinthian stand as the main three pillars built; each of them becomes increasingly more elaborate by order. For example, the Corinthian was the most intricate. Romans quickly developed a taste for this form of architecture and incorporated into theirs later on. The Romans however were very inventive, and began to develop the arch, vault and dome to add to what they emulated from the Greeks. Using these elements the Romans built what is known as the Coliseum, built over a 10 year span from around 70 AD to 80 AD. The Coliseum was said to hold 50,000 spectators and was used for entertainment
Have you ever felt insignificant while standing in front of a monumental building that you have seen in small images of your history book? No one could imagine the atmosphere and physical beauty inside the most beautiful structures in the world, the Pantheon and the Florence cathedral. While sitting at the fountain in front of the Pantheon, one can see the huge columns rising towards the entablature and the walls curving behind to form a cylinder. Although the exterior of the pantheon could look majestic, the interior is just as breathtaking. The first thing someone does when they enter the Pantheon is to look up at the coffered dome and the oculus. The important feature that seemed impossible to have been built during the time that the Pantheon
The Roman Empire was one of the foremost powers in the ancient world, a grand civilization that held dominion over its land for roughly five hundred years until its decline in 476AD. During their reign, many Roman buildings were constructed around their empire, in colonies such as Africa, France, and Syria. Many of these constructions were amphitheatres. An amphitheatre is an open-air arena for the entertainment of the audience, for executions and performances. Named for its shape (that of two theatres facing each other) and ‘theatre’ as ‘place for viewing.’
The Colosseum is an important part of ancient Roman history. The amphitheater is a symbol of Roman culture. The Colosseum displayed the violence of Roman culture. This incredibly unique amphitheater dominated the city of Rome. It was one of the most innovative and complex structures during that time period. The vastness of this impressive building displayed the wealth and power of the Roman Empire to other empires and enemies of the Romans. The Colosseum was created for public entertainment purposes. Gladiator fights with prisoners of war and slaves, wild animal hunts, professional fights, and public executions all took place at the Colosseum. Sea battles, rarely performed at the Colosseum, involved flooding the arena with water and releasing sharks for gladiators to fight. The excitement and thrill of each event kept spectators coming back.
As with the open windows around the structure, giving a peak of what 's inside. The Colosseum is a significant amphitheater as the arena is only made of sand not like your typical arena. The sand is used in the arena for the gladiator fight and wild animal attack giving a more intimidating scene. The Colosseum is powerful for this violent event which were very popular in the ancient time. From the rich important people to the poor can come to the Colosseum and enjoy the violent show. The location of the Colosseum is significant as it is in the center of the city of Rome, Italy. Where the whole city has access to wonderful structure and admire the building, as it is a monument to the ancient
With the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D and the ending of the construction process, Titus formally dedicated the Colosseum in honor of his father and hosted a splendid show including 100 days of games. The Roman citizens were soon addicted to the gladiatorial shows, and the new age of entertainment began at that moment; the Colosseum was the center of all public entertainments and events. Unlike many preceding amphitheaters, Colosseum was the first free-standing architecture constructed purely out of concrete and stone. Supported by 80 arches on each story, the infrastructure was both innovative and seemingly indestructible. Despite its massive size, the building itself was meticulously build and designed; the amount of details and decorations was overwhelming. There were 4 floors and each decorated with different styles: Doric, Ionic, and finally, the Corinthian style. The Col...
"Roman Colosseum - Rome, Italy - Great Buildings Architecture." Architecture Design Architectural Images Drawings History and More - ArchitectureWeek Great Buildings. Web. 12 Feb. 2012.
The Architecture of the Colosseum is very grand, with the capacity to hold up to 80,000 people. The Colosseum is over 160 feet tall, it “has a length of 620 feet and was close to 513 feet wide” (“Colosseum Architecture.”). Because the Colosseum was so big, it would have been very difficult to get so many people in and out of it had it not been for the various arches and stairs built within it. In total there are about 80 arches that each led to various stairways. These stairways then led to all the different levels of the Colosseum, which in turn made it a lot easier and more comfortable for a lot of people to exit it in a short amount of time. The Colosseum also had many arches of which four were “reserved exclusively for royalty and nobles” and the others were for the rest of the people (“Colosseum Architecture.”). Unlike other amphitheaters which had a circular shape, the Colosseum had the unique shape of an oval, which helped the people watching have a better view of the arena. This added to the overall different feel that the Colosseum had.
The Colosseum contained over four stories. The first three contained over 80 entrance arches and contained a complex drainage system. These entrance arches made evacuation extremely fast in case of an em...
Starting with the Roman Colosseum, which is located in the center of Rome. It is a ginormous amphitheater of huge 80 arched entrance and seating arrangements for 55,000 spectators. The Colosseum was built over 2000 years ago, which was commissioned by Emperor Vespasian and completed by his son Titus. Originally it was known as Flavian Amphitheatre. The designs of sport stadiums all over the world are still influenced by the Roman Colosseum to this very day!