12 CRAZY FACTS ABOUT COLLOSSEUM Artashes Grigoryan Mkhitar

12 CRAZY FACTS ABOUT COLLOSSEUM Artashes Grigoryan, “Mkhitar Sebastaci” ecomplex, High school, 10 th grade

Unlike when visiting an arena for a sporting or music event nowadays, entry into the Colosseum was free for ancient Romans. Not only that, but they got fed throughout the event!

The Colosseum is the biggest amphitheater in the world. It is 189 meters long, 156 meters wide and an incredible 50 meters tall. Bonus fact: The Colosseum was selected as one of the new 7 wonders of the world back in 2007!

While many, many natural disasters hammered the structure of the Colosseum over the years, two big earthquakes caused the major damage visitors see today. These happened in 847 AD and 1231 AD.

The Colosseum was originally known as the Flavian Amphitheater, named after the Flavian dynasty of Emperors. It was built by Emperor Vespasian, a founding member of the Flavian dynasty!

Parts of the marble facade and other materials from the Colosseum were actually used in the construction of St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican City. This provides a tangible link between ancient and contemporary Rome.

Estimates show that around 50, 000 people were killed in the arena, with over a million wild animals succumbing to death at the Colosseum too. The level of slaughter at the arena contributed to the plummeting number of tigers, lions and jaguars around the world.

It has been estimated that they used around 100, 000 cubic meters of marble, transported in 200 bullock carts to the building site. They also used 1. 1 million tons of concrete, stone and brick.

There is also a literal underground area of the Colosseum. Known as the Hypogeum, it was a two-level subterranean network of tunnels with 32 animal pens. There were also 80 vertical shafts which allowed for instant access to the arena.

The Colosseum has a whopping 80 entrance arches. This meant, on its busiest days, it was easy for those in charge to let people in and out to watch the games and battles. It could accommodate around 87, 000 spectators.

One of the things the Colosseum was used for in ancient Roman times was mock sea battles - they made for interesting viewing for the regular citizens of Rome who would not have seen real life sea battles taking place.

The popular greeting or response of a thumbs up actually originates from the Colosseum. It was a signal that the gladiator was to be put to death via the jugular! Dead gladiators were carried out of the west exit, which came to be known as the Gate of Death.

Pop culture popularity The Colosseum has been a popular icon throughout pop culture. It has featured in plenty of movies - topical ones such as Gladiator starring Russell Crowe and Joaquin Phoenix, and not-so-topical movies such as The Lizzie Mc. Guire Movie featuring Hilary Duff and Adam Lamberg. It is also somewhere used for gigs and concerts: Elton John, Paul Mc. Cartney, Ray Charles and Billy Joel have all performed here over the years!

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