After the two big tours and some sleepless nights due to the heat, we had a slow start Monday. It was too hot to do anything comfortably, so we relaxed in the apartment until around 3pm and it started to cool down slightly.
The kids were keen to actually see the Colosseum properly, so we caught a tram back and this time it wasn't too busy and a little cooler.
Just behind the Colosseum was an archeological dig referred to as the Lasagna - as it is digging into the layers of Rome. Since the city is so old, most of Rome is built upon other bits of Rome, which in turn are built on other bits of older Rome. It is believed that this excavation reveals a gladiator school that was connected by tunnel to the Colosseum.
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| Ruins |
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| The Lasagna |
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| The Colosseum |
Most people know of the Colosseum, but here's some brief details. The Colosseum is also know as the Flavian Amphitheater (as they had many Colosseum in Ancient Rome, but this was the largest). Construction started in 72AD and it was completed in 80AD. The name Flavian Amphitheater comes from the family name of the Emperors at the time - Vespasian, who started it, Titus, who completed it and Domitian who modified and added onto it, all had the family name of Flavius.
The Colosseum was used for entertainment and not just gladiator battles. It served the same purpose as sporting grounds do these days - it hosted events, public spectacles and of course the main events - the battles. A majority of the gladiator events were mock battles, recreations of great Roman victories, with prisoners of war making up some of the combatants. The Colosseum was use for mock sea battles for a period (after being filled with water), but then mechanisms were installed for other purposes, such as lifts etc. Animal hunts were often conducted using rare and exotic animals, either forcing the animals to fight against each other, or against armed hunters or unarmed slaves.
The Colosseum was no longer used for entertainment in the early medieval era and instead was used for housing, storage, and other purposes.
In later years there were various proposals to keep the Colosseum useful (in the days before travel and tourism). Pope Sixtus V (1585-1590) had some suggestions to turn it into a wool factory to employ prostitutes, but he dies before he could fulfill this.
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| Dedication Plaque - Ampitheatrium Flavium |
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| Heading inside |
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| Looking out over the hypogeum (word meaning underground) |
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| The kids inside the Colosseum |
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| Inside the Colosseum (left of entrance) |
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| Inside the Colosseum (right of entrance) |
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| Some of the few remaining original marble tiles |
Most of the marble in the Colosseum was taken to be used in Saint Peter's Basilica and Square. The front ground and facade of the Basilica came from marble that was originally the seats.
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| The Hypogeum |
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| Interior stairs - give a good idea of the scale |
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| Information about martyrdom of Christians in the Colosseum |
There is not a lot of information regarding the stories of Christians being martyred at the Colosseum, such as the classical story of the Christians being fed to the lions, however Bishop Ignatios of Antioch was convicted of treason and condemned to be torn apart by wild beats in the Colosseum.
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| Ancient Roman tablet - the inscription commemorates the restorations completed by the Decius Marius Venantius, Prefect of Rome in 484 or 508AD |
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| Another Roman tablet |
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| Some of the column tops recovered during excavations |
We then headed up to the second level to look down on the Colosseum from above:
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| Looking down from 2nd level |
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| Looking down at the Cross and lower levels |
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| Us at the Colosseum |
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| Looking down |
On our way out of the Colosseum we came across a couple getting their wedding photos taken:
Our next stop was a church I recalled from my first visit to Rome, San Pietro in Vincoli (Saint Peter in Chains).
This church looks rather unassuming from outside, but inside it houses a famous relic and one of Michelangelo's masterpieces.
The relic is the Chains that bound Saint Peter when he was a prisoner in Jerusalem. The masterpiece is Michelangelo's 'Moses' which was created in 1515.
The church was consecrated in 439 on the foundations of an older church, in order to house the relic.
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| The church is fairly unassuming from the outside |
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| The Tomb of Cardinal Cinzio Passeri Aldobrandini |
Michelangelo's Moses was sculpted in 1513-1515 and is 2.35m of carved marble. Pope Julius II commissioned Michelangelo to build his tomb in 1505. The Pope died in 1513 and his tomb was finally completed in 1545. Michelangelo originally planned a much bigger 3.75m high tomb with several levels, but settled for the smaller design that become 'Moses'
I find this statue amazing. The tiny details such as the veins and tendons in the back of the hand and legs and the folds of the cloth are awesome:
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| Michelangelo's Moses |
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| Moses |
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| The Chains of Saint Peter |
After the church we got some dinner and then headed down to the National Monument, the Altare della Patria (Altar of the Fatherland).
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| Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore |
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| Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore |
Antonella, our guide for the catacombs, told us an interesting story behind the Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore (Church of St Mary Major). According to the stories, in 432 the Roman patrician John and his wife wanted to donate their possessions to the Virgin Mary on their death (they were dying heirless). They prayed for a sign on how to do it. On the 5th of August, in the middle of the Roman summer (keep in mind these photos were taken on the 7th of August in 40 degrees heat) snow fell on the top of Esquiline Hill. So the couple built the basilica their in honour of the Virgin Mary.
This story is believed to be only a legend though, as no mention is made of it until AD1000, nor is there mention of it on the inscription on the front of the church.
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| Inscription |
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| Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore |
On the way to the monument, we also came across another Lasagna, this one was Trajan's Market:
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| Column |
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| Arrays of excavated columns |
Our final stop for the night was the Altare della Patria. This a monument built in honor of Victor Emmanuel II, who was the first King of unified Italy. Construction started in 1885 and it was completed in 1911. The whole monument stands at 70m height. It also contains the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
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| Altare della Patria |
Cameron really wanted to see the Colosseum at night, so we walked back via the Colosseum to the tram back to our apartment:
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| Colosseum at night |
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