News from Rome! Gladiators are coming back to the Colosseum to entertain the crowds nearly 2,000 years after the last bloody contest took place. Plans are in the making for a complete restoration of Rome’s most famous fighting arena. Gladiators will once again take up the trident, nets, swords and daggers in realistically choreographed battles. Not intended for very young children, these fighters will appear and act as they did in the first century, without the show of blood. According to Umberto Broccoli, head of archaeology at Rome’s city council,”…the gladiators themselves were vulgar. They were sweaty, they stank and they swore.” His plans are to re-create “the sights, sounds and smells” of ancient Rome. But first, a badly needed restoration must take place.
The Colosseum, or Flavian Amphitheater, was inaugurated in 80 AD by Emperor Titus. Large enough to seat 50,000 inhabitants, the Roman populace were entertained by gladiatorial contests, savage animal hunts, and mock sea battles. Incredibly, the arena was capable of being flooded to enable ships to float. Many stage hands were responsible for operating the show. Several worked from high above where a huge awning could be pulled to cover the Colosseum during the heat of the day. Many others operated the maze of underground tunnels and chambers where gladiators prepared for battle and animals were kept to be hoisted up in wooden cages to the arena floor. It was truly a major accomplishment in technology.
Traditionally, pop concerts have been held here in the amphitheatre until recently, when chunks and pieces of rock began falling from the structure. Additionally, the thrumming of the nearby subway consistently vibrates the foundation. It has been recently discovered that the Colosseum tilts 16 inches on its southern side, which is possibly due to flaws in the original structure.
Italian tycoon Diego Della Valle’s plans are to finance a $32 million project ( by some reports) to restore the foundation of the ‘leaning Colosseum of Rome.’ However, work has been delayed on the three-year restoration project because of court challenges to the contract bidding process.
Is this a good idea for the Colosseum of Rome to be rebuilt? It would change the present structure drastically, using modern material. Is it better to leave the old monumental ruins as they are?
This has been a disturbing matter for me. I love Rome and all of its antiquities, but the Colosseum, magnificent as it was in 80 AD, was a realm of horrors. Because of its hideous past, I’m personally concerned with the idea of reinstating these gladiatorial battles that are intended to honor and elevate gladiators of the past. Truth be known, many were criminals, almost all forced into battle as slaves or financially in need. They were trained to brutally kill man and beast.
Do we seriously need to make the Colosseum more ‘thrilling’, resurrecting the past stench of Rome?
I sincerely hope that we simply keep the Colosseum a well-preserved major historical ruin and reminder of the Roman civilization entering its ‘prime.’
How do you feel about the restoration of the Colosseum? What do you think of the re-enactment of mock gladiatorial battles? Do you see this as elevating an evil from the past? Or of value historically? I would love to hear your thoughts and ideas.
Timeless Italy Travels 