Colosseum

The Colosseum or the Colosseum, also known as Flavius Theater (Latin: Amphitheatrum Flavium, Italian: Anfiteatro Flavio [Anfiteatro flaːvjo] or Colosseo [kolossɛːo]) is oval amphitheater in the center of Rome, Italy. Built from travertine, tuff and concrete, this is the largest amphitheater ever built. The Colosseum is located east of the Roman Forum. The construction began with Emperor Vespasian in 72 AD. And it was completed in 80 AD. His successor and successor Titus. During the Domitian management (81-96), additional modifications were made. These three emperors are known as the Flavian dynasty, and the amphitheater is named in Latin because it is related to their surname (Flavius).


 
The Colosseum can cover between 50,000 and 80,000 spectators, an average audience of about 65,000 people; it was used for gladiatorial competitions and public spectacles, as exemplary sea battles (only for a short time since the hypogee was soon filled with mechanisms to support other activities), animal hunting, executions, resumption of known battles and dramas based of classical mythology. The building ceased to be used for entertainment in the early Middle Ages. Later, it is used again for purposes such as dwellings, workshops, quarters for a religious order, fortress, quarry, and a Christian temple.


 
Although partially damaged due to earthquake damage and stone robbers, the Colosseum is still the emblematic symbol of the Roman Empire. It is one of Rome's most popular tourist attractions and also has links to the Roman Catholic Church, as every Pope's Pope's Good Friday brings torches to the "Way of the Cross" procession that begins in the area around the Colosseum.

The Colosseum is depicted on the Italian version of the five-cent euro coin.

The original Latin name of the Coliseum is the Amphitheater Flavium, often referred to as the Flavian Amphitheater. The building was built by Emperors from the Flavi dynasty after Nero's rule. This name is still used in modern English, but in general the structure is better known as the Colosseum. In ancient times, the Romans could refer to the Colosseum with the unofficial name Amphitheatrum Caesareum (with Cesareus, the adjective referring to the title Caesar), but that name may have been strictly poetic as it was not exclusive to the Colosseum; Vespasian and Titus, builders of the Colosseum, also built an amphitheater of the same name in Puteoli (modern Pozzuoli).

The name Colosseum has long been believed to stem from a colossal statue of Nero nearby (the statue of Nero is named after Colosse of Rhodes). This statue was later transformed by the heirs of Nero in the likeness of Helios (Sol) or Apollo, the god of the sun, by adding a suitable solar crown. Nero's head was also replaced several times with the heads of the next Emperors. Despite the pagan ties, the statue remained in the Middle Ages and was bequeathed with magical powers. It emerges as a symbol of Rome's constancy.

In the 8th century a certain epigram attributed to the Venice met the symbolic meaning of the statue in prophecy, quoted in a different way: Quamdiu stat Colisæus, stat et Roma; quando cadet colisæus, cadet et Roma; quando cadet Roma, cadet et mundus ("while the colossus stands, so will Rome when Colossus falls, Rome will fall when Rome falls, so the world falls"). This is often incorrectly translated to refer to the Colosseum and not to Colossa (for example, in Byron's "Child Harold"). However, at the time Pseudo Bay wrote, the male noun coliseus was applied to the statue, not to what is still known as the Flavian amphitheater.

The colossus eventually falls, probably pulled back to use its bronze again. Up to 1000 years ago, the name "Colosseum" was designed to refer to the amphitheater. The statue itself is largely forgotten, leaving only its base, located between the Coliseum and the nearby Temple of Venus and Rome.

The name evolved to the Colosseum in the Middle Ages. In Italy, the amphitheater is still known as Coliseo and other Romanesque languages have used similar forms such as Colosseum (Romanian), Coliseum (French), El Colliseo (Spanish) and Coliseu (Portuguese).