Several other things come to mind when I think of the Colosseum, some from previous conceptions and others learned while I did a tour of it. Last January I started watching with my brother 'Spartacus: Blood and Sand.' It was an amazing series, perhaps my favourite. Walking around The Colosseum had me constantly thinking of the series.
A lot of things, including expressions and actions, we do today have roots from the Roman empire. A great example of this is The Colosseum or as we call the modern ones, stadiums. While the events held in stadiums have expanded, they are still encircled by a mass amount of fans. Tickets also used to be issued to people based on social class. Tickets had an archway number on them and each archway also had a number on them. Does that sound similar to gate numbers at a baseball game?
I don't have a picture of the archway and it's numbers but I can assure you they are there. This is a view from ground level up at The Colosseum. The games that went on within were for entertainment as well as a means of political control over the people. Unlike sporting events today tickets were usually given out for free and a large portion of the city would attend.
This is an inside look with the entrance/exit gates on the right and the arena on the left.
A similar look with the top of the Colosseum in view.
A look through one of the arches at the arena within.
Kind of a sad picture as you can see the different parts along the top where pieces have been falling off and is in ruins. This is a common theme throughout Rome, former architecture's remains being preserved because of how old it is.
Another sad picture. As you can see several pieces of the ruins have been placed in the centre of the arena. A little disappointing that such an amazing place is no longer used for what it was intended for. The amphitheater I saw in France was actually still hosting events. I seemed to have skipped that portion of my France journey and will have to get back to it later.
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