The Colosseum: An Analysis of its Political, Ethical, Aesthetic, and Immediate Surrounding Contexts

This essay analyzes the political, ethical, aesthetic, and immediate surrounding contexts of the Colosseum in Rome, Italy. It explores how the building was influenced by its historical context and how it can be understood as an example of certain architectural movements. The essay also discusses the Colosseum's multi-purpose design, social context, cultural significance, and its role in Roman politics.

The Colosseum, 1st
century, Rome, Italy

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY ..................................................................................................................................1
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................12
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13

INTRODUCTION
The Colosseum is in Rome, Italy and is situated in centre of the city, it is an oval
amphitheatre. It is termed as the astronomical amphitheatre which is ancient ever built and the
amphitheatre which is standing even today across the globe. The development of this building
started under the emperor Vespasian in 72 AD and was accomplished in 80 AD under his
successor and heir. The structure of the Colosseum is still reasoned as one of the contemporary
stadiums as it has a unique style. In ancient times, Roman stadiums were formed from the
stadiums of Greek even though some differences were discovered in both the model of
architecture. The ancient Greek stadium was created in the shape of U. The Colosseum is made
of volcanic rock, travertine limestone and other brick faced concrete (Carlotto, Mark, 2022). It
can hold atleast 65,000 audience and hold estimated around 50,000 to 80,000 viewers at several
points of time in history. The building was utilised for entertainment purposes in the early
medieval era. Later, it was re-occupied for purposes of workshops, lodging, religious events etc.
The Colosseum is still considered as an painting symbol of Rome and is termed as the most
touristy attractions. It is been seen as the variant of Italian of the coin of five-cent euro.
This essay highlights the contexts of political, ethical, aesthetic and immediate
surrounding context of The Colosseum. It assess how the building is influenced by its historical
context as well as how The Colosseum can be understood as an example of certain architectural
movement.
MAIN BODY
The structure of The Colosseum can be take as an prominent example of Unique Roman
architectural styles. In early period of 2nd century BC, the new style of architectural was started
to get more popularity than the amphitheatres of traditional model. In the 2nd century, more
audiences were audiences were attracted towards Roman amphitheatres. Thus, new designs were
linked together of oval and square shapes (Castro and Francisca, 2021). Hence, it is assessed that
The Colosseum was influenced by Roman and Greek styles of architecture. Even though the
design was initially based on Greek architecture, the stadium was later transformed as per the
different needs of Roman society.
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The construction of the Colosseum started in 72 AD on site which was at one time a lake
and flora of Emperor Nero's house of golden. This was being knackered and a caution was taken
against suspected damage from earthquake thus foundation of concrete 6 meters shallow were
put down. Structure was being undertake to rejuvenate Rome to its prior honour to the disruption
of the latest war of civil. The amphitheatre of Flavian agapes for businesses in the reign of Titus
which was finally finished in historic period of other son Domitian. Processed structure was
something no one has seen earlier and is located between broad valley of adjoining the Esquiline,
Caelian hills as well as Palatine which dominated the city (de Magalhães and Marcelo José da
Silva, 2020). The Colosseum is considered as the biggest building of its type which had multiple
features such as it has four stories, a 45 metres height, an oval arena around 87 metres, a awning
roofed canvas and capacity of large number of spectators at one time. The amphitheatre was
primarily made-up from domestically acquired stones with micro connected distal brick walls
with volcanic and concrete stones. The big filler of the theatre was considered as the popular
name of Colosso and likely to seen as remark to colossal specious bronze statue of Nero which is
presented outside the theatre.
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In environmental context, The Colosseum had a broad variety as well as properly
authenticated account of flora. Since 1643, around 680 species have been known at amphitheatre
and the limit came in 1855 when 420 species were determined. Several endeavours were made
in 1871 in order to obviate the flora as the interest about the damage which could be reasoned by
masonry. In today's time, across 240 species have been determined and 200 remains from the
species identified earlier (DiFuria and Arthur, 2019. pp. 38-56). The fluctuation in plants at The
Colosseum had been understood by alteration in climate of Rome over decades. In addition to
that, flower blooming, bird migrating and maturation of Rome have justified The Colosseum to
be integrated with the contemporary centre of city instead of the section of the ancient city.
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According to the social context, The Colosseum is one of the first structure which
allowed social gatherings in large number in European society. The design was so unique that
The Colosseum enables the viewers to relish the activities of sports with one another. The
structure of building was formed for purpose of recreation, therefore the design comprises of
detailed arena which can be seen from the gallery that is designed in oval shape. The sports that
were being organised in The Colosseum included physical activities to wide context. Hence, the
design of architecture comprises of wide spaces and robust structure which can be best utilised to
plan sports of military (Lambertucci and Filippo, 2018. 95-105.). The building was also utilised
for organising castle, church and chapel. The structure of The Colosseum was designed as multi-
purpose which was also used for temporary housing and for organising medical camps in time of
crises. It was widely used for purpose of entertainment as it is considered that the well being of
large public architecture was influenced by big powers.
For instance, The Colosseum was taken by the Church and was maintained under it for a
long time. It has been identified that architectural shape of stadium is glamour and shape of
quality is refined. In bloodsport's case, glamour is considered as an important aspect of
viewership of sports. The viewers who highly supported their favourite sports person were
attracted largely by the The Colosseum. Therefore, the design promotes social interaction
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between viewers at the stadium and provides an optimised view of the full arena. But with this
quality is also termed as one the biggest deciding element behind the structure and design of The
Colosseum (Mosebach and Martin, 2018. 19-28). As per the high quality of design of
architecture and decorous maintenance, the building of The Colosseum has survived even several
natural disasters. The nature of building is multi-purpose which facilitated its high level
maintenance. But with time, blood sports demand has been decreased and The Colosseum has
continued to be an constitutional element of Roman culture.
Structure of The Colosseum was built in Rome from 72 AD on a broad area which was
ravaged by the fire and where Nero's house were located. The external part of The Colosseum
has encouraged the architecture development since 15th century. As per cultural context, since
19th century, because of high maturation of metropolitan cities the need for wide covered
surfaces for hosting exhibitions and safeguard the spectators during sports. The construction of
The Colosseum is inspired by two references of architectural namely the original velar and the
recall of works which are essential for development of modern architecture (Nederveen Pieterse
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and Ja, 2021). The interesting note is that The Colosseum is current iconic value linked to
configuration including the spur by Giuseppe Valadier in 19th century. The structure of building
presents a new source of cultural history in field. The evaluation of specific actions focuses at
improving the heritage of culture. The Colosseum is termed as one of those structures whose
worth not only relies on its nature of multi-purpose or stream of revenues but also majorly on its
attributes of culture.
Evolution of cultural estate of properties varies as per the goals of the appraisal. It is
noticed that monitoring and quantitative attributes are determined at time of assessing the
economic value of structure. However, in case of cultural architecture for example Roman
Colosseum, identifying the values of economic was not considered sufficient. Other than the
economic value of structure, the appraisal also takes in view the restoration or improvement of
buildings which are ancient (Rose and Simon, 2018). For instance, the Roman Colosseum was
utilised as initial base of entertainment in society of ancient Roman. Still, a major part of the
building is needed to be restored. The determination of restoring the structure must be taken as
per the cultural beliefs connected with The Colosseum and its prospects to appear as an
expression of iconic of the Roman culture to the modern spectators. The formation of The
Colosseum was not only inspired by Rome's cultural heritage but it is highly influenced by the
urban development process of city. The planning of ancient urban was inspired by Christianity.
The residential places were developed in addition with road as allowed by the emperor. The
shape of structure was monumental and was determinant by the emperor Claudius.
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The city of Rome was built multiple times and the evolution in the style of architecture
was reflected in design of The Colosseum. The valley of The Colosseum comprises of multiple
rectangular and orthogonal roads with properties of columns which are considered as information
of architectural evolution (Rubtcova, Mariia and Oleg Pavenkov, 2019). Other buildings
presented in The Colosseum valley effected the value of aesthetic of the environment of The
Colosseum. For instance, in the Flavian dynasty an artificial pond was created and that area was
subsequently utilised for building the amphitheatre. The strategies of urban planning of at the era
of Flavian is mostly aimed at enhancing the experience of spectators. Thus, the design of The
Colosseum also promoted high public experience which can be seen in its structure also. The
designing element of stadium has been considered as making decisions about vast space
planning.
Thus, the Roman Colosseum is termed as one of those architecture which can fit large
numbers of spectators at once. It has been analysed that planning for space decisions of The
Colosseum have multiple similarities and variations with arenas of sports and entertainment. The
Colosseum was built for planning games, battles, hunts and execution of criminals. The initial
materials which were used for devising the structure were not ignitable but later the evolution
was developed utilising woods (Salzman and Michele Renee, 2021). In addition to that, wooden
cages were being used for animals and The Colosseum was being utilised to hold a vast number
of fabrics and baskets. The initial lightning was flamed by an open fire and the proper use of
wood make it more vulnerable to fire. The space planning in the structure of The Colosseum was
carried out in such a way that viewers can enter and leave the stadium in few minutes. The
modern amphitheatre also puts much importance to reducing the emptying time for the safety of
viewers.
The Colosseum is considered as the most iconic arena in the world and represented the
testament to both cruelty and glory of the Roman Empire. Irrespective of its majestic architecture
the Colosseum is popularly known for the brutal spectacles it hosted. The importance of the
Colosseum was distantly much more than only just theatre for entertainment of masses. From the
structure of it and edifice to the events it hosted, this stadium service as a prospect to Roman
Emperors for control of politics (Schultz, Celia and Allen, 2019). Rome is considered as a place
which is always in need of distraction as well as entertainment and the Colosseum events were
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reflected the several rulers needs to win over political capital and intensify their rule. Execution
of criminals were embedded in the performances of theatre and some re-enacted the death of
Roman warriors. The underlying political support won the from events and construction of
Colosseum itself. It was widely known that the amphitheatre was formed upon Nero's lake, as it
represented a providing back the land to use of public after the confiscation of property which
has occurred under rule of emperor.
The structure of building can be understood as an example of architectural and artistic
movement as the Colosseum is considered as an instrument to Rome's might (Turco and Maria
Grazia, 2022. 1-31). At the time it was completed, it was most tangled human made design
across the globe and also the biggest. Stone of travertine is being used as initial material was
white in its construction of around 50 meters height and six acres of footprint. The design
radiance in sun and leave people in admiration who laid eyes on it. All of three architectural
orders of that time were highlighted as ground floor and columns were finished in style of
Tuscan which is Roman fluctuation on the austere Greek Doric style. Second floor characterise
many elaborately columns of ionic. And third floor is hired for the more complex and adorned
style of Corinthian. Thus, from lowermost to upmost, the building of Colosseum evolved from
small to higher quality of style (Uhl and Xina, 2019). Every column of half of the structure was
an curve of centerpiece from that there were around eighty which forms the macro circumference
of Colosseum on three floors. But unequal to three floors, fourth floor walls were not build of
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columns or curves instead of flat panels which were beaded with forging and insets of bronze as
well as azurite. Building of the Colosseum has two major access namely the northwestern Porta
Triumphalis which conveys gate that is used for success processions and by which battler get
into the arena. And second is southeastern Porta Libitinaria named after the Roman goddess of
funerals and burial Libitina.
The Colosseum significant facets was arena over where prisoners, boxers, convicts and
wild carnal have fought and then died. It is measured 83 meters in length and by width of 48
meters. Floor of arena was built of panel of woods which is arillate with layer of soil that has
been haggard from the close Monte Mario hill. On some floors, there were several snare entrance
which were being utilised to present as well as withdraw aspects of vicinity as well as for
peculiar effects. The inside of the Colosseum was enclosed by a 10 foot wall which results in
first flat of seats (Wadsworth and Sarah, 2021. 203-235). The wall at arena was built of black
and red stone blocks which marks a strong contrast with the entire structure which was extremely
white as well as mirrored what is flowing on the floor of arena. Around arena presented the
plateaus or bleachers which is commonly considered as cavea. It is separated into three tie-ups
which mirrored social strata of societies of Roman. Seats presented at the closest to arena were
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keep reserved for the highest status Romans for example senators or high ranking officials. The
seating area were being made by stone of travertine and each seat was around 40 centimetres
wide. The cavea at the arena was divided horizontally for better access of public.
As the most characteristic features of the Colosseum was arena, it's most significant area
is hypogeum which is its underground area. Hypogeum is considered as the web of chambers as
well as tunnels segregated in 2 phases where both fleshly and scrappers were kept ahead
attending in above arena. Fact about it is that it was not part of first design as prepared by
Vespasian and his son Titus. But it was later added after structure had been commenced in 80
AD on command of emperor Domitian. Around 80 lines were adjacent vertically from hypogem
to above arena. Many of these lines merged a scheme of broad agitated platforms which are
known as hegmata (Withycombe and Lily, 2018. 38-42). Hypogeum was linked to external side
by web of tunnels in underground for example gladiatorial barracks and close firms where
animals were stocked. Colosseum had designed in such way that it had a cloistered access dig for
the Emperor so that they can come in and way out the structure riskless obviate the heavy
gatherings.
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Besides from its big permanence and size, the Colosseum's architecture swashed famous
engineering features. One such facet is termed as vela which were canvas awnings that are
coveted the audiences, safeguards them from the extreme heat from sun as they enjoy at the
stadium. These vela are enormous in structure just like every other things in the Colosseum
which likely needed around thousand men to control who are all sailors from the navy of Roman.
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As the vela capped off the extreme top of the Colosseum, the sub structures below the
amphitheatre were fascinating and intricate. Many scholars suggested that the structures below
the arena were simpler the time it builts.
CONCLUSION
As per the information presented above, it has been concluded that the Colosseum also
known as Flavian Amphitheatre is a enormous theatre built in Rome is famous structure as it is
an origin of gladiator war which took place in the time of Roman Empire. But after the tumble of
Western Roman Empire, the Colosseum started to degenerate and a ordination of earthquakes in
fifth century AD damage the construction and the building endured from negligence. Building is
has four stories and eighty entrances to amphitheatre from which seventy six were for patrons,
two were for people who participated and two exclusively for the use of emperors. The oviform
building edifice of the stadium is designed to assist perceptibility from each seat of arena. In
historic period, the Colosseum was also being utilised as religion activities and later as fort by
prominent families of Roman. It has been considered as one of the Rome's major tourists
attractions which receives almost around seven million visitors annually.
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REFERENCES
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no. 2 (2021): 10-17.
de Magalhães, Marcelo José da Silva. ROME: COLOSSEUM. Marcelo José da Silva de
Magalhães, 2020.
DiFuria, Arthur J. "The Possibility of a pre-Roman Maarten van Heemskerck." In Maarten van
Heemskerck’s Rome, pp. 38-56. Brill, 2019.
Lambertucci, Filippo. "Archaeology for commuters. The San Giovanni archaeo-station on the
new metro Line C in Rome." Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology 78
(2018): 95-105.
Mosebach, Martin. "ETERNAL ROME: Martin Mosebach reflects on the allure of the Sacred
City." First Things: A Monthly Journal of Religion and Public Life 281 (2018): 19-28.
Nederveen Pieterse, Jan. "Decentering Rome." In Connectivity and Global Studies, pp. 79-87.
Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2021.
Rose, Simon. Colosseum. Weigl Publishers, 2018.
Rubtcova, Mariia, and Oleg Pavenkov. "Practical Experience of Intercultural Communication:
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and Social Sciences (ICGBEFSS), Ernakulam, Kerala, India, vol. 26. 2019.
Salzman, Michele Renee. The Falls of Rome: Crises, Resilience, and Resurgence in Late
Antiquity. Cambridge University Press, 2021.
Schultz, Celia E., and Allen M. Ward. A History of the Roman People. Routledge, 2019.
Turco, Maria Grazia. "Building the capital city: Maria Ponti Pasolini, the Passeggiata
Archeologica and the planning of Rome (1887-1917)." Planning Perspectives (2022): 1-
31.
Uhl, Xina M. How STEM Built the Roman Empire. The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc, 2019.
Wadsworth, Sarah. "Nineteenth-Century Disease, Twenty-First-Century Dis-ease: Reflections on
Teaching Nineteenth-Century Texts." ESQ: A Journal of Nineteenth-Century American
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Withycombe, Lily. "Rome: City and Empire." Agora 53, no. 2 (2018): 38-42.
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