CONTENTS.—COLOSSEUM.

PAGEPLATE
Excavations in 1874 and 1875 shew the foundation to be earlier than the Flavian Emperors[1]
Suetonius mentions it among the works of the Flavian Emperors, and proposed by Augustus, but not the beginning of the work[ib.]
Part of the Substructures is of the time of Nero[ib.]
It contained the Stagna, or old Naumachia, under, and the Gymnasium, on the arena[ib.]
Nothing certain about the commencement[ib.]
Modern amphitheatre of Statilius Taurus[ib.]
—— Julius Cæsar[2]
The building of M. Scaurus the ædile, in part temporary, other parts calculated to be eternal, according to Pliny[ib.]
This was on the site of the present amphitheatre[3]
The Clivus Scauri leads to this site[ib.]
Cavea, a name for an amphitheatre, applied to the galleries and to the dens and passages under the arena[ib.]
Wild beasts brought into Rome by L. L. Metellus, B.C. 251[ib.]
Culprits executed by being thrown to wild beasts[ib.]
Amphitheatres a Roman invention (?)[4]
Martial’s first book, De Spectaculis, relates chiefly to this building[ib.]
Mountain of Rhodope represented as a scene[ib.]
Exhibitions in the Circus Maximus by Julius Cæsar[ib.]
A separate building required for these exhibitions[5]
Gymnasium and Naumachia of Nero on this site[ib.]
Remains of Aqueducts and Piscina of Nero[ib.]
—— Piscina of Alexander Severus[ib.]
The Gymnasium of Nero was on the arena of this building[6]
Brickwork of the time of Nero in several parts[ib.][IX.]
A straight vertical joint between the brick galleries and the stone corridors[ib.][II.]
The external wall of three periods,—Vespasian, Titus, and Alexander Severus[ib.][I.]
The upper storey an addition and an afterthought[ib.][II.]
The arena full of trap-doors, through which the wild animals were sent up in cages on lifts[7][XVI.]
Grooves in the walls for the lifts, and sockets in the pavement for the pivots of the capstans, to wind the cords upon, were visible below[ib.]
The original walls of tufa are interfered with by later walls of brick[ib.]
Inscriptions record the dates of these later walls[ib.]
Another inscription gives the word Theatrum for this amphitheatre[ib.]
Supper of Nero in this amphitheatre[ib.]
Exhibitions of Titus at the dedication[8]
Sea water (?) used in the canals[ib.]
The Naumachia were in this amphitheatre[ib.]
The stagna Neronis are the canals or reservoirs supplied by aqueducts[ib.]
They are called by Tacitus Stagnum Navale[9]
—— by Suetonius a “sea,” that is, when the surface was flooded[ib.]
The new Naumachia were those of Augustus in Trastevere[ib.]
Stagnum of Agrippa near the Pantheon, supplied by the Aqua Virgo[ib.]
Stagna of Nero supplied by three aqueducts[ib.]
The old Naumachia in this building[10]
No Naumachia in the amphitheatre of Statilius Taurus[ib.]
The stagna were boarded over for the gladiators and the wild beasts, but the boards could be removed easily[ib.]
The canals brought to light in 1812, and more clearly in 1875, with the substructures[ib.][III.]
Open channels for running water in many parts of the corridors[11]
Water supplied by aqueducts.—Remains of two piscinæ[ib.]
The arena was of wood covered with sand, and full of trap-doors[ib.]
Corbels, or brackets, provided for placing the boards upon when removed[ib.][XVII.]
Gymnasium and Naumachia of Nero in this building[ib.]
Exterior of the brick theatre left unfinished by Nero, finished by the Flavian Emperors in stone[ib.][I.]
Upper gallery of wood destroyed by fire, A.D. 217[12]
The original restoration in stone completed, A.D. 240, under Gordianus[ib.][II.]
Vertical piers of travertine introduced to support this upper floor[ib.]
Names of Stagna and Naumachia used indifferently[ib.]
The Stagnum of Nero, “like a sea,” was in the Colosseum, when the surface was flooded[ib.]
Some of the walls of the substructures are of brick, of the time of Nero[ib.]
The arches of the dens under the podium are of Neronian brickwork[ib.]
The walls of tufa in the substructure are older than the time of Nero[13]
In the superstructure the walls of the front and of the corridors are of travertine[ib.]
At Verona and at Capua are similar remains of aqueducts[ib.]
At Pozzuoli (Puteoli) the arena is of brick, and full of holes for trap-doors[ib.]
—— The surface there seems to have been flooded for the Naumachia[ib.]
At Tusculum are canals, as in Rome[14]
In the Colosseum the two sides appear to have been flooded, but not the central passage[ib.]
The two stagna would be each 300 ft. long, and about 50 ft. wide[ib.]
The canals were great cisterns or reservoirs under the boarding[ib.]
These are 10 ft. deep, but not always the same width[ib.]
The walls to support the canals are unusually thick[ib.]
Canals were lined with lead, one supported on arches, the other on great beams of wood, 8 ft. above the pavement[ib.][X.]
The lofty walls of tufa round the edge of the substructure were for the lifts, not for the canals[ib.][XV.]
Other lifts for men and dogs on each side of the central passage[ib.]
An arch of tufa shaken by an earthquake, supported by a brick wall of the time of Nero, and another half-arch of the same period abutting against it[ib.][IX.], [XV.]
Two small square chambers of Nero are enclosed in the travertine walls of the Flavian Emperors[15]
Augustus intended to build an amphitheatre here, but did not[ib.]
The tufa walls are probably the work of Scaurus, in the time of Sylla[ib.][V.]
In these walls are vertical grooves for the lifts and cages[ib.]
Animals were brought from the vivaria outside the walls in cages, called pegmata[ib.][VI.]
Podium protected by wire netting and bars[16]
Seneca describes the pegmata in this theatre[ib.][XVI.]
One vivarium was at the Prætorian Camp, the other at the Sessorium[ib.]
A small stream of water ran in front of the dens[17]
A pit 4 ft. square, for a man to descend to feed the animals, behind each door[ib.]
The tufa walls were in some parts supported by brick walls of the Flavian Emperors[ib.][IX.]
Curious wooden framework on the floor of the central passage, believed to have been a cradle, or dry-dock[18][VII.]
The general plan of the Colosseum is oval, with galleries, vomitoria, &c.[ib.][VIII.]
A large part destroyed by having been used as a stone quarry[ib.]
The north side the only part at all perfect[ib.][I.]
A great deal of tufa used to fill up between the piers of travertine[ib.][XXI.]
The tufa taken from the second wall of Rome close at hand[ib.]
Travertine piers cut through the older wall to carry the upper gallery[19][XX.]
The front is of three periods, the upper storey added a century after the rest[ib.]
A great mixture of stone and brick in the construction[ib.]
Name of the architect not known; Gaudentius only employed upon it[20]
Views on coins, and in sculpture on the tomb of the Aterii, of the first century[ib.]
Machine for raising stones for the walls[21]
No open space under the arena[ib.]
A large number of broken columns and capitals have fallen from the upper gallery on to the arena, and into the cavea[ib.][XI.]
Representation of the amphitheatre on coins[ib.][XXI.]
Acts of Commodus in this building described by Dion Cassius[22]
The awning of Nero mentioned by Pliny[23][XIII.]
Contrivances for supporting it. Masts and corbels[ib.]
Awning of the amphitheatre at Pompeii—shewn in a fresco[24]
Castra Misenatium, for the sailors employed here in furling and unfurling the awning, or vela, or velaria[ib.]
The wooden upper storey burnt, A.D. 217[25]
A.D. 217. Restored by Heliogabalus, Alexander Severus, and Gordianus[ib.]
The number of wild beasts kept for the shows, A.D. 244[ib.]
100 lions killed at once in the shows[26]
A.D. 320. The building damaged by lightning; restored by Constantine[ib.]
—— 357. Amphitheatre described as perfect by Ammianus Marcellinus[ib.]
—— 445. Restored by Lampadius, after being much damaged by an earthquake[27]
—— 508. Again restored by Venantius Basilius[ib.]
—— 519. Used for shows of wild beasts by Theodoric[ib.]
—— 523. Again used. This is the last occasion mentioned[ib.]
The building apparently perfect in the time of Bede[ib.]
A.D. 1130. The building made part of the fortress of the Frangipani[28]
—— 1227. Half of the fortress given to the Annibaldi by Frederic II., but the grant rescinded by Innocent IV., in 1244[ib.]
—— 1349. The building much damaged by an earthquake[ib.]
—— 1362. It is made common property as a stone-quarry for the great families[29]
—— Several palaces built of stone from this quarry[ib.]
—— 1540. Miracle plays performed there[ib.]
—— The view of Jerusalem belongs to this time[ib.]
—— 1575. Sixtus V. began to make it a cloth manufactory[ib.]
—— 1703. The building again damaged by an earthquake[30]
—— 1728. Benedict XIII. consecrated the whole area as a church[ib.]
—— 1749. The cross and the stations erected by Benedict XIV.[ib.]
—— 1756. A grand mass celebrated here by the Cardinal Vicar[ib.]
—— Palaces built out of the ruins[ib.]
The construction of the inner part is made visible by the demolition of the outer corridor[ib.]
The north-eastern side is nearly perfect[ib.]
One arch of the lower storey restored by Gordianus, A.D. 220-238[31]
A.D. 1810. Excavations begun by the French[ib.]
—— 1812. The walls weeded by them; this was repeated in 1870[ib.][III.]
The excavations of the French shew the channels for water[32]
Upper wall hastily built under Gordianus[33]
A.D. 1864-5. Excavations made in search of treasure[ib.]
Many remains of shallow open channels for water[ib.]
Also remains of three reservoirs in the principal gallery[ib.]
And of two piscinæ under the Cœlian, on the same level as this gallery[ib.]
The excavations of the French were not deep enough for historical purposes[34]
When the boards were removed from the arena they were placed on the corbels or brackets, or large consoles provided for them below[ib.][XVII.]
Apollodorus tells Hadrian that he ought to have provided space for all this machinery[ib.]
A long and large passage found at the south-east end[ib.][IV.]
The original pavement is 21 ft. below the level of the arena[35]
In the ancient tufa walls are vertical grooves for the lifts, on which the pegmata, or cages for wild beasts, were placed[ib.][VI.]
There are also sockets for the pivots of the capstans[ib.][XVII.]
Under the passage is a large drain[ib.]
An ancient iron grating at the mouth of the drain[36][XIX.]
The place for the flood-gates is plainly visible[ib.]
Large corbels and brackets for placing the boards of the arena upon, remain in many parts[ib.][XVIII.]
The martyrdom of the early Christians took place on the sand of the arena, not on the soil, 21 ft. below it[ib.]
The results of the excavations of 1874-75 were a great surprise[37]
Many of the lower walls belong to the repairs after earthquakes in A.D. 442 and 508[ib.]
A narrow and lofty vaulted chamber on each side of the central passage under the galleries, with six sockets in a line[38]
The wooden framework, cradle, or dry dock, fully described[ib.]
The old substructures were evidently retained and used when the upper part was built[39]
Piers of travertine run from top to bottom of the building to carry the upper gallery, and the old tufa walls were cut through[ib.]
The Evidence of the Construction, and Comparison[40-54]
Comparison one of the first principles of Archæology, especially useful for this enormous amphitheatre[40]
Amphitheatre at Capua is almost the same size as that of Rome[40], [41][XXVII.]
—— The substructures more perfect than in Rome[41]
—— Aqueduct and drain[ib.][XXVIII.]
—— Dens under the podium[ib.]
—— Sockets for the pivots for the cages[ib.][XXIX.]
—— Arena of brick, not wood, but had apertures for the trap-doors[ib.][XXX.]
—— Grooves for covers over them to make them water-tight[ib.]
—— The building is of the time of Hadrian[40]
—— Inscription[41], [42]
—— Puteoli, or Pozzuoli[42], [43][XXXII.]
—— Building much smaller than those of Rome or Capua[42]
—— Substructures more perfect and more highly finished[ib.]
—— Arena of brick, with apertures for trap-doors[ib.]
—— Arrangement for fixing the masts or poles for the awning, as in Rome[43][XXXIII.]
Amphitheatre at Puteoli, or Pozzuoli—The building also of the time of Hadrian[ib.][XXXIV.]
—— The vaults preserved and used[42]
—— Verona[43], [44][XXXI.], [XXXII.]
—— —— The outer wall almost destroyed[43]
—— —— Arcade of two lower storeys preserved[44]
—— —— Comparison of the number that each amphitheatre would contain[ib.]
—— —— The seats remarkably well preserved[ib.]
—— —— Dimensions of all the three principal amphitheatres at Rome, Verona, Capua[45]
—— Pola, in Istria[45], [46]
—— —— Built in white stone, like marble[ib.]
—— —— Two tiers of arches remain[ib.]
—— —— And a curious stone parapet, with indications of the awning[ib.]
—— —— Built against a rocky mountain on the slope[ib.]
—— —— Substructures in the lower part[ib.]
—— —— Canal for water visible[ib.]
—— —— Square towers (for the musicians?)[46]
—— At Nîmes there is still a wooden floor, with trap-doors in it[ib.]
—— —— But the arrangements below are quite different[ib.]
—— At Arles, no substructures visible[ib.]
—— At Bordeaux, the remains are called the Arènes, it had a boarded floor[ib.]
Substructures compared[47-52]
Space required for the actors is usually given behind the scenes in theatres, in an amphitheatre under the stage[47]
Vessels employed in the Naumachia were usually rates, or rowing-boats[ib.]
The battles were of the sailors with swords, not with the boats[ib.]
At Pozzuoli an intermediate passage for messengers[ib.]
In the Colosseum such a passage for the sailors to manage the awning; the corbels that support it are all that remain[ib.]
A great central passage or gulf in all the amphitheatres[ib.]
Traces of a great machine for lifting up vessels at Capua, as in the Colosseum[ib.]
Machines required were numerous and large[48]
Apollodorus told Hadrian that he ought to have provided a place for them, but he had not done so[ib.]
Cords for the awning, strong enough to carry an elephant, were called catadromus[ib.]
An actor playing the part of Icarus, leaping from the upper gallery, fell dead at the feet of Nero[ib.]
Pegmata were not only cages but wooden machines; these are mentioned by Josephus, Calpurnius, Apuleius, Claudian, Vopiscus, and Martial[49]
The Colossus (on the Summa Sacra Via) was visible from the gulf[ib.]
That a hundred lions leaped on to the stage or arena, at once, is mentioned not only by Herodian, but by Vopiscus, Julius Capitolinus, Lampridius, Ammianus Marcellinus, Statius[50]
The netting to protect the lower gallery was of gold (or gilt) wire, and was called retia, as mentioned by Calpurnius[ib.]
Naval fights sometimes held in the Circus Maximus[ib.]
—— but must have been in the canals of the Colosseum, because Heliogabalus filled them with wine[51]
They were called Circensian games, because sometimes held in the circus[ib.]
Martial clearly distinguishes them[ib.]
That the vaults under the arena were called caveæ[ib.]
The Arena[52]
Criminals torn to pieces by wild beasts upon it[ib.]
The gladiators and other actors often killed[ib.]
Celebrated gladiators were called for by the people[ib.]
Usually four gates to each amphitheatre[53]
The names of these not easily ascertained[ib.]
One was called sandapila, or sanavivaria, or libitinensis, from libitina, “death”[ib.]
Others—Porta Prætoria, Porta Sacra, Porta Cochlea[54]
The Games on the Arena[55][XXII.]
—— Great importance attached to them[ib.]
The Emperor went to see the wild beasts fed[ib.]
Tacitus gives an account of games performed under his own direction[ib.]
Appendix.
Scaurus[56]
—— The name means club-footed, from the first member of the family, but it was a great family, the Gens Æmilia[ib.]
One of the family built the Basilica Æmilia[ib.]
The insane works of Scaurus, their enormous cost[ib.]
His theatre, to hold 80,000 people, could only be on the site of the Colosseum[ib.]
No other theatre is three storeys high[ib.]
Extract from Pliny, relating to Scaurus and his works[ib.]
The amphitheatre of Nero not in the Campus Martius[58]
The great drain[59][XXXVI.]