Colosseum

The Colosseum is the Flavian Amphitheatre in central Rome, finished in AD 80 and once able to hold an estimated 50,000 spectators. It stands on Piazza del Colosseo east of the Roman Forum, and its timed ticket, which also covers the Forum and Palatine Hill, suits anyone with half a day in the city.

The Colosseum stands in a valley between the Palatine, Esquiline and Caelian hills, on the site of an artificial lake in Nero's palace grounds. After Nero's death, the emperor Vespasian began the amphitheatre around AD 70 to 72 as a gift to the Roman people, funded partly by spoils from the sack of Jerusalem. His son Titus held the opening games in AD 80, and Domitian added the underground level. Because all three belonged to the Flavian family, its ancient name was the Flavian Amphitheatre.

The modern name probably comes from the Colossus of Nero, a giant bronze statue that stood nearby. Gladiator fights continued into the 5th century and animal hunts into the 6th. Earthquakes, especially in 1349, brought down the southern side, and for centuries the building served as a quarry for travertine used in churches and palaces across Rome. In 1749 Pope Benedict XIV consecrated it as a sacred site and forbade further quarrying. It is part of the Historic Centre of Rome World Heritage Site.

The building is an ellipse about 189 by 156 metres, and the outer wall rises about 48 metres. It was built of travertine, tuff and Roman concrete, with 80 entrance arches at ground level, 76 of them numbered for ordinary spectators. The facade has three tiers of arches framed by Doric, Ionic and Corinthian half-columns, topped by an attic level that once anchored a huge canvas awning, the velarium, said to have been worked by sailors from the naval base at Misenum.

Seating was divided by rank, with senators near the arena and women, slaves and the poor on the top tier. Beneath the arena floor, the hypogeum held two levels of corridors and cages and 80 vertical shafts with lifts that raised animals and scenery into the arena through trapdoors. Part of the arena floor has been rebuilt so visitors can stand where the fighters stood and look up at the stands.

A standard ticket also covers the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, and the underground, arena floor and attic need upgraded tickets that sell out first. All entries are timed, so book the slot on the official ticketing site before planning the rest of the day. Early morning and the last slots of the afternoon are the least crowded. Allow about two hours for the Colosseum, and another three for the Forum and Palatine.

Metro Line B stops at Colosseo station directly opposite the entrance, and buses 51, 75, 85, 87 and 118 serve the area; there is no visitor parking, because the streets around it are a limited-traffic zone. A lift reaches the second level, and disabled visitors and one companion enter free. Visitors under 18 also enter free but still need a reserved ticket, and everyone gets in free on the first Sunday of each month.