Pompeii - Amphitheatre

Pompeii Amphitheatre, first view

Standing in the farthest south east corner of the city, the amphitheatre in Pompeii is impressive, even though just two days before I have been standing in the coliseum  in Rome the amphitheatre in Pompeii is grand. It lacks much of the complicated vaulting and substructure of the coliseum however it predates it by over a hundred years.

This is the oldest surviving amphitheatre in the ancient world and it is very practical and elegant in its simplicity. It may not have the decor and flourishes of the amphitheatre in Arles or Verona, but its the oldest of the bunch. 

It is oval in shape and consists of dozens of arches supporting the seating for thousands of spectators. There are a number of entrances that lead straight to the floor of the arena and a magnificent staircase also supported by arches.

Amphitheatre inside, nice brickwork

Standing in the arena in the rain it does seem a little forlorn. It’s hard to imagine the clash of weapons and the blood and sweat of hand to hand gladiatorial combat while chewing on an energy bar in the grey drizzle of late December.

In AD 59 a riot broke out during some games that involved a rival town. Next thing you know half the police chariots have been overturned and a bunch of people have accidentally been stabbed to death. Soccer riots first century style.  Because of this little tussle, games were banned from being held in Pompeii for ten years. However good old Nero had the games reinstated not too long after the incident because his most recent wife was from the area and even an emperor wants to be on the good side of his in-laws. That is of course until one grows weary of them and has them all smothered to death during Saturnalia dinner (dramatization, I don’t think he ever did that). 

I'll leave you with a view from the floor of the area where so much blood was spilled, like cheap beer at a frat party. 

Pompeii amphitheater

Rome - December 28, 2011 - Coliseum

Coliseum and traffic

The Coliseum, (originally the Flavian Amphitheater) what wonder, what death, what amazing spectacles this place has beheld: hand to hand combat, lions. elephants and the occasional tiger all the way from India. The Christians and other political prisoners being torn apart by wild animals! Wild animals! It’s just like any game show on Fox! The Arena covered in Sand over the wooden boards.

The arches are magnificent and above each of the entrances there is a number that relates to the seating area. I still can’t believe that I actually got to hang out in here.

You can almost smell the death reeking from the stinking sands of the arena, though that might just be a burst sewer pipe….ok, I lie we’re not in Naples yet!

Leonardo landscape from Coliseum

Funnily enough the place did not get its name from the fact that it is large, but from a statue that used to stand nearby. The statue was originally erected by Nero in the atrium of his giant palace the Domus Aurea. After Nero was forced to commit suicide (“Qualis artifex pereo” bwahaahaa! What an egotistical pr!ck!) the oval pond of his pleasure garden was turned into the foundation of the amphitheater and eventually the statue was moved here, given a halo and renamed Apollo. Apparently this became the landmark for the area, not the great hulking stone amphitheater but some ruddy great gilded statue of Apollo.

While waiting to get in (there was an extensive and somewhat horrific line that seemed to move not) just like at the Vatican people were constantly approaching us to join their tour group, get a private guide, etc ad naseum. Eventually one of the guys came up and was speaking with an Italian accent about getting us in to the Coliseum with some tour, I was about to respond when he saw that we each had the "Roma Pass" in our hands. He dropped the Italian accent and said in a fine East End voice: "Oh, you’ve got the Roma Pass, just go through the middle queue no waiting.”

Temple of Venus and Rome
from Coliseum

Coliseum arch

We migrated over to the middle queue and we did move much faster than the others on either side, but then we hit a stop...We waited for a few minutes, then a few more and then and we were catapulted into a fast track line. Roma Pass goes in the turnstile, pops out at the top… Boom! Coliseum baby, we're in! Roma Pass! It pays.

Seeing this great building where so much gladiatorial combat took place was sort of the main course, being followed by dessert in the form of the forum Boaraium where the first gladiatorial combat took place in the 2nd century BCE.

The interior of the Coliseum