If there was one thing the Roman people loved it was spectacle & the chance to see the weird & wonderful shows which assaulted the senses & ratcheted up the emotions. The Events The Roman amphitheatre (or arena) in Nîmes is the best-conserved of the Roman world. It was used for hunting wild animals and for gladiator combats from the end of the first century AD onwards. Many events are held there today. amphitheatre Of the surviving amphitheatres, many are now protected as historic monuments; several are tourist attractions.

The remains were discovered in June 1929 by W J Walrus Williams (1875-1971), an amateur archaeologist. Williams was examining a pit dug in the grounds of the Ursuline If there was one thing the Roman people loved it was spectacle and the chance to escape reality for a few hours and gawk at the weird and wonderful public shows which assaulted the senses and ratcheted up the emotions. Roman rulers knew this well, and so to increase their popularity and prestige with the people, they put on lavish and truly spectacular shows, which cost fortunes and lasted all day for several days. The whole live entertainment industry thus became a huge source of employment, from horse trainers to animal trappers, musicians to sand rakers. Bomgardner, David Lee (October 2000). The Story of the Roman Amphitheatre. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-16593-8.

Taormina Amphitheatre history

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Please note that Guildhall Art Gallery and London’s Roman Amphitheatre will be closed on the following dates: The history of the amphitheatre is a rather tumultuous one. Built in AD70 as a simple wooden structure, the amphitheatre had a more substantial makeover in the early 2nd century taking its capacity up to 6,000 people. During this time the arena was used for public events, animal fighting, public executions and, of course, gladiatorial combat. The media cavea directly follows the ima cavea and was open to the general public, though mostly reserved for men. When he saw the blood, it was though he has drunk a deep draught of savage passion. He fixed his eyes on the scene and took it in in all its frenzy......He watched and cheered and grew hot with excitement." St Augustine Confessions 6.8 Leveau, Philippe (October 26, 2012). "Caesarea (Cherchel)". doi: 10.1002/9781444338386.wbeah16033. ISBN 9781444338386. {{ cite book}}: |journal= ignored ( help); Missing or empty |title= ( help)In 1988, Museum of London archaeologists made an astonishing discovery that changed the face of Roman London. During an archaeological dig taking place in preparation for the new Art Gallery building project, it was found that the capital's only Roman amphitheatre was located in Guildhall Yard. In 2002, the doors to the amphitheatre opened for the first time in nearly 2,000 years. The surviving remains In modern usage, an amphitheatre is a circular, semicircular or curved, acoustically vibrant performance space, particularly one located outdoors. Contemporary amphitheatres often include standing structures, called bandshells, sometimes curved or bowl-shaped, both behind the stage and behind the audience, creating an area which echoes or amplifies sound, making the amphitheatre ideal for musical or theatrical performances. Small-scale amphitheatres can serve to host outdoor local community performances. These changes meant that there were ever fewer uses for amphitheatres, and ever fewer funds to build and maintain them. The last construction of an amphitheatre is recorded in 523 in Pavia under Theoderic. [12] After the end of venationes, the only remaining purpose of amphitheatres was to be the place of public executions and punishments. After even this purpose dwindled away, many amphitheatres fell into disrepair and were gradually dismantled for building material, razed to make way for newer buildings, or vandalized. [13] Others were transformed into fortifications or fortified settlements, such as at Leptis Magna, Sabratha, Arles and Pola, and in the 12th century the Frangipani fortified even the Colosseum to help them in Roman power struggles. [14] Yet others were repurposed as Christian churches, including the arenas at Arles, Nîmes, Tarragona and Salona; the Colosseum became a Christian shrine in the 18th century. [14] one of the most explosive and enjoyable death metal records of 2017" - NEW NOISE MAGAZINE (US) 4.5/5

Londinium c.400 AD, showing the location of the amphitheatre near the southeast corner of the Roman fort at top left The elliptical band of dark stone on Guildhall Yard marks out the perimeter of the amphitheatre beneath the plaza A section of the amphitheatre wall The second-largest Roman amphitheatre was the Faleria, built 43 A.D. [16] It was located in Picenum (now Falerone), Italy. Its building dimensions were 178.8 × 106.2 meters, and it had an arena shaped like an ellipse. [17] It had twelve entrances, four of which led to the arena and had eight rows of seats divided into three sections. [18] Only the outside wall of the amphitheatre remains and the arena is covered in grass all the way to the podium. [18] Capua [ edit ] History [ edit ] Early amphitheatres [ edit ] The Amphitheatre of Pompeii in the 1800s, one of the earliest known Roman amphitheatres Definition of Amphitheatre in Oxford dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation and origin of the word". Oxford Dictionaries. Oxford University Press. 2014. Archived from the original on 13 July 2012 . Retrieved 23 February 2014. This record was the subject of a minor enhancement on 30 October 2014. The record has been generated from an "old county number" (OCN) scheduling record. These are monuments that were not reviewed under the Monuments Protection Programme and are some of our oldest designation records.

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Free guided tours, conducted by Guildhall Art Gallery’s team of City Guides, are available on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at 12:15pm and 1:15pm and last 30-45 minutes. No booking is required. These tours are for individual visits (not for groups). Please note that Guildhall Art Gallery and London's Roman Amphitheatre will be closed on the following dates:

The Colosseum's design became famous as it was placed on coins so that even people who had never been in person knew of Rome's greatest temple to entertainment. The design was copied throughout the empire: a highly decorative exterior, multiple entrances, seating ( cavea) set over a network of barrel vaults, a wall protecting spectators from the action of the arena (sometimes with nets added), and underground rooms below the arena floor to hide people, animals, and props until they were needed in the spectacles. There was also an extensive drainage system, a feature seen at other arenas such as Verona's amphitheatre where it still functions and has greatly contributed to the excellent preservation of the monument. The Flavian Amphitheatre in Rome, more generally known as the Colosseum, is the archetypal and the largest amphitheatre. Built from 72 to 80 AD, it remains as an icon of ancient Rome. Its building and arena dimensions are 188 × 156 and 86 × 54 meters respectively. It was commissioned by the Emperor Vespasian for the capital city of the ancient Roman Empire from 70–80 AD but was not completed and opened until 80 AD by his son Titus, as a gift for the people of Rome. [15] Pompeii [ edit ] Cavea of the Amphitheatre of Pompeii If you wish to book a private group tour of Guildhall Art Gallery, please get in touch with the Gallery team, specifying your preferred date/time and party size. Smartifya b Friedlaender, Ludwig; Gough, Alfred Bradly (1913-01-01). Roman Life and Manners Under the Early Empire. G. Routledge.