The rich history of ancient Rome

Rome, Italy is an ancient metropolis that is rich in historical landmarks. It is the capital city of Italy and also the biggest, so needless to say, there is a lot to see. Here are three places that I checked out while being there.

Trevi Fountain is a fountain from the 18th century that doubles as an elegant piece of art. Standing at 85 feet tall and 65 feet wide with a pool in the front of the fountain, there is certainly a lot of room for water. With that said, it goes through quite a bit of water daily. To be more exact, the fountain produces 2,823,800 cubic feet of water over the span of 24 hours. However, the water gets recycled, so the fountain’s output is not an extreme waste.

A lot of visitors throw coins into the fountain’s pool. The proper way of doing it is to use your right hand to throw the coin over your left shoulder. It is said that if you (properly) toss a coin, you are guaranteed to return to Rome.

Another major historical landmark in Rome is the Flavian Amphitheater, which is also commonly referred to as the Colosseum. Its commission took place around 70 A.D. by Emperor Vespian of the Flavian Dynasty, and it was then opened in 80 A.D. by Vespian’s son, Titus.

Before the Colosseum was built, a lot of other Roman amphitheaters were built on hillsides so that they could have substantial support. However, this amphitheater differs in the fact that it is a freestanding structure made of stone and concrete.

While walking around the outside of the colosseum as well as the inside, one can notice that there are a lot of holes in the structure. These holes are a result of the removal of iron clamps over time that were built in to the architecture and were ultimately used elsewhere.

Originally, Flavian Amphitheater was used for gladiator fights, animal hunting, and reenactment of famous battles. The reenactments went as far as naval battles, which consisted of flooding the inside of the amphitheater with water. With the different events that took place here, it was still mainly known for its gladiator fights. Altogether, it is said that around 400,000 gladiators were killed here.

Today, this is what the inside of the Colosseum looks like. Seeing its interior gives you a different perspective of what it was like for spectators. To enter the inside, you do have to buy a ticket. I recommend buying tickets in advance, as you get to skip the line and get priority access. The admission ticket includes access to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill too.

In total, the Colosseum has four stories and seated more than 50,000 people. It stands tall and wide with a length of 615 feet (189 meters) and a width of 510 feet (156 meters). It had 76 entrances and exits, which allowed people to exit the arena quickly in the event of a fire or other emergency. The public entrances were numbered, and each spectator had a ticket that showed where they were supposed to enter from.

Additionally, where each spectator sat was determined based on several factors, including level of wealth, gender, and social status. The highest tier of seating was known as the emperor’s box, which is known to be where the best view was. Then, senators and other political officials sat in the lower part of the arena, so it can be inferred that they got a good view too. Lastly, the seating higher up in the arena was reserved for ordinary Roman citizens, and at the very top is where women and the poor would sit on wooden benches or even stand.

The Colosseum also had windows on the upper levels, which allowed for wind to enter and exit the arena. Walking around the interior of the Colosseum allows you to look at so much that you would not be able to see otherwise.

During the fifth century A.D., the Colosseum became damaged as a result of several earthquakes. In fact, about one third of the structure was destroyed. After the fall of Rome, it began to deteriorate as a result of being neglected.

Pictured above is a drawing of the Flavian Amphitheater that shows what it looked like in its original form in comparison to what it’s like now. To this day, there is still no indicator as to who exactly the architect was of the structure. Regardless, it took an incredible amount of intricate engineering, especially for the given time period.

Just down the way from the Colosseum, there is an area called the Roman Forum, which is a site of ruins of what was once a place that was the location for public meetings/gatherings, law courts, shops, and social gatherings. This picture was taken from the top of Palatine Hill. Be sure to visit here as well for a spectacular, panoramic view of the forum.

During the fall of the Roman Empire, the forum started to gradually become destroyed too. A lot of the monuments were looted for stone and marble or were buried from debris. Eventually thereafter, the land where the Forum once was started to be used as grassland known as ‘Campo Vaccino,’ meaning Cow Field.

Presently, although most of the buildings are in ruins, this is nonetheless an important piece of history that pertains to the Roman Empire. Walking through this open-air museum allows you to get a close look at the ancient buildings and see the area that was once the focal point of Rome that fostered a sense of socioeconomic community and camaraderie in many ways.

With seeing these historical landmarks and even more, it can be inferred that Rome is a city that could be explored extensively multiple times. I tossed a coin in the Trevi Fountain, so I hope the legend is true and that I one day return to explore even more landmarks!