338 



THE CIVIL ENCilXKER AND ARCHITEtT'S JOURNAL. 



LNoVEMBBR, 



being within; the tribuna was the most hijrhlv ornamented part; 

 it is uncertain whether tlie aisles were inch)se(l bv walls, or whe- 

 ther only by arcades o|)cninK into the forum, 'j'here were also 

 other apartments, called rhalchiwa; but for what purpose is un- 

 known. Some suppose tliem to have been store-houses for the 

 corn to be distributed to the populace; as, accordinif to Varro. the 

 creta clialcUlka had the ])ro])erty of preservinj; prain: but this is 

 mere conjecture — the term rlut/cidica is employed by some autliors 

 to signify all the rooms in the upper part of the house, generally 

 used as store-rooms. 



Leaving the buildings appropriated to business or utility, we 

 now come to those set apart for entertainment and luxury; the 

 most important and characteristic of which is the Amphitheatre, 

 giving proof both of the wealth and power of the mighty Roman 

 peo|)le, and of their ferocious and sanguinary disposition. 



We have already traced the .Ampliitheatre to an Etruscan ori- 

 gin; the name first given to this kind of structure in Rome was 

 Theatrum V'enatorium, or theatre for hunting. iJurintj the Com- 

 monwealth, the gladiatorial games were generally exhibited in the 

 forum, no permanent am))hitheatre then existing. It is supposed 

 that these games or combats were first celebrated at funeral 

 feasts; but finding them so agreeable to the populace, those 

 advanced to high offices in the state were accustomed to give 

 them as bribes or rewards at their election, hence thev were called 

 donations. Gladiatorial shows soon became a passion with the 

 people of Italy, and were encouraged as a means of exciting a 

 fierce and warlike spirit; even I'liriy the ycmnger speaks of these 

 games as projier to inspire fortitude, and to make men despise 

 wounds and death. The first puldic show of wild beasts was on 

 occasion of the victory obtained over the Carthaginians by Lucius 

 Metellus, when the captured elephants were driven round the 

 arena by slaves with blunted javelins, in order to dissipate the fear 

 inspired by these strange and enormous animals. Wild beast 

 fights do not appear to have hec-n introduced till after the second 

 Punic war. The amphitheatre was at this time only a temporary 

 structure of wood, erected in the Campus .Martins, and removed 

 at the conclusi(m of the games. It is said that Caius Curio, tri- 

 bune of tlie pe<>])le in the time of Ca»sar, gave an entertainment on 

 his father's death, causing two theatres of wood to be constructed 

 for the morning representations of the drama; these theatres were 

 so contrived, tliat in the afternoon the semicircles were swung 

 round, anil made to meet at the e.xtremities so as to form an 

 amphitheatre for the exhibition of gladiators, with which the sports 

 of the day terminated. The first ])ermanent ann)hitheatre was 

 built by Statilius Taurus, in the 725th year of Rome; this was a 

 stone edifice, but of small size. As the degradation of the lower 

 classes increased with the absolutism of the emperor, so the crav- 

 ing after these murderous games increased also; the populace of 

 Rome were little better than a multitude of paupers, receiving 

 their daily bread from the i>ul>lic stores, and paniim et circriixn.t 

 became the popular cry. Peihaps it was found by their tyrants, 

 tliat the exhibition of public games was an easy way of keeping 

 the people quiet, by affording a safe vent to their love of excite- 

 ment; but be this as it may, the old amphitheatre was found 

 ijuite inadequate to contain the crowds that flocked to witness the 

 sliows, and in the reign of Vespasian, the great amphitheatre was 

 founded, called the Flavian, from the name of the Emperor Fla- 

 vins Augustus. It was c<miplcted by his son Titus, some authors 

 say in three, others in ten years; many thousand slaves were 

 employed in its construction. This enormous buildina: is gene- 

 rally known as the Coliseum, either from its gigantic dimensions, 

 or from a colossal statue of Xero that stood near. It is elliptical 

 in form, G2() ft. in length, by ilSft. in breadth, and is 157 ft. in 

 height; it occupies six acres of ground, and was capable of accom- 

 modating H0,0IJU spectators. 



The Roman amphitheatres and theatres are architecturally 

 interesting, as affording the earliest examples of the use of orders 

 one o\er the other on the exterior. The Coliseum has four stories, 

 the three lower consisting of arcades, separated by piers and 

 engaged columns; the upper, of an attic pierced with windows, 

 the piers being decorated with pilasters. The lower order is Doric, 

 the second Ionic, and the third Corinthian. Tliose who have exa- 

 mined the building disagree as to whether the upper onler is 

 Corinthian (u- Coni])osite; Serlio, Taylor, and Cresy stating it to 

 be Composite; and Palladio, Cijiriani, Desgodetz, and others, 

 Corinthian. As the wall of the building ascends, it gradually 

 tapers inwards; the diminution in its thickness is given to the 

 exterior, the interior lace being vertical: this tendency to the 

 pyrami<lal form greatly adds to its apparent solidity. In the two 

 lower orders, the columns project more than half their diameter; 



in the third, exactly half. The Doric colums are upwards of nine 

 iliameters in heitrht, and are raised oti pedestals; the entalilature 

 is not <|uite cme-fourth the heiglit of the column; the frieze is 

 plain, without triirly|)hs; the width of the piers is rather more 

 than half the aperture of the arch, and the thickness nearly the 

 same. The upper stories being so far removed from the eve 

 the capitals of the columns present mere indications of the (u-der 

 to which they belonir. The lower arcade consisted of eitrhty |)iir- 

 tals or vomitories, numbered like the l)oxes of a theatre.' The 

 hiwer story was occupied by five corridors; from the second and 

 third were the stain^ases giving access to the upper seats; from 

 t!ie fourth, a flight of marble steps led to the jpodium. There 

 were four principal entrances, Ki ft. 4 in. in width; the other 

 arches being only 14ft. bin.; that to the north was the por- 

 tal by which the emi)eror entered from his palace on the Esqui- 

 line. The interior central space was covered with sand, to 

 absorb the blood of the victims; hence it was called the "arena." 

 From this rose the podium, a wall 12 feet high and H feet 

 broad, protected from the springs of the wild beasts by a small 

 canal and a s])iked railing; on the podium were the seats for 

 the emjieror, senators, foreign ambassadors, the vestal virgins, and 

 the editor, or person who gave the games. The equites sat in 

 fourteen rows above. The emperor's seat was raised, and was 

 hung with silken draperies like a pavilion. Ranges of marble 

 seats then rose one al)ove another to the upper story, where 

 wooden benches served to accommodate the lower ranks of spec- 

 tators. Doors opened cui to the arena below the podium, through 

 which the gladiators and beasts entered; and the bodies of those 

 butchered in the games were dragged out by a hook, into the 

 spoliarium. Cells or chambers, have been discovered beneath the 

 arena, which some have supposed to have been dens for the beasts; 

 but it is uncertairi whether the vivarium was contained within the 

 walls of the amphitheatre: they were more probably used for the 

 machinery necessary to the changes of scene produced on the 

 arena. It « as occasionally filled with water, for the representa- 

 tion of sea-fights; and sometimes trees were transplanted there, 

 and artificial caves and rocks formed, amongst which the wild 

 beasts lurked as in their natural state. During the work of 

 slaughter, the audience were refreshed with jets of odoriferous 

 water, rising into the air and dispersing like small rain; and were 

 sheltered from the sun by an awning or velarium. Over the win- 

 dows in the upper story are corbels, for the purpose of attaching 

 the masts of the velarium, which passed through holes perforated 

 in the cornice. The velarium was in si-x parts, drawn together by 

 cords; it was generally of woollen cloth, but on particular occa- 

 sions of embroidered silk. We are informed that the net-work 

 before the podium was of gold wire, and the fascia; of the benches 

 (0 iiamented with mosaic work of precious marbles; and that on 

 high festivals the furniture of the amphitheatre was entirely 

 composed of gold, silver, and amber. According to Martial, 

 people flocked from all parts of the world to be present at the 

 opening of the Flavian Amphitheatre; games were celebrated for 

 loo days, during which time 5000 wild beasts were slaughtered. 

 In the reign of Trajan, an entertainment was given that lasted 

 123 days, 2000 gladiators successively apjiearing on the arena. 

 Amongst the strange animals mentioned as taking part in the 

 show, are ostriches, zebras, lions, leopards, elks, giraffes, elephants, 

 and even the rare hippopotamus, who probably met with a less 

 agreeable reception than amongst the novelty-hunting fashionables 

 of our metropolis. 



The games of the Amphitheatre was the last remnant of Pagan- 

 ism that gave way before the dawning light of Chri^tianity: they 

 were not abolished till the fifth century. Gladiatorial combats 

 were put an end to by the courage of the monk Telemachus, who 

 rushed ujpon the ai'ena, and endeavoured to separate the com- 

 batants; he was instantly tcu'n to ]>ieces by the brutal populace, 

 but the heroic deed roused the Emperor Honorius to exert his 

 authority in rejnessing a spectacle so obnoxious to the religion he 

 professed. These shows ceased from that time, but fights with 

 wild beasts continued to be exhibited till the reign of 'i'heodoric 

 (523 A.D.) Since then, the Coliseum has fallen into disuse, and 

 was long a prey to the spoiler, till it was consecrated by Po))e 

 Benedict XIV., who erected the cross that now stands in the 

 centre. Tliere is a prophecy relating to this building recorded 

 by X'enerable Bede: ".Vs long as the Coliseum stands, Rome 

 shall stand; when the Coliseum falls, Rome will fall; when Rome 

 falls, the world will fall." 



There are remains of four other amjdiitheatres — those of Verona, 

 Capua, Nismes, and Pola in Istria; these are all similar in jdan to 

 the Coliseum, thougli of smaller diujensions. That at Verona is 



