Image by David Iliff
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The Colosseum is one of ancient Rome’s most revered and reviled ruins, yet areas of the famous structure have long been off-limits to the public. This summer, the network of subterranean passageways beneath the arena, where gladiators prepared for battle, will open for the first time.
Image by Bjarki Sigursveinsson
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These underground galleries once buzzed with terrified activity as men were coerced into killing each other for the pleasure of 50,000 blood-thirsty spectators. They shared the dank chambers with wild animals, as an innovative system of ropes and platforms winched lions, tigers, bears and even crocodiles into the bloody heat of the Colosseum.
A glimpse into this horrendous existance was featured in Ridley Scott’s blockbuster Gladiator. Tourists are in for a taste of the real thing this summer, as access is finally granted to the 2,000-year-old tunnels. The film captured an image of misery and trepidation preceeding a scene of utter carnage, in an area that would be crowded, dark, extremely hot and disgustingly smelly.
Images via Dictionnaire des Antiquites Grecques et Romaines (top); Giovanni Battista Piranesi (left); ChrisO (right)
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Two levels of tunnels wind their way beneath the arena, hidden from the crowds. Notches on massive stone pillars show where the ropes and pulleys were once anchored. Teams of slaves operated 80 lifts transporting large carnivores – certainly as terrified as the gladiators – through trap doors into the Colosseum, to add to the destruction.
Images by Rennett Stowe
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Public entertainment was served up in the form of death. A typical day at the Colosseum began with hunting shows involving big cats, deer and ostriches, followed by public executions around lunchtime. The daily shenanigans were topped off by a gladiatorial bloodbath, much to the enjoyment of the expectant audience.
Restorers have spent months working to ensure the subterranean complex is safe for tourists, after two millenia of decay. The tunnels are scheduled to open in August, and will doubtless offer an insight into the Romans’ unique ability to combine violence with an engineering capacity streets ahead of their time. The end result: weekend entertainment every bit as popular with the Roman crowd as going to the game is today. A terrifying cocktail should you have found yourself in the wrong area of the Colosseum.
Article sourced from the Telegraph. Take an evening tour of the Colosseum here.
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