Name the three main layers of seating in the colosseum
- Ima Cavea
- Media Cavea
- Summa Cavea
How many spectators could the colosseum hold?
around 50,000
Who opened the colosseum in 80AD
Emperor Titus
Name the morning activities that would happen in the colosseum
- Animals v animals
- Venatio (the hunt)
- Demnatio ad bestian (damnation to the beast)
Name the events that would normally happen midday at the colosseum
- Dematio and flammas (death by flames)
- Mythological re-enactments
- last man standing
What was the late afternoon event?
The gladiators would come out to fight with about 10 mins per fight
What was the gladiator survival rate?
90%
Name the 5 different gladiators and key bits of information about each
- Murmillo: ‘man fish’ with fish designed helmet, large rectangular shield and short sword
- Thraex: curved sword, medium shield and crested helmet
- Retiarius: ‘fisherman’ with trident, net, small dagger and shoulder shield. Mobile as not weighed down.
- Secutor: egg shaped helmet, short sword, heavily armed and smooth so thee was nothing for the Retiarius to catch his net upon.
- Hoplomachus: looked like a greek, long spear and round shield
Name the appeal of coming to see the shows that was to do with animals and not fighting
The animals would often be very exotic- they were animals romans did not get to see in their everyday lives and also emphasised the power and how widespread the Roman Empire was.
What were the colosseum arches made of?
Concrete and brick to allow stability for the weight from above.
What were the outer walls made of in the colosseum?
Hard travertine rock.
What shape were amphitheatres?
Oval/Elliptical (you can’t say circle!)
What did people shout during gladiator games to take part?
“Mitte!” (Let him go!) “Lugula” (Kill him!)
Give one reason a fight between a murmillo/hoplomachos/retiarius and a Thracian might be especially enjoyable for the audience.
a murmillo; fight would last a long time due to heavy armour
hoplomachos: reasonably evenly matched, offer a fair fight
retiarius; interesting combination of weapons used by the two
