A restoration of the Roman Colosseum’s southern piazza has been completed after four years of construction, according to Artnet News. The project, led by Stefano Boeri Interiors, has recreated the travertine-paved pedestrian plaza outside the amphitheater’s southern façade, where spectators once waited to enter the arena.
Built between 70 and 80 CE, the Roman Colosseum remains one of the engineering marvels of the world. At four stories high and with 80 arched entrances, the amphitheater could seat 50,000 or more people, equal to a modern stadium. Even more impressive, it was completely freestanding, supported by a complex vault system.
It had a retractable awning system to shade spectators, and a complement of latrines and water fountains. Its most famous use was for gladiator games, in which enslaved people or prisoners of war fought each other or wild animals to the death. It also presented public executions and mock naval battles, for which the amphitheater could reportedly be filled with water.
After the fall of the Roman Empire, the Colosseum was used as a Christian sanctuary, and later as a fortress. The building was abandoned after being partially destroyed by an earthquake in 1349 and became a quarry for construction projects like St. Peter’s Basilica and the Palazzo Venezia. In the 1800s, Pope Pius VIII led an effort to preserve the building; what visitors see today is largely a restoration.
Part of the arena’s original travertine-covered outer wall, the Colosseum’s southern facade featured a two-story arcade with columns more than 160 feet in height. Rather than rebuild the facade, the architect and his team have indicated the placement of its original columns with plinths of the same stone as used in the the piazza.
“[The project] has finally restored the perception of the monument’s original size and floor level,” Boeri said in a statement. “It also offers the public the opportunity to approach its walls and imagine the rhythm and sequence of the ambulatories and arches, now lost.”
