Roman Amphitheater of Rimini
About
Builders raised this amphitheater under Hadrian, so it stood unbuilt on 11 August 117 CE, the day Trajan died and Hadrian succeeded him. A coin bearing Hadrian's portrait, found embedded in its masonry, fixed the date. Two rings of arches once held more than 10,000 spectators near the harbor. Allied bombing in World War Two left only its elliptical outline and a few brick arches standing.
What happened here
Doors open early and the programme runs all day. Morning is animal hunts, staged with scenery hauled up through trapdoors from the corridors below. Midday is executions, and it is the hour when the seats thin out and people go for lunch. The afternoon is the gladiators, matched by type and record like boxers, refereed, and stopped when a man raises a finger. Most fights are not to the death — a trained fighter is expensive — but a decision can go the other way and the crowd is consulted. Seating is strictly by rank: officials at the front, women at the top. Awnings are worked by sailors detailed for the job. Sand is spread thick and replaced between shows, and the whole building smells of it.
Sources
Nearby
Roman Maps shows the empire frozen at 11 August 117 CE, the day Trajan died — its moment of greatest territorial extent. Explore the full map →