Battles of Ancient Rome's Colosseum

The Colosseum was the beating heart of public life in Ancient Rome — a vast stone amphitheatre where tens of thousands gathered to watch gladiatorial combat, staged hunts and grand spectacles. This world puts you inside that experience: on the sand of the arena, in the tiered seating reserved for citizens and senators, and in the imperial box where the emperor presided over the games.

Below the arena floor lies the hypogeum, the hidden engine of the spectacle. Here you explore the gladiators’ preparation chambers, the cages that held wild animals, and the huge counter-weighted wooden lifts that hauled lions and scenery up through trapdoors to appear as if from nowhere. Narrated hotspots reveal how the crowd was seated by rank, how the games were funded and staged, and how the building’s arches, vaults and passages let 50,000 people flow in and out with remarkable speed.