The Story of the Roman Amphitheatre [Hardcover]

D. L. Bomgardner (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0415165938 | ISBN-13: 978-0415165938 | Publication Date: October 17, 2000 | Edition: 1

The Roman amphitheatre was a site both of bloody combat and marvellous spectacle, symbolic of the might of Empire; to understand the importance of the amphitheatre is to understand a key element in the social and political life of the Roman ruling classes.
Generously illustrated with 141 plans and photographs, The Story of the Roman Amphitheatre offers a comprehensive picture of the origins, development, and eventual decline of the most typical and evocative of Roman monuments.
With a detailed examination of the Colosseum, as well as case studies of significant sites from Italy, Gaul, Spain and Roman North Africa, the book is a fascinating gazetteer for the general reader as well as a valuable tool for students and academics.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'This book is a welcome addition to what has thus far been a gap in the research literature ... D.L.Bomgardner has delivered a useful tool that is accessible to a wide audience.' - Daniel M. Millette, School of Architecture, University of British Columbia

'Very readable and absorbing.' - JACT Review

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (October 17, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0415165938
• ISBN-13: 978-0415165938
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,538,141 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding scholarship--well written as well, December 12, 2008

By 

Jeri Nevermind "loves to read" (Idaho) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Story of the Roman Amphitheatre (Paperback)

This book investigates Roman amphitheaters, their development, their use during the height of Roman power, and later, the uses put to the amphitheaters as Rome declined. There are lots of pictures of the ruins, as well as diagrams and lists of the amphitheaters, most of which were located in the western part of the empire, some in north Africa.

Entertainingly written, it can be read by the person who simply is interested in history, as well as by scholars.

The money lavished on the amphitheaters and the gladiators and beasts is simply staggering. Julius Caesar "amassed an extensive network of gladiators and training schools...He established...at Capua...5,000 gladiators" (p 23).

During the late republic a vast bureaucratic army worked on all different aspects of the amphitheaters. The ancient Roman world was games mad, and the emperors invested heavily in the spectacles put on and on the amphitheaters themselves. Marble, sculptured keystones, arenas with trapdoors and early forms of elevators--quite siimply, they are wonders of engineering.

Although there is little information on the prices paid for the exotic beasts used in the areas, we know that Magerius "spent a total of 4,000 denarii...or about 100,000 English pounds" (p 211) for 4 leopards. By the time of Diocletian "a top quality African lion now costs a maximum of 600,000 seterces (nearly 4 million today) (p 211).

One oddball tidbit: the countryside of North Africa was said to flourish with agriculture since lions and other large beasts were heavily hunted.

Only a few Romans objected to the cruelty and the bloodshed. The Jews, Stoics, and especially the Christians disliked the games. The Christians, many of whom were slaughtered in the areas, condemned the bloodshed forcefully.