Roman Amphitheaters
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El Djem, Tunisia
Many Roman amphitheaters were built outside of Rome. This is the amphitheater of El Djem in Tunisia (North Africa), one of the largest amphitheaters that is still around today. This amphitheater was big enough to hold many more people than lived in the town of El Djem: farmers used to come in from the countryside all around on holidays to see the gladiatorial shows and executions here.
Selinunte, Sicily (Italy)
Here's another example of a Roman amphitheater from outside of Italy. This is the amphitheater of Selinunte in Sicily.
Paris, France
Paris, which was only a small town under Roman rule, had a pretty small amphitheater.
These amphitheaters continued to be used until the 300s AD, when a lot of Romans converted to Christianity and the Christian bishops began preaching that gladiatorial fights were wrong. This was partly because the amphitheaters had been used to execute Christian prisoners, people who had been convicted of practicing Christianity illegally, like Saint Paul. And it was partly because gladiators traditionally fought in honor of the Roman gods. But even though gladiatorial fights stopped, amphitheaters continued to be used for fights between men and animals - and they still are today in Spanish and Mexican bullfights.
To find out more about Roman amphitheaters, check out these books from Amazon.com or from your library:
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(a project)
Roman Amphitheaters, by Don Nardo (2002). For kids. Mainly about the Colosseum in Rome.
Make This Model Roman Amphitheatre, by Iain Ashman (1995).
Roman Architecture, by Frank Sear (1983). The standard college textbook.
The Roman Amphitheatre: From its Origins to the Colosseum, by Katherine Welch (2004). By a specialist, for specialists.
Main Roman Architecture page
Main architecture page
