Let the Games Begin

 

"While stand the Colosseum, Rome shall stand; when falls the Colosseum, Rome shall fall; and when Rome falls--the World."

Constructed  during the Flavian dynasty, the Colosseum was built where Nero's "Pleasure Palace" used to be (the expense alone of draining Nero's lake shows how much the Romans invested in the Colosseum) to exemplify the wealth and power of the Roman Empire.  The grandiose and complexity of the Colosseum's architecture is also a testament of wealth--made of concrete with complex barrel-vaults, marble seats, complex vaults below, and a facade designed with ornate columns (of Ionic, Tuscan, and Corinthian order).

Despite many centuries and advances in the structure of life, Romans still belittled the life of slaves just as seen in Ancient Babylon.  Searching for a profit, slaveholders "rented" out their slaves, who had been trained in hand-to-hand combat, to fight in the gladiator games.  However, these fights were not the only events to take place in the Colosseum.  Wild animal hunts, plays, and even naval battles attracted crowds and cheers . . . all for a ticket fee, of course.

Similar to today's sporting events, the best seats were saved for the highest in society's scale (and were the most expensive to purchase); but cheaper seats were still available so that  lower classes could enjoy the fights as well.  And also like entertainment today, the existence of the Colosseum shows that Romans were willing to pay for entertainment--their life was not solely dedicated to trying to  build Rome in a day.