Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
nationality, archaeologists find them to be a particularly useful clue for dating ship-
wrecks and determining the country of origin of lost ships. This is made easier by
later Roman amphorae, which are actually stamped with the place they came from
and what they held.
The amphitheater's “entertainers” were gladiators (named for the
gladius,
a short sword
that was tucked into a fighter's boot). Some gladiators were criminals, but most were pris-
oners of war from lands conquered by Rome, who dressed and used weapons according to
their country of origin. A colorful parade kicked off the spectacle, followed by simulated
fights with fake weapons. Then the real battles began. Often the fights represented stories
from mythology or Greek or Roman history. Most ended in death for the loser. Sometimes
gladiators fought exotic animals—gathered at great expense from far corners of the em-
pire—whichwouldenterthearenafromthetwofarends(throughthebiggestarches).There
were female gladiators, as well, but they always fought other women.
While the life of a gladiator seems difficult, consider that it wasn't such a bad
gig—compared to, say, being a soldier. Gladiators were often better paid than soldiers, en-
joyed terrific celebrity (both in life and in death), and only had to fight a few times each
year.
Ignore the modern seating, and imagine when the arena (sandy oval area in the center)
was ringed with two levels ofstone seating andatoplevel ofwooden bleachers. Notice that
the outline of the arena is marked by a small moat (now covered with wooden slats)—just
wide enough to keep the animals off the laps of those with the best seats, but close enough
so that blood still sprayed their togas.
After the fall of Rome, builders looking for ready-cut stone picked apart structures like
this one—scraping it as clean as a neat slice of cantaloupe. Sometimes the scavengers
were seeking the iron hooks that were used to connect the stone; in those oh-so “Dark
Ages,” the method for smelting iron from ore was lost. Most of this amphitheater's interior
structures—such as steps and seats—are now in the foundations and walls of Pula's build-
ings...not to mention palaces in Venice, across the Adriatic. In fact, in the late 16th century,
the Venetians planned to take this entire amphitheater apart, stone by stone, and reassemble
it on the island of Lido on the Venetian lagoon. A heroic Venetian senator—still revered in
Pula—convinced them to leave it where it is.
