Pula Arena

Arena is the name of the amphitheatre located in Pula, Croatia. The Arena is the only remaining Roman amphitheater to have four side towers and with all three Roman architectural orders entirely preserved. It is the sixth largest surviving Roman arena and a rare example, among the 200 Roman surviving amphitheatres, of unique technological solutions. It is also the best preserved ancient monument in Croatia.

Description

The exterior wall is constructed in limestone. The part facing the sea consists of three stories, while the other part has only two stories since the amphitheatre was built on a slope. The maximum height of the exterior wall is 29.40 m. The first two floors have each 72 arches, while the top floor consists of 64 rectangular openings.

The axes of the elliptical amphitheater are 132.45 and 105.10 meters long, and the walls stand 32.45 m high. It could accommodate 23,000 spectators in the cavea, which had forty steps divided into two "meniani". The seats rest directly on the sloping ground; The field for the games, the proper "arena", measured 67.95 × 41.65 meters. The field was separated from the public by iron gates.

The arena had a total of 15 gates. A series of underground passageways were built underneath the arena along the main axis from which animals, ludi scenes and fighters could be released; stores and shops were located under the raked seating. The amphitheatre was part of the circuit of the gladiators.

Each of the four towers had two cisterns filled with perfumed water that fed a fountain or could be sprinkled on the spectators. The amphitheatre could be covered with "velarii" (large sails) , protecting the spectators from sun or rain (as attested by rare construction elements).

This amphitheatre, through its remarkable conservation, has served as an excellent example for the study of ancient building techniques.

History

Arena was built in the 1st century A.D., as the city of Pula became a regional center of Roman rule, called "Pietas Julia". The name was derived from the sand that, since antiquity, covered the inner space. It was built outside the town walls along the "Via Flavia", the road from Pula to Aquileia and Rome.

The amphitheatre was first built in timber during the reign of Augustus (2-14 A.D.). It was replaced by a small stone amphitheatre during the reign of emperor Claudius. In 79 A.D. it was enlarged to accommodate gladiator fights by Vespasian and to be completed in 81 A.D. under emperor Titus. This was confirmed by the discovery of a Vespasian coin in the malting.

St. Germanus was martyred here in the year 284. The amphitheatre remained in use until the 5th century, when emperor Honorius prohibited gladiatorial combats. It was not until 681 that combat between convicts, particularly those sentenced to death, and wild animals was forbidden.

In the 5th century the amphitheatre began to see its stone plundered by the local populace. By the 13th century, the patriarch of Aquileia forbade further removal from the Arena.

In the Middle Ages the interior of the Arena was used for grazing, tournaments by the Knights of Malta and fairs. In 1583 the Venetian Senate proposed dismantling the Arena and rebuilding it within Venice. The proposals did not come to fruition and today, a headstone celebrating the Venetian senator Gabriele Emo opposition to the plan is currently visible on the second tower. The last time the Arena was used as a source of stone was in 1709 for the foundations of the belfry of the city's Cathedral.

General Marmont, the French governor of the Illyrian Provinces started the restoration of the arena. This was continued in 1816 by the Ticinese architect Pietro Nobile, commissioned by the emperor Francis I of Austria.

In 1932, it was adapted for theatre productions, military ceremonies and public meetings. In its present state it still seats some 5,000 spectators.

ee also

*Pula Film Festival

References

*Turner, J., "Grove Dictionary of Art", Oxford University Press, USA. New Ed edition, January 2, 1996. ISBN 0-19-517068-7.
*Mlakar, Stefan, "The Amphitheatre in Pula", The Archaeological Museum of Istra, 1957.

External links

* [http://www.cavazzi.com/roman-empire/tours/empire/pula.html Roman Pula]
* [http://www.galenfrysinger.com/croatia_pula_arena.htm Arena (Colliseum) of Pula]
* [http://www.mdc.hr/pula/ Archaeological Museum of Istria]
* [http://www.histrica.com/istria/blue/pula/xt/kravata-croata.html A Cravat around an Arena]