Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine

The Flavian Amphitheatre was begun by Vespasian around 70 AD and inaugurated by Titus in 80 with a hundred days of games; it held tens of thousands of spectators, shaded by a huge awning called the velarium. Next to it lie the Roman Forum, the heart of public life in ancient Rome, and the Palatine, the hill of the imperial palaces.

Did you know: The name “Colosseum” most likely comes not from the building's size but from the colossal statue of Nero that stood nearby. Tickets are sold on the official Archaeological Park website.

✦ The legend: “While stands the Colosseum, Rome shall stand; when falls the Colosseum, Rome shall fall; and when Rome falls, the world”: the prophecy is attributed to the Venerable Bede, an English monk of the 8th century. In the Middle Ages the monument had a reputation as a haunted place, and some came here at night to summon demons among the empty arches.