9 interesting facts about the Colosseum

1. Roman Coliseum is one of the most popular tourist attractions of Rome and still holds close connections with the Roman Catholic Church.
2. At the time of its construction, the Colosseum had the capacity of seating around 50,000 spectators.
3. The games played in the Colosseum are believed to have taken the lives of about 500,000 people and over a million wild animals.
4. Roman Coliseum remained in use for nearly 500 years. The last recorded games were held in it in the 6th century.
5. The Colosseum is an entirely free-standing structure, 189 m (615 ft) long, 156 m (510 ft) wide and with a base area of 6 acres (24,000 m2).
6. On every Good Friday, the Pope leads a torchlit "Way of the Cross" procession to the amphitheatre.
7. The stones used in the outer wall of the Colosseum were set without mortar. In fact, they were held together by 300 tons of iron clamps.
8. The central arena of Roman Coliseum is oval in shape, being 287 ft long and 180 ft wide. It stands surrounded by a 15 ft high wall, which has tiers of seating above it.
9. The surviving facade of Roman Coliseum's outer wall is made up of three stories of superimposed arcades, framed by half-columns of the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian orders.