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The Roman Colosseum, or Flavian Amphitheater, was built primarily of travertine, limestone quarried near Tibur (present-day Tivoli), Roman cement, bricks, and tuff blocks. The structure used arches, vaults, and an innovative groin vault to support the massive structure, and a standardized building block technique was employed to expedite construction.

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The Colosseum was used for nearly five centuries, hosting the last games in history in the 6th century, well after the traditional date of the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD. The Byzantines also used it during the 6th century. In addition to gladiatorial fights, many other public spectacles took place here, including naval battles, animal hunts, executions, reenactments of famous battles, and plays based on classical mythology. The building ceased to be used for these purposes in the Early Middle Ages.

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The Colosseum was a gift from Emperor Vespasian to the people. It served as a public, civic building where free spectacles of gladiator fights against wild beasts were offered, mythological battles were staged, and mock naval battles were held. These were open-air daytime spectacles. Each spectator occupied a space according to their status within Roman society: the lower seats were reserved for the emperor and senators. The worst seats, at the very top, were reserved for slaves, foreigners, and women.

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The Colosseum underwent major changes in its use during the medieval period. At the end of the 6th century, a small church was built within the amphitheater structure, although it apparently did not give religious significance to the entire building. The arena was transformed into a cemetery. The numerous spaces between the arcades and under the seats became factories and shelters, and according to sources, were rented out until the 12th century.

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During the papacy of Gregory the Great, many of the ancient monuments passed into the hands of the Church, which was the sole effective authority. However, it lacked the resources to maintain them, so they fell into disrepair and plunder. In the Middle Ages, the city's decline affected all the imperial monuments. The earthquakes of 801 and 847 caused extensive damage to a virtually abandoned building on the outskirts of the medieval city.

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When Pope Gregory VII was expelled from the city in 1084, many monuments passed into the hands of Roman noble families, who used them as fortresses. Around 1200, the Frangipani family took over the Colosseum and fortified it, using it similarly to a castle and making it their sphere of influence. The Colosseum changed hands until 1312, when it returned to the Church.

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Throughout the 15th and 16th centuries, the travertine covering it was quarried for use in other buildings, such as the Barberini Palace and the Port of Ripetta. A well-known Latin saying goes: "What the barbarians didn't do, the Barberini did." It was also used for burning to obtain lime.

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Its purpose was to mark the intersection of the city's four districts. In 1936, Mussolini ordered its demolition for "being a nuisance" due to the construction of the Via dei Fori Imperiali. One of the last atrocities suffered by the Colosseum was being used as a symbol of the military's erasure of Italian history; the missing part of the building is due to a bomb dropped on it during World War II.

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The Colosseum is undoubtedly one of Rome's greatest tourist attractions. It has been used in multiple films, most notably the digital reconstruction shown in the film Gladiator.

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In 1980, UNESCO declared Rome's historic center, including the Colosseum, a World Heritage Site. Since 2000, authorities have kept the building illuminated for 48 hours whenever a death sentence is commuted or postponed anywhere in the world.

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In the summer of 2016, a painstaking cleaning of the building's exterior was completed, the first comprehensive cleaning in its history; a process that began almost three years earlier. Funded by the shoe company Tod's, the restoration consisted of washing surfaces with water spray (respecting the patina of the stone and marble) and replacing unsuitable plasterwork. This work, with a budget of 10 million euros, will be followed by the restoration of the Colosseum's interior and a modernization of visitor services, thanks to another 15 million euro budget.