Population: 59.83 million (2013) World Bank

Currency: Euro

The Colosseum could hold, it is estimated, between 50,000 and 80,000 spectators,[5][6] having an average audience of some 65,000;[7][8] it was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles (for only a short time as the hypogeum was soon filled in with mechanisms to support the other activities), animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on Classical mythology. The building ceased to be used for entertainment in the early medieval era. It was later reused for such purposes as housing, workshops, quarters for a religious order, a fortress, a quarry, and a Christian shrine.

Although partially ruined because of damage caused by earthquakes and stone-robbers, the Colosseum is still an iconic symbol of Imperial Rome. It is one of Rome's most popular tourist attractions and has also links to the Roman Catholic Church, as each Good Friday the Pope leads a torchlit "Way of the Cross" procession that starts in the area around the Colosseum.[9]

The Colosseum is also depicted on the Italian version of the five-cent euro coin.

The Colosseum

The Colosseum's original Latin name was Amphitheatrum Flavium, often anglicized as Flavian Amphitheater. The building was constructed by emperors of the Flavian dynasty, following the reign of Nero.[10] This name is still used in modern English, but generally the structure is better known as the Colosseum. In antiquity, Romans may have referred to the Colosseum by the unofficial name Amphitheatrum Caesareum (with Caesareum an adjective pertaining to the title Caesar), but this name may have been strictly poetic[11][12] as it was not exclusive to the Colosseum; Vespasian and Titus, builders of the Colosseum, also constructed an amphitheater of the same name in Puteoli (modern Pozzuoli).[13]

The name Colosseum has long been believed to be derived from a colossal statue of Nero nearby[4] (the statue of Nero was named after the Colossus of Rhodes).[citation needed] This statue was later remodeled by Nero's successors into the likeness of Helios (Sol) or Apollo, the sun god, by adding the appropriate solar crown. Nero's head was also replaced several times with the heads of succeeding emperors. Despite its pagan links, the statue remained standing well into the medieval era and was credited with magical powers. It came to be seen as an iconic symbol of the permanence of Rome.

In the 8th century, a famous epigram attributed to the Venerable Bede celebrated the symbolic significance of the statue in a prophecy that is variously quoted: Quamdiu stat Colisæus, stat et Roma; quando cadet colisæus, cadet et Roma; quando cadet Roma, cadet et mundus ("as long as the Colossus stands, so shall Rome; when the Colossus falls, Rome shall fall; when Rome falls, so falls the world").[14] This is often mistranslated to refer to the Colosseum rather than the Colossus (as in, for instance, Byron's poem Childe Harold's Pilgrimage). However, at the time that the Pseudo-Bede wrote, the masculine noun coliseus was applied to the statue rather than to what was still known as the Flavian amphitheatre.

The Colossus did eventually fall, possibly being pulled down to reuse its bronze. By the year 1000 the name "Colosseum" had been coined to refer to the amphitheatre. The statue itself was largely forgotten and only its base survives, situated between the Colosseum and the nearby Temple of Venus and Roma.[15]

The name further evolved to Coliseum during the Middle Ages. In Italy, the amphitheatre is still known as il Colosseo, and other Romance languages have come to use similar forms such as Coloseumul (Romanian), le Colisée (French), el Coliseo (Spanish) and o Coliseu (Portuguese).

By 609 AD Byzantine Emperor Phocas, gave the building to Pope Boniface VIII. The building was converted into the church of Santa Maria and Martyres. The conversion from temple to Christian church is the main reason why the structure is still in good condition today.

During the Renaissance, the Pantheon was used as a tomb for many members of the arts. Such artists as Annibale Carracci and Raphael were buried in the Pantheon. At this time many artists used the Pantheon as an inspiration for other buildings. Brunelleschi, noted the Pantheon as one of the structures that inspired his design for the Dome of the Duomo in Florence .

The Pantheon is one of the most visited sites in Rome today. It is still used as a Catholic church and holds mass daily

Design :

Known for its dome structure, the Pantheon is one of the greatest examples of Roman architecture. Even though Hadrian is attributed with the commission of the building, the actual architect remains unknown. The design of the temple follows traditional Roman style. The entrance to the Pantheon was designed with a portico held up by eight columns across holding up the pediment, which holds the inscription to Agrippa.  The incorporation of Greek styles into the temple is related to Hadrian's education. He was educated in Roman Spain and spent much of his childhood learning about ancient Greek culture. The dome is one of the most innovative structures created, the incorporation of an oculus in the dome allows for the temple to be completely lighted without the help of artificial lighting. The oculus itself is twenty seven feet wide and is made from pumice -the lightest of all the materials. The dome varies in thickness, from 21 feet at the base to 4 feet at the top.

Interior:

The exterior of the Pantheon is simple and unadorned with detail especially when compared to the inside which was embellished with colored marble and bronze moldings. The floor is inlaid with colored granite and marble in the form of squares and circles. The inside of the dome is based on simple geometry. The dome is circular in height and width. The diameter and height of the rotunda are the same, 142 feet. The walls of the dome have a honeycombed effect known as coffering. The use of coffering allowed for the dome to appear larger than it was. Eight piers circle the temple, which correspond with eight niches. The niches were likely used to hold statutes to gods or theologians. The inside bares many of the same decorations as when it was completed in 125 BC. Much of the original marble and bronze has been removed and used on other sites. It is noted that during Pope Urban VII's reign, he ordered all Pantheon's bronze to be melded down and used for fortifications of other buildings. After the temple's conversion into a Catholic church many of the structure's original statues were replaced with catholic icons. Today many of these works are present in the temple.

It is situated behind Pisa's cathedral and is the third oldest structure in the city's Cathedral Square (Piazza del Duomo) after the cathedral and the Pisa Baptistry. The tower's tilt began during construction, caused by an inadequate foundation on ground too soft on one side to properly support the structure's weight. The tilt increased in the decades before the structure was completed, and gradually increased until the structure was stabilized (and the tilt partially corrected) by efforts in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

The height of the tower is 55.86 metres (183.27 feet) from the ground on the low side and 56.67 metres (185.93 feet) on the high side. The width of the walls at the base is 2.44 m (8 ft 0.06 in). Its weight is estimated at 14,500 metric tons (16,000 short tons). The tower has 296 or 294 steps; the seventh floor has two fewer steps on the north-facing staircase. Prior to restoration work performed between 1990 and 2001, the tower leaned at an angle of 5.5 degrees, but the tower now leans at about 3.99 degrees. This means that the top of the tower is displaced horizontally 3.9 metres (12 ft 10 in) from the centre.