The Flavian Amphitheatre is one of the two Roman amphitheatres in Pozzuoli. It dates from the second half of the first century AD and was built to cope with the population growth of Puteoli, which had made the earlier building for public shows insufficient; in capacity it is second only to the Colosseum and the Campanian amphitheatre at Capua.
What to see
The structure, on an elliptical plan, had an outer façade with three superimposed orders of arcades, resting on piers and topped by an attic, preceded by an elliptical portico made of trachyte: the quarries, imperial property, were very close to the sea, which cut transport costs. The interior was entered by four main entrances and twelve secondary ones: the Porta Pretoria to the north, corresponding to the place of the praetor of the games; the Porta Sacra to the south; the Porta Libitinensis to the east, from which the bodies of dead gladiators were taken out; the Porta Sanavivaria to the west, by which victorious gladiators left. The cavea was divided into three levels of seating, ima, media and summa. In the underground rooms, about seven metres deep, parts of the gears used to lift the cages with the beasts onto the arena are still visible, and along its main axis the arena is crossed by a stage trench.
Because of its commercial importance and its number of inhabitants, Pozzuoli was the only city of ancient Italy, Rome excluded, to have two amphitheatres: the older, of the Republican age, was cut in two by the railway cutting discovered in 1915 during work on the Rome–Naples railway. According to the sources, the first was devoted to gladiator shows, while the Flavian was suited to venationes with exotic beasts. The Flavian Amphitheatre stands where the region's main roads converged, between the Solfatara and Monte Gauro; its construction is attributed to the same architects as the Colosseum, of which it is slightly later, and some texts place it under Vespasian, with an inauguration probably under Titus. Archaeological excavations began in 1839 and only in 1947 was the monument finally freed of debris. In April 305, during Diocletian's persecutions, the Christians Januarius, Festus, Desiderius and Sossius were condemned to be torn apart in the amphitheatre: according to tradition the beasts knelt before them after a blessing by Januarius, and the four were then beheaded near the Solfatara together with the Pozzuoli men Proculus, Eutyches and Acutius.
Visiting
The amphitheatre is in Pozzuoli, where the via Domiziana and the road to Naples meet. Opening hours and tickets should be checked.
Our editors' tip
Look for the cell where the saints were shut up before the punishment: around the seventeenth–eighteenth century it became a chapel dedicated to their cult, above all to San Gennaro, as two plaques at the entrance attest, and it was decorated with a majolica altar and a ceramic statue of Saints Gennaro and Procolo embracing.
