Fascinating Animation Reveals Colosseum's Inner Workings

The Colosseum in ancient Rome was truly an engineering marvel as this recently released animation shows.

Rome's Colosseum as it once looked | Deconstructed / YouTube

This animated video shows, based on thorough research, the Colosseum's extraordinary inner workings. Rather than looking at the actual gladiatorial games and performances, the animators devote their time to showing how they happened, from how crowds were controlled on the way in and out, to the way animals and gladiators were released into the arena - seemingly out of nowhere.

More so, the team makes a deep dive on two points that prove how advanced the Colosseum was. The first is the naumachia, or naval battles staged at the Colosseum. To bring these to life with boats and all, the arena was turned into a lake with water supplied by nearby aqueducts and then drained by a channel system connected to the city's sewers. The other is the velarium, a sweeping retractible awning made of 240 separate parts that protected guests from the bright sun, as being there for hours on end during the sun would have been unpleasant.

“To bring this Roman masterpiece back to life, we've meticulously remodeled the Colosseum using historical texts, archaeological evidence, and a touch of educated guesswork,” writes the team from Deconstructed, who created the animation. “While some details are lost to history, this recreation offers the closest glimpse yet into how this ancient marvel truly worked - a testament to the ingenuity of Roman engineering.”