Spectacles Roman Empire

They are said to be the most powerful rulers who ever lived—a checkered mix of the wise, the brutal, and the unhinged. For more than five centuries they presided over a multi-ethnic empire that was nearly always at war, if not with neighbors then with rebellious factions within the empire itself. The full scope of their powers was not systematized in constitutional law, a fact that tempted many of them to overreach disastrously; and the lack of clear rules of succession meant that most of them died violently.

Terry Jones' Barbarians takes a completely unique approach to Roman history. No one nowadays would try to tell the story of the British Empire from the point of view of the British, but it's still the case that the story of the Roman Empire is always told from the perspective of Rome. Well, not any more!

David Bomgardner traces the origins and development of that most typical and evocative of Roman monuments, the amphitheatre. He shows that they played a central role in the social and political life of ancient Rome and looks further at their origins, the form the spectacles took and their decline and final fall in the late empire. With a detailed examination of the Colosseum, as well as case studies of significant sites from Italy, Gaul, Spain and Roman North Africa, the book is a fascinating gazetteer for the general reader as well as a valuable tool for students and academics.