Historical Nimes

We went on the bus to Nimes in France.

The best preserved amphitheatre from the Roman Empire is the Nimes Arena.

Built: 70 AD
Holds: 24,000 people.
Shape: oval, the centre was sand and was 130 m long & 100 m wide
Seats: all the seats were numbered in 34 rows

Behind the seats were steps down to a tunnel that you could walk along to other seats or to exit the arena.

The days events would start with fights between wild animals or people versus wild animals. At lunch time was the most barbaric spectacle when prisoners were fed alive to the beasts. At the end of day gladiators would fight and the crowd would cheer and cheer.

Gladiators were volunteers that sacrificed their freedom for glory or to win money. They went to gladiator school and it was very hard. They treated them like slaves.

There are different types of gladiators they had different shields, helmets, armour, lances, tridents, swords and daggers. They had posters of the different types of gladiators.

In 1863 the arena was remodelled to be used for bullfighting.

 

By Finn