All language subtitles for Unearthed Lost World of the Colosseum 720p

¶¶

Narrator:
THE ANCIENT CITY OF ROME.

FOUNDED NEARLY 3,000 YEARS AGO.

FOR FIVE CENTURIES,
THE ROMAN EMPIRE

WAS THE MIGHTIEST ON EARTH.

AND ONE EXTRAORDINARY BUILDING
STANDS AT ITS HEART --

THE COLOSSEUM.

THIS BUILDING REPRESENTS THE
EVOLUTION OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE

FROM ITS RISE THROUGH ITS FALL.

Narrator:
FOR CENTURIES, THIS ANCIENT
THEATER HAS HELD DARK SECRETS

ABOUT THE EMPIRE THAT BUILT IT

AND THE THOUSANDS
WHO DIED WITHIN IT.

IF PEOPLE HAD TO BE KILLED,
THEY WERE KILLED.

THE ROMANS DIDN'T HAVE
ANY PROBLEMS WITH DOING THAT.

Narrator: TODAY, ADVANCED
TECHNOLOGY IS HELPING SCIENTISTS

MAKE BRAND-NEW DISCOVERIES
WITH UNIQUE ACCESS

TO THE BONES OF FALLEN WARRIORS.

HOW DID THE ANCIENT ROMANS
PRESENT MAGICAL SPECTACLES

IN THIS GIANT ARENA

AND CREATE ENTERTAINMENT
WITH THE POWER

TO SPREAD ROME'S MESSAGE
ACROSS THE WHOLE EMPIRE?

THE ONLY WAY TO SOLVE
THESE MYSTERIES

IS TO DISMANTLE
THE COLOSSEUM BRICK BY BRICK.

WE'LL BLOW APART ITS ARCHES
AND TUNNELS TO EXPERIENCE LIFE

AND DEATH WITHIN ITS WALLS

AND REVEAL THE SECRETS HIDDEN
INSIDE THIS ANCIENT WONDER.

-- Captions by VITAC --
www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

¶¶

Narrator: THE COLOSSEUM.

A GIANT COMPLEX AT THE HEART
OF THE ANCIENT CITY OF ROME.

THIS WAS AN ARENA
OF DEATH AND MAGIC,

OF POTENT SPECTACLES WITH
THE POWER TO SUSTAIN AN EMPIRE.

BURIED WITHIN ITS WALLS
ARE CLUES THAT REVEAL

THIS WAS MUCH MORE
THAN JUST A THEATER.

THE COLOSSEUM STILL STRIKES
OUR HEART TODAY.

YOU CAN STILL FEEL
THE SAME FEELING

THAT THE ROMAN SPECTATORS
FELT AT THE TIME

OF THE PERFORMANCES.

TODAY, TEAMS OF EXPERTS
ARE EXPLORING DEEPER

THAN EVER INTO THE HEART
OF THE BUILDING,

SOLVING THE MYSTERIES
OF THIS ANCIENT ARENA

TO REVEAL HOW, FOR 500 YEARS,
THE HIDDEN SECRETS OF THIS VAST

RUIN HELPED ROME BUILD AN EMPIRE
ACROSS EUROPE AND BEYOND.

CONCEALED
UNDER ITS MONUMENTAL SKIN

IS A COMPLEX SYSTEM OF PILLARS,
ARCHES, AND VAULTS.

THEY SPREAD THE COLOSSAL LOAD
OF NEARLY A QUARTER

OF A MILLION TONS OF STONE,

ALLOWING THIS BUILDING
TO TOWER 160 FEET

ABOVE THE STREETS OF ROME.

IN THE STADIUM, SPACE FOR UP
TO 80,000 SPECTATORS,

BIG ENOUGH TO HOLD
THE SUPER BOWL.

BUILT INTO THE ARENA FLOOR,

A SUBTERRANEAN MAZE
OF TUNNELS AND CHAMBERS,

THE SECRET DOMAIN OF THE
EMPIRE'S MOST DEADLY SERVANT --

THE GLADIATOR.

THE COLOSSEUM AND THE MEN
WHO FOUGHT IN IT

ARE THE MOST ICONIC SYMBOLS
OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE.

EVEN TODAY, THE COLOSSEUM
IS AN IMPRESSIVE STRUCTURE.

BUT PERHAPS ITS GREATEST MYSTERY
IS NOT HOW IT WAS BUILT,

BUT WHY IT WAS BUILT
IN SUCH A STRANGE PLACE.

GEOLOGIST GUIDO GIORDANO
HAS SPENT YEARS

STUDYING THIS
EXTRAORDINARY BUILDING.

HIS THEORY IS THAT ITS LOCATION
IS NO ACCIDENT

AND MAY EVEN EXPLAIN
A KEY MOMENT

IN THE RISE OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE.

YOU CAN SEE BACK THERE,
THE COLOSSEUM, AND BEYOND THAT,

THERE IS THE BUSINESS
CENTER FOR ROME.

Narrator: THE COLOSSEUM
WAS BUILT RIGHT IN THE CENTER

OF ANCIENT ROME'S
GOVERNMENT DISTRICT.

THIS IS A STRANGE PLACE TO BUILD
AN ARENA FOR ENTERTAINMENT,

SO WHY WAS IT BUILT HERE?

GUIDO THINKS THERE MAY BE
ANSWERS HIDDEN IN THE PARKLANDS

THAT SURROUND THE COLOSSEUM.

Giordano:
WE HAVE CLUES HERE.

THIS IS AN EXCAVATION SITE, AND
WHAT'S BENEATH IS EXTRAORDINARY.

Narrator:
THESE EXCAVATORS ARE REMOVING
HEAVY BANKS OF SOIL

FROM THE HILLSIDE
NEXT TO THE COLOSSEUM.

UNDER THE WEIGHT OF THIS SOIL,
THE BANKS HAD BEGUN TO COLLAPSE,

REVEALING A HIDDEN,
SUBTERRANEAN WORLD --

A WORLD THAT GUIDO
FEELS CAN SHED LIGHT

ON THE COLOSSEUM'S
PUZZLING LOCATION.

THIS IS GRAND.

LOOK AT THIS CAVE.

FRESCOES EVERYWHERE HERE.

BEAUTIFULLY PAINTED,
BEAUTIFULLY PRESERVED.

Narrator: INCREDIBLY,
BURIED UNDER THE HILLS

THAT RISE NEXT TO THE COLOSSEUM
IS A VAST, ABANDONED PALACE,

LOST FOR 1,400 YEARS.

Giordano: HERE WE HAVE A CROWN,
AN EAGLE HERE.

THE BEAUTY
OF THESE FRESCOES SHOWS

THIS DEFINITELY
MUST BE THE RESIDENCE

OF A VERY, VERY
IMPORTANT PERSON.

¶¶

Narrator: HOW DID THIS LAVISH,
ROYAL PALACE END UP BEING BURIED

BENEATH THE COLOSSEUM?

GUIDO THINKS THAT THE ANSWER
LIES IN ITS SHEER EXTRAVAGANCE.

Giordano:
THIS MUST HAVE BEEN A WATERFALL,

SHOOTING WATER
RIGHT INTO THIS PIPE.

AND THEN GET PRESSURIZED,

AND THEN SHOOTING RIGHT
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROOM,

SPRAYING UP IN THE AIR.

Narrator:
GUIDO THINKS THE COLOSSEUM

WAS BUILT ON TOP
OF THE PALACE GROUNDS

TO MAKE A HUGE STATEMENT
TO THE PUBLIC.

BECAUSE COMPARED TO THE PALACE,

THE THEATER LOOKED
VERY DIFFERENT.

IN THE COLOSSEUM, THERE WAS
NO PERSONAL INDULGENCE.

INSTEAD, THERE WAS
SCALE AND AMBITION.

THIS BUILDING SENT A MESSAGE
TO ORDINARY ROMANS.

IT WAS A PALACE FOR THEM,

DESIGNED TO WIN THEIR HEARTS
IN EXCHANGE FOR ENTERTAINMENT.

AT ITS ENTRANCE
ONCE STOOD A COLOSSUS --

A MONUMENTAL STATUE THAT GAVE
THE BUILDING ITS NAME.

TALLER
THAN THE STATUE OF LIBERTY,

THIS BRONZE BEHEMOTH WAS
A STATUE OF THE SUN GOD SOL.

BUT IT HAD ONCE
PORTRAYED AN EMPEROR.

¶¶

ITS STORY IS A CLUE
TO THE FATE OF THE PALACE.

GUIDO BELIEVES IT HAD BEEN
BUILT BY EMPEROR NERO,

ONE OF THE MOST
HATED LEADERS OF ROME.

THE PALATIAL ROOMS
REVEAL EVIDENCE

OF HOW MUCH HE WAS DESPISED.

THIS IS ALL BACK FILLING.

SOMEONE FILL UP THIS
BEAUTIFUL AND HUGE ROOM.

Narrator: THE PEOPLE OF ROME
HATED EMPEROR NERO,

EVENTUALLY DRIVING
HIM TO SUICIDE.

THEN THEY DESTROYED
HIS PLAYBOY PALACE,

WHICH WAS BUILT ON LAND
HE HAD STOLEN FROM THEM.

[ FIRE CRACKLING ]

THE LAND HAD BEEN DEVASTATED
BY THE GREAT FIRE OF ROME

IN 64 A.D.

BUT INSTEAD OF REBUILDING
HOUSES FOR THE PEOPLE,

NERO BUILT A PALACE OF HIS OWN,

COMPLETE WITH
A GIANT BOATING LAKE

AND A STATUE OF HIMSELF.

AFTER NERO'S DEATH, HIS
SUCCESSOR TORE DOWN THE PALACE,

BUT SAVED THE STATUE.

RETURNING THE LAND TO THE
PEOPLE, HE DRAINED NERO'S LAKE

AND BUILT AN AMPHITHEATER
IN ITS PLACE,

AND HE PUT THE GIANT
STATUE OUTSIDE,

DISGUISED AS THE SUN GOD SOL.

¶¶

THE COLOSSEUM WAS BUILT
AS A GIFT TO ROMANS,

TO WIN BACK THEIR SUPPORT.

THE NEW EMPEROR, VESPASIAN,

UNDERSTOOD THAT
TO STAY IN POWER,

HE HAD TO PROVE
HE WASN'T SELFISH LIKE NERO.

Giordano: LATER EMPEROR WANTED
TO ERASE THE MEMORY OF HIM.

NOW IT'S A BIRD AND DARKNESS.

Narrator:
AFTER NERO'S SELFISH EXCESS,

THE COLOSSEUM MARKED
A TURNING POINT.

IT WAS A BUILDING
FOR ORDINARY ROMANS

TO CELEBRATE THE MIGHT
OF THEIR GROWING EMPIRE.

AND WHAT THEY CAME TO SEE
WERE PEOPLE WILLING TO DIE

IN THE EMPIRE'S HONOR --
GLADIATORS.

VERY LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT
THESE DEADLY MESSENGERS OF ROME

BECAUSE IN THE RUINS
OF THE GREAT COLOSSEUM,

NOT A SINGLE GLADIATOR
BONE HAS EVER BEEN FOUND.

BUT NOW, EXPERIMENTS ON UNIQUE
REMAINS FOUND IN TURKEY

REVEAL INCREDIBLE NEW INSIGHTS

INTO THE MYSTERIOUS LIVES
OF THESE WARRIORS.

THE COLOSSEUM OF ANCIENT ROME --

A THEATER FOR THE PEOPLE
AND AN ARENA OF DEATH.

THE GIANT AMPHITHEATER CARRIED
A MESSAGE FROM ROME'S LEADERS --

FOLLOW US, AND WE WILL
KEEP YOU THRILLED.

AND THE STARS OF THE SHOW
WERE THE GLADIATORS.

¶¶

BUT VERY LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT
THESE LEGENDARY WARRIORS.

HIDDEN IN THE VAULTS AND COLUMNS
OF THE COLOSSEUM

ARE TANTALIZING CLUES
INTO THE WORLD OF THE GLADIATOR.

¶¶

THESE WARRIORS WERE THE BIGGEST
ATTRACTION IN THE EMPIRE.

INSIDE THE ARENA, THEY BECAME
THE STARS OF A TRUE SPECTACLE.

DEEP WITHIN THE MAZE OF BRICK
WALLS UNDER THE COLOSSEUM

LIES A SECRET ENTRANCE
TO THEIR MYSTERIOUS WORLD --

A DOORWAY CONNECTING
A 180-FOOT-LONG TUNNEL

THAT BROUGHT THE FIGHTERS
INTO THE ARENA.

2,000 YEARS AGO, THIS WOULD
HAVE LED TO ROME'S

FABLED FIGHTING SCHOOL,
THE LUDUS MAGNUS.

STANDING RIGHT NEXT
TO THE COLOSSEUM,

THIS WAS THE BREEDING GROUND

OF THE MOST POWERFUL
ROMAN PROPAGANDA TOOL --

THE GLADIATOR.

BUT THERE'S A MYSTERY.

NO BONES HAVE EVER BEEN
DISCOVERED AT THE COLOSSEUM

TO TELL US MORE ABOUT
THE LIVES OF THE GLADIATORS.

WERE THEY JUST THE EMPIRE'S
DISPOSABLE THUGS?

FABIAN KANZ WANTS TO FIND OUT
WHO THESE WARRIORS WERE.

FABIAN HAS UNEARTHED
SOMETHING ASTONISHING --

THE ONLY GLADIATOR BONES
THAT HAVE EVER BEEN FOUND.

THEY WERE DISCOVERED IN
THE GROUNDS OF AN AMPHITHEATER

THAT ONCE SAT ON THE EDGE
OF THE EMPIRE

IN WHAT'S NOW MODERN-DAY TURKEY.

THESE PRECIOUS REMAINS GIVE
FABIAN A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY.

HE WANTS TO UNLOCK NEW SECRETS
ABOUT THE LIFE OF A GLADIATOR

IN ANCIENT ROME.

FABIAN THINKS THIS HEALED SKULL
MAY REVEAL MORE ABOUT THE WAY

THESE MEN WERE TREATED
BY THE EMPIRE THAT USED THEM.

¶¶

AND THAT MEANS SLICING
A CROSS-SECTION

FROM THE BONE ITSELF.

UNDER THE MICROSCOPE,
THE SKULL FRAGMENT

REVEALS SOMETHING EXTRAORDINARY.

WHAT'S REMARKABLE IS THAT MANY
OF THE GLADIATOR'S BONES

FROM THE SITE IN TURKEY SHOW

SIMILAR SIGNS OF HEALED
INJURIES LIKE THIS.

FAR FROM BEING DISPOSABLE THUGS,

FABIAN THINKS
THE MEN WERE TEATED

MORE LIKE RESPECTED ATHLETES.

TURNING THESE MEN
INTO GLADIATORS

WAS AN INVESTMENT
ROME COULD AFFORD.

WITH ITS EXPANDING EMPIRE,
IT HAD NO SHORTAGE OF NEW STOCK.

SLAVES, CONVICTS, AND CAPTURED
SOLDIERS WERE SHIPPED IN

FROM ACROSS THE EMPIRE

TO PLAY A PART
IN THE GREAT SPECTACLE.

IN GLADIATOR SCHOOL, THEY WERE
TURNED INTO FIGHTING MACHINES

WITH CAREFULLY DESIGNED
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES.

THE NIMBLE RETIARIUS,
ARMED WITH TRIDENT AND NET,

WOULD FIGHT THE SECUTOR,
AN ARMORED JUGGERNAUT

WIELDING A HEAVY SHIELD
AND SWORD.

EACH PAIR WAS CAREFULLY MATCHED
TO GUARANTEE SPECTACULAR COMBAT

THAT COULD LEAD
TO GLORY OR DEATH.

AND FABIAN'S DISCOVERED THAT
THESE INCREDIBLY RARE BONES

CAN TELL HIM EVEN MORE ABOUT
THEIR LIVES AND THEIR DIET.

CHEMICAL TRACES
OF A PERSON'S FOOD

ALWAYS BUILD UP IN THEIR BONES.

TO ANALYZE THE CHEMICALS
IN THESE GLADIATOR SKELETONS,

HE GRINDS A BONE SAMPLE INTO A
POWDER AND ADDS IT TO A LIQUID.

WHEN HE SPRAYS THE LIQUID
INTO A FLAME,

IT WILL BURN
WITH A SIGNATURE COLOR,

A FINGERPRINT THAT REVEALS
THE CHEMICALS

LOCKED INSIDE THE BONE.

STRONTIUM IS A MINERAL
SIMILAR TO CALCIUM

WHICH STRENGTHENS BONE.

BECAUSE ITS PRESENCE HERE
IS SO HIGH,

FABIAN CONCLUDES THE GLADIATORS

WERE GIVEN A LITTLE EXTRA HELP
WITH THEIR DIET.

THE GLADIATORS WHO FOUGHT
IN THE COLOSSEUM STARTED LIFE

AS OUTCAST OF ROMAN SOCIETY,

BUT CAREFUL NURTURING
TURNED THEM

INTO ELITE FIGHTING MACHINES,

FIT TO DELIVER THE EMPIRE'S
MESSAGE OF POWER.

THESE NEW HEROES OF THE
COLOSSEUM PROVIDED A SPECTACLE

THAT SHOWED OFF
THE MIGHT OF THE EMPIRE

AND ROUSED PATRIOTIC PASSION
IN ITS CITIZENS.

THE COLOSSEUM HAD BECOME ROME'S
MOST SUCCESSFUL

MARKETING CAMPAIGN.

BUT BEYOND THE SPECTACLE,
WHAT IMPACT DID THE COLOSSEUM

HAVE ON THE EVERYDAY
LIVES OF ROMANS?

NOW NEW EVIDENCE REVEALS
HOW THE COLOSSEUM FUELED

THE EXPLOSION
OF A WHOLE NEW INDUSTRY

TO POWER THE EMPIRE
ACROSS EUROPE.

Narrator: THE COLOSSEUM,
BUILT IN 80 A.D.

AS A GIFT TO WIN THE HEARTS
OF THE CITIZENS OF ROME,

TO ENTERTAIN AND THRILL
WITH ASTONISHING BATTLES

AND TERRIFYING CARNAGE.

BUT THE GAMES WERE ONLY A PART

OF WHAT THE COLOSSEUM
HAD TO OFFER

TO CITIZENS THAT TRAVELED
FROM ALL CORNERS OF THE EMPIRE.

¶¶

SO HOW DID THE COLOSSEUM
CONTINUE TO INFLUENCE THE PEOPLE

ONCE THEY HAD LEFT THE ARENA?

SOMETIMES THE GAMES
ACTUALLY LASTED FOR WEEKS,

BUT IT WAS REALLY BIG ACTIVITY
DAY AND NIGHT.

Narrator:
THE TOWERING REMAINS OF THE
COLOSSEUM STILL IMPRESS US,

EVEN TODAY.

1,900 YEARS AGO, IT WOULD HAVE
LOOKED EVEN MORE MAGNIFICENT.

THE STONE, NOW WEATHERED
AFTER TWO MILLENNIA,

WOULD HAVE SHOWN
BRIGHTLY POLISHED.

IN THE PERFECT ARCHWAYS,
STATUES OF MARBLE AND GOLD

TRUMPETED THE GLORY OF ROME.

ITS WALLS STRETCHED NEARLY
2,000 FEET AROUND THE OUTSIDE,

RISING HIGHER THAN ANY
OTHER STRUCTURE IN THE CITY.

THIS WAS THE BIGGEST
SINGLE BUILDING

EVER CREATED BY THE EMPIRE.

¶¶

¶¶

TODAY IN ROME,
LITTLE TRACE EXISTS

OF ANYTHING BEYOND
THE AMPHITHEATER WALLS.

¶¶

BUT WOLFGANG NEUBAUER THINKS
THERE WAS MUCH MORE

TO ROME'S SPECTACLE
OF ENTERTAINMENT.

NEAR VIENNA, AUSTRIA, HE IS
HOPING TO FIND NEW EVIDENCE

OF HOW THE EMPIRE DESIGNED

AND LAID OUT THE COMPLEX
OF BUILDINGS

SURROUNDING THE AMPHITHEATER.

IN THESE FIELDS LIE THE REMAINS
OF A MYSTERIOUS LOST ROMAN TOWN

CALLED CARNUNTUM,

COMPLETE WITH
ITS OWN AMPHITHEATER

MODELED ON THE COLOSSEUM.

Neubauer: ALL THE REMAINS OF
THESE BUILDINGS, ALL THE WALLS,

ALL THE FLOORS,
THEY ARE INVISIBLE TO THE EYE.

IT'S JUST A GREEN FIELD,
BUT WE HAVE A HUGE TOWN HERE.

THE CENTRAL AREA OF CARNUNTUM
IS SPREADING ALL OVER

ABOUT 10 SQUARE KILOMETERS.

Narrator:
BUT UNLIKE IN ROME, THE RUINS
HERE HAVE NEVER BEEN BUILT ON.

UNDERGROUND, THE REMAINS
OF EVERY BUILDING LIE INTACT.

THIS LOST TOWN CAN GIVE WOLFGANG
CLUES ABOUT THE NETWORK

OF BUILDINGS AROUND THE COLISEUM
AND THE ROLE THEY PLAYED.

HE'S SEARCHING
FOR HIDDEN BUILDINGS

USING GROUND-PENETRATING RADAR.

THIS IS THE LARGEST SURVEY

EVER UNDERTAKEN ON A ROMAN TOWN
SO FAR.

EVERYTHING IS PRESERVED
IN THE GROUND.

THE ONLY TASK WE HAVE TO DO
IS TO MAKE IT VISIBLE AGAIN.

Narrator: HIS SCANS REVEAL
A MASSIVE BUILDING

SURROUNDING
THE AMPHITHEATER ITSELF.

Neubauer:
WE CAN NOW DEPICT HERE COMPLETE
NEW QUARTER OF CARNUNTUM.

IT'S OUTSIDE OF THE TOWN,

AND IT'S BUILT DIRECT
IN RELATION TO THE AMPHITHEATER.

¶¶

Narrator:
AN ENTIRE VILLAGE GREW AROUND
THE AMPHITHEATER TO CATER

FOR THE VAST CROWDS
THAT WOULD FLOCK HERE,

JUST LIKE AT A MODERN-DAY
FOOTBALL GAME,

THE SAME AS AT THE COLOSSEUM.

THE SCANS OF THIS
INVISIBLE TOWN ALSO REVEAL

THAT THE STARS OF THE GAMES,

THE GLADIATORS,
WERE GIVEN SPECIAL PRIVILEGES.

Neubauer:
THIS IS THE FIRST SCHOOL
OF GLADIATORS THAT WE FOUND

OUTSIDE OF ROME THAT HAS BEEN
COMPLETELY SURVEYED.

YOU CAN CLEARLY SEE A LINE
OF SMALL ROOMS.

SO THIS MUST HAVE BEEN THE CELLS
FOR THE GLADIATORS.

HERE WE HAVE ROOMS
THAT THEY MIGHT HAVE USED

FOR MEDICAL CARE.

BUT, ALSO, THERE IS A BIG HALL
WHERE THEY COULD EAT TOGETHER.

THE GLADIATORIAL SCHOOL IN
CARNUNTUM IS ABSOLUTELY UNIQUE.

WOLFGANG'S
WORK IS BRINGING TO LIFE

THE INTRICATE DETAIL
OF THE GLADIATOR SCHOOL.

BUT HIS SCANS ALSO REVEAL
THE ROLE PLAYED

BY ALL THE BUSINESSES THAT
GREW AROUND THE AMPHITHEATER.

THE REMAINS REVEAL AN ENTIRE
TOWN THAT, LIKE THE COLOSSEUM,

HELD GLADIATOR GAMES.

THIS WAS THE FOURTH BIGGEST
AMPHITHEATER IN THE EMPIRE.

THERE WAS AN ENTIRE
STREET SYSTEM,

A MAIN ROAD INTO TOWN WAS LINED
WITH FAST-FOOD OUTLETS,

SOUVENIR STALLS, SHOPS,

AND BUSINESSES CATERING
FOR THE COLOSSAL CROWDS.

THERE WAS EVEN ACCOMMODATION
FOR GLADIATORS

WITH A HEATED TRAINING HALL,
A GARDEN, AND A BATH AND SPA.

¶¶

THESE GLADIATORS ENJOYED EVERY
HOME COMFORT YOU COULD WANT.

¶¶

WOLFGANG'S
DISCOVERIES HERE REVEALED

THE FULL STORY
OF ROME'S COLOSSEUM.

Neubauer:
THE COMBINATION OF ALL THIS DATA

AND THE IMAGERY
THAT WE PRODUCED OUT OF IT,

THIS IS A LOOK INTO THE DAY
OF THE SPECTACLE THAT HAPPENED,

REALLY ON AN INDUSTRIAL SCALE.

Narrator: AND ALL ACROSS EUROPE,
COPIES OF THE COLOSSEUM OFFERED

NEW ROMAN CITIZENS
A PART IN THAT INDUSTRY.

Neubauer:
SUCH A DAY WAS REALLY IMPORTANT
FOR THE WHOLE SOCIETY HERE.

IT'S JUST AMAZING TO BRING
THIS TO LIFE AGAIN,

TO SEE HOW THIS ALL WORKED AND
ON WHAT HIGH INDUSTRIAL LEVEL

THIS ENTERTAINMENT
BUSINESS ACTUALLY WAS.

Narrator: WITH SUCH A HUGE
INDUSTRY IN PLACE,

MANY LIVELIHOODS DEPENDED
ON THE GAMES HERE AND IN ROME.

THE COLOSSEUM AND THE THEATERS
THAT COPIED

IT WERE THE LIFEBLOOD
OF THE EMPIRE.

Neubauer:
THESE FINDINGS HERE IN CARNUNTUM
CLEARLY CHANGED OUR IMAGE

OF HOW THE GLADIATORIAL GAMES
IN THE PROVINCES WAS ORGANIZED.

SO IT WAS NOT PEOPLE
TRAVELING AROUND,

GLADIATORS
WHICH WERE BROUGHT IN.

IT WAS REALLY STABLE.

IT WAS AN INFRASTRUCTURE
THAT WAS SET UP.

YEAH, IT WAS A BIG BUSINESS.

Narrator:
OUT OF THIS VAST BUSINESS
GREW EQUALLY HUGE LEGENDS

OF REMARKABLE EVENTS
STAGED INSIDE THE COLOSSEUM.

AND MYSTERY STILL SURROUNDS
ONE OF THE GREATEST.

COULD THEY PERFORM GIANT SEA
BATTLES INSIDE THE ARENA?

AND HOW DID THE ERA OF THE
GLADIATOR FINALLY COME TO AN END

FOR THE GREATEST
EMPIRE ON EARTH?

¶¶

Narrator:
THE COLOSSEUM, CENTERPIECE
TO A VAST INDUSTRY OF PROPAGANDA

AND ENTERTAINMENT.

ANCIENT ROMANS FLOCKED HERE
IN THEIR THOUSANDS TO BE AMAZED

BY THE EMPIRE'S
MOST LEGENDARY STARS --

GLADIATORS.

BUT ONE COLOSSEUM LEGEND
IS CLOAKED IN MYSTERY.

WERE GIANT SEA BATTLES
STAGED INSIDE THE ARENA?

Higgins: THE COLOSSEUM
WAS A REAL SHOWPIECE,

SO I THINK IT'S NOT
IMPROBABLE AT ALL

THAT THE ROMANS WOULD HOLD
SUCH A SEA SPECTACLE.

Narrator:
HOW COULD THIS STADIUM POSSIBLY
BE FILLED WITH BATTLESHIPS?

THERE'S A CLUE BURIED
RIGHT NEXT TO THE COLOSSEUM --

A THREE-FOOT-WIDE TUNNEL THAT
RUNS RIGHT BENEATH THE WALLS.

¶¶

ARCHAEOLOGISTS BELIEVED THAT IT
MAY FEED INTO A LABYRINTH

OF STRANGE, SHALLOW CHANNELS --

CHANNELS THAT LEAD
TO THE CENTER OF THE ARENA.

COULD THESE BE THE REMAINS OF
A GIGANTIC SYSTEM WITH THE POWER

TO FLOOD THE COLOSSEUM
WITH WATER...

¶¶

...SO THE EMPEROR COULD STAGE
FULL-BLOWN SEA BATTLES,

THE ULTIMATE DISPLAY OF ROMAN
MIGHT AND INGENUITY?

¶¶

THE LEGEND OF THE COLOSSEUM'S
SEA BATTLES

COMES FROM A SINGLE
ANCIENT TEXT.

IT DESCRIBES THE ARENA
FLOODING IN A MATTER OF HOURS.

HOW COULD THIS BE POSSIBLE?

HIGH UP IN THE MOUNTAINS
OUTSIDE ROME,

VALERIE HIGGINS IS TRYING
TO FIND THE ANSWER.

SHE STARTS AT ONE OF ROME'S
FAMOUS AQUEDUCTS,

THE AQUA CLAUDIA.

IT'S THE BIGGEST
OF 11 GIANT CHANNELS

THAT PIPED WATER
INTO THE ANCIENT CITY.

Higgins:
WE WANT TO UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH
WATER COULD GO THROUGH IT.

WE WANT TO UNDERSTAND HOW
IT DELIVERED WATER INTO ROME.

HOW DIFFICULT IS IT FOR
THE ROMANS TO FILL AN ARENA?

Narrator: HELPING VALERIE
IS ADRIANA MORABIDO,

AN EXPERT IN ROMAN
SUBTERRANEAN TUNNELS.

THIS ANCIENT AQUEDUCT ONCE
CHANNELED FRESH WATER 46 MILES

INTO THE CENTER OF ROME.

Higgins:
ALONG HERE, WE CAN SEE THE LEVEL
OF THE WATER GOING ALONG.

MAXIMUM
HALF A METER OF WATER,

AND THEN THE REST
WAS JUST EMPTY.

OBVIOUSLY, IT WAS GOING DOWN
BY GRAVITY, NOT BY PRESSURE.

Narrator:
VALERIE WANTS TO WORK OUT
WHETHER THIS AQUEDUCT

COULD HAVE SUPPLIED ENOUGH WATER
TO FILL THE COLOSSEUM

IN JUST A FEW HOURS.

WHAT WE WOULD LIKE TO DO

IS MEASURE THE HEIGHT
OF THE AQUEDUCT,

AND THEN MEASURE IT
IN ANOTHER PLACE, AS WELL,

SO WE CAN WORK OUT
THE GRADIENT.

THE SLOPE OF THE TUNNEL FLOOR
WILL HELP THEM CALCULATE

HOW FAST WATER FLOWED INTO ROME.

SO HERE IS 110,
AND THERE IS 87.

SO WE HAVE A 23 CENTIMETERS'
DIFFERENCE IN 9 METERS.

BUT WHAT THEY FIND
IS A VERY GENTLE SLOPE,

A GRADIENT OF ONLY 1 IN 40.

THEY DIDN'T ACTUALLY WANT
THE GRADIENT TO BE TOO STEEP.

WATER THAT'S FLOWING TOO FAST
ERODES THE STRUCTURE.

[ BEEPING ]

VALERIE'S WORK SHOWS
THE WATER HERE

WOULD HAVE FLOWED FAR TOO SLOWLY

TO FILL THE COLOSSEUM
AS THE LEGEND DESCRIBES.

Higgins: IT'S AN EXTRAORDINARILY
LARGE ARENA.

IT ISN'T FILLED VERY HIGH.

IT'S ONLY FILLED TO LIKE
A METER AND A HALF.

BUT NEVERTHELESS, IT'S REALLY
HARD TO IMAGINE WATER

COMING THROUGH HERE
FILLING THE COLOSSEUM.

BUT VALERIE BELIEVES
THE AQUEDUCT

MAY NOT TELL THE WHOLE STORY.

SHE THINKS THERE MAY BE
A CRUCIAL PIECE MISSING

FROM THIS COMPLEX PUZZLE
OF ROMAN PLUMBING.

¶¶

MULTIPLE AQUEDUCTS, 11 IN TOTAL,

CHANNELED FRESHWATER
DIRECTLY INTO ANCIENT ROME.

VALERIE'S THEORY IS THAT
WHEN THE COLOSSEUM WAS BUILT,

A HUGE WATER TANK WAS ADDED
SOMEWHERE NEAR THE AMPHITHEATER.

THE TANK STORED ENOUGH WATER TO
FLOOD THE COLOSSEUM IN ONE SHOT.

BENEATH THE AMPHITHEATER,
THE NETWORK OF CIRCULAR CHANNELS

DISTRIBUTED
THE STORED WATER QUICKLY

AND EVENLY INTO THE ARENA FLOOR,

READY FOR A SPECTACULAR
SEA BATTLE.

THEN, FOUR HUGE
DRAINAGE CHANNELS

OPENED TO FLUSH
THE WATER AWAY AGAIN

IN TIME FOR THE NEXT GAMES.

¶¶

BUT IF A GIANT STORAGE TANK WAS
THE KEY TO FILLING THE COLOSSEUM

WITH WATER, WHERE IS IT?

WITH THE HELP
OF DR. MATEO BARONI,

VALERIE FOLLOWS THE ROUTE OF
THE AQUEDUCT THROUGH URBAN ROME.

NEAR THE COLOSSEUM, SHE
DISCOVERS THE PARTIAL REMAINS

OF A MUCH LARGER STRUCTURE
THAT ONCE EXISTED HERE.

COULD THIS BE THE MISSING
PIECE OF THE JIGSAW?

Higgins: WE HAVE SOME REMAINS
OF A MONUMENTAL FOUNTAIN.

WHAT IS INTERESTING ABOUT
THE MONUMENTAL FOUNTAIN

IS THERE WAS A WATER
STORAGE UNIT IN IT.

Narrator:
VALERIE THINKS THE ORIGINAL
STRUCTURE IS NOW MISSING,

BUT WOULD HAVE BEEN BIG ENOUGH
TO HOLD THE 3.5 MILLION GALLONS

NEEDED TO FILL THE COLOSSEUM.

WE'VE GOT THE COLOSSEUM
OVER THERE,

SO THIS COULD QUITE EASILY
BE DIVERTED

TO BE USED IN THE COLOSSEUM.

Narrator:
BUT IT WOULD HAVE TO FLOW FAST
TO DO THE JOB

IN JUST A FEW HOURS.

SHE MAKES ONE FINAL MEASUREMENT
TO WORK OUT THE SLOPE

BETWEEN THE TANK
AND THE FLOOR OF THE COLOSSEUM.

IT'S SIX METERS DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN HERE AND THE COLOSSEUM.

IT'S VERY STEEP GOING DOWN HERE.

IT DESCENDS QUITE FAST.

YOU COULD GET A BIG,
HYDRAULIC PRESSURE FROM HERE

THAT WOULD PUSH THE WATER
INTO THE COLOSSEUM VERY QUICKLY.

SO I THINK IT'S A FEASIBLE
PROPOSITION.

¶¶

Narrator:
THANKS TO THE INGENUITY
OF ROMAN WATER ENGINEERS,

THE COLOSSEUM STAGED SPECTACLES

THAT BECAME LEGENDARY
ACROSS THE EXPANDING EMPIRE.

BUT SEA BATTLES COULDN'T BE
STAGED AT EVERY AMPHITHEATER.

HOW DID THE EMPIRE CAPTIVATE
ITS CITIZENS WITHOUT THEM?

NOW, NEW CLUES IN NAPLES
REVEAL THE MAGICAL TECHNIQUES

ONCE USED TO STRIKE AWE
AND WONDER

INTO THE COLOSSEUM'S CROWDS.

¶¶

Narrator: THE COLOSSEUM.

A SPECTACULAR BUILDING
THAT HELPED ESTABLISH

THE GREATEST EMPIRE IN HISTORY.

THIS IS WHERE THE ROMAN EMPIRE
CAST ITS SPELL ON ITS CITIZENS.

¶¶

INSIDE,
A MYSTERIOUS MAZE OF WALLS

AND PASSAGES FILLS
THE FLOOR OF THE ARENA.

THEY SUGGEST
THAT SOMETHING EXTRAORDINARY

ONCE HAPPENED HERE,

BUT THESE REMAINS
HAVE CRUMBLED TOO MUCH

TO REVEAL THEIR SECRETS.

¶¶

HEINZ BESTE HAS COME
TO THE CAPUA AMPHITHEATER,

A TWIN ARENA TO THE COLOSSEUM.

HE BELIEVES
THERE IS EVIDENCE HERE

THAT THE ROMANS
COULD MAKE EXOTIC ANIMALS,

LIKE LIONS AND TIGERS,

SUDDENLY APPEAR OUT
OF NOWHERE IN THE ARENA.

THESE UNDERGROUND WALLS ARE
DOTTED WITH CLUES THAT CAN TELL

HEINZ HOW THE EMPIRE DAZZLED
ITS AUDIENCES WITH SHOWS

DESIGNED TO DEMONSTRATE
THE MIGHT OF ROME.

AND IT'S NOT LONG BEFORE HE
STARTS TO SEE TELLTALE PATTERNS

EMERGE IN THE MASONRY MARKINGS.

THESE SMALL HOLES IN THE WALLS
ARE CRUCIAL CLUES TO HEINZ.

THEY REVEAL THAT THE SHAFTS
AND COLUMNS

ONCE SUPPORTED COMPLEX
THEATRICAL MACHINERY,

LIFTS, TRAP DOORS, AND RAMPS.

THESE THEATRICAL MACHINES
WERE THE KEY

TO THE UNBELIEVABLE SPECTACLE
STAGED IN THE ARENA,

AND HE THINKS
THAT SOME NEW CLUES

REVEAL THE SCALE OF
THE MACHINES THAT WERE USED

AND HOW THEY MANAGED
TO RAISE HUGE,

WILD BEASTS TO THE ARENA FLOOR.

¶¶

BENEATH THE ARENA FLOOR

AND AMONG THE DENSE MAZE
OF CONCRETE SHAFTS...

...ENGINEERS BUILT
INSIDE EACH CHAMBER

ELABORATE WOODEN ELEVATORS

TO RAISE DANGEROUS BEASTS
TO THE ARENA.

SLAVES DROVE A CAPSTAN
THAT WINCHED THE CAGED ANIMAL

UP TO A TRAP DOOR
BENEATH THE ARENA FLOOR...

[ ANIMAL GROWLS ]

¶¶

...MAKING BEASTS AND FIGHTERS
APPEAR AS IF BY MAGIC.

[ BLADES CLANKING,
CROWD CHEERING ]

¶¶

THIS UNDERGROUND LABYRINTH
WAS THE BAKING-HOT SWEATSHOP

THAT DROVE THE ARENA,

AND IT WOULD HAVE LOOKED
VERY DIFFERENT

FROM HOW IT APPEARS TODAY.

BELOW THE ARENA, EVERYTHING HAD
TO RUN LIKE CLOCKWORK

BECAUSE HERE
AND AT THE COLOSSEUM,

ONLY A PERFECT SHOW WOULD DO.

AUDIENCES WOULD ROAR
WITH EXCITEMENT,

IN AWE AT THE BREATHTAKING POWER
OF THEIR ROMAN MASTERS.

[ CROWD CHEERS ]

HEINZ'S DISCOVERIES REVEAL
HOW THE COLOSSEUM

WAS DESIGNED WITH ONE PURPOSE --

TO DEFY BELIEF.

WITHIN ITS WALLS AND THOSE
OF AMPHITHEATERS ACROSS EUROPE,

AUDIENCES WOULD FALL
UNDER THE SPELL

OF THE MIGHTY ROMAN EMPIRE.

¶¶

BUT THE COLOSSEUM
DID NOT LAST FOREVER.

CAN NEW EVIDENCE BENEATH
THE STREETS OF ROME

REVEAL WHAT LED TO THE COLLAPSE
OF THIS ONCE MIGHTY STRUCTURE?

AND DID IT CRUMBLE AS THE ROMAN
EMPIRE CRUMBLED AROUND IT?

Narrator:
THE COLOSSEUM, ONCE A SYMBOL
OF ANCIENT ROMAN POWER.

FIRST BUILT TO WIN
OVER THE CITIZENS OF ROME,

IT BECAME THE BLUEPRINT
FOR MANY AMPHITHEATERS

CONSTRUCTED ACROSS THE EMPIRE.

AND LIKE THE EMPIRE,
IT BECAME A WAY OF LIFE.

NOW, IT LIES IN RUINS.

Giordano: THIS BUILDING
IS ICONIC AS IT REPRESENTS

THE EVOLUTION
OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE

FROM ITS RISE THROUGH ITS FALL.

Narrator: WAS IT THE END
OF THE EMPIRE ITSELF

THAT TRIGGERED THE COLLAPSE
OF THE COLOSSEUM?

OR DO CLUES INSIDE THE ARENA
ITSELF SUGGEST

THAT AN ACT OF NATURE
BROUGHT DOWN ITS WALLS?

¶¶

UNDER THE QUARTER OF
A MILLION TONS OF MASONRY

SIT TRULY COLOSSAL FOUNDATIONS.

A GIGANTIC DOUGHNUT OVER HALF
A MILE AROUND, 100 FEET THICK

AND 40 FEET DEEP, MADE FROM
THE ROMANS' TOUGHEST CONCRETE.

BUT EXPERTS BELIEVE
IT WASN'T TOUGH ENOUGH,

CAUSING CRACKS TO FORM,

WHICH DIVIDED
THE FOUNDATION IN HALF

AND RUINED THE STABILITY
OF THE STRUCTURE ABOVE.

BUT WHAT COULD HAVE
CAUSED THESE CRACKS?

HOW DID THE GREATEST EMPIRE
BUILDERS MAKE A MISTAKE

THAT ULTIMATELY BROUGHT DOWN
THE ARENA'S GIANT WALL?

GEOLOGIST GUIDO GIORDANO
HAS STUDIED THE LANDSCAPE

AROUND THE COLOSSEUM
FOR SEVERAL YEARS.

HE THINKS CRACKS IN THE
FOUNDATION OF THE COLOSSEUM

WOULD EXPLAIN WHAT CAUSED
THE AMPHITHEATER'S COLLAPSE.

THE NORTH SIDE IS BUILT ON THE
SAME ROCK THAT MAKE THIS HILL,

WHICH ARE STRONG, GOOD BEDROCK.

BUT ON THE SOUTH
SIDE, THE COLOSSEUM

IS BUILT ON VERY SOFT SEDIMENT.

Narrator: SOFT, MUDDY RIVER
DEPOSITS BENEATH THE SOUTHERN

HALF OF THE COLOSSEUM

MAKE THIS PART OF
THE BUILDING VERY UNSTABLE.

DID ONE OF THE MANY EARTHQUAKES
THAT ROCKED ANCIENT ROME

CRACK THE COLOSSEUM IN TWO?

Giordano: DURING THE BIG
EARTHQUAKE THAT STRUCK ROME,

THE SHAKING OF THE GROUND
WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DIFFERENT

FROM THE NORTH SIDE
ON THE SOLID ROCK,

WHERE THE SHAKING
WAS JUST LIKE THIS,

TO THE SOUTH SIDE
ON THE SOFT ROCK,

WHERE THE SHAKING WAS LIKE THAT.

AND YOU CAN SEE BIG CRACKS
RUNNING THROUGH.

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS
WHEN YOU HAVE A BIG SHAKING

AND DIFFERENTIAL SUBSIDENCE.

Narrator: IN FACT, AN EARTHQUAKE
DID BRING DOWN THE SOUTH WALL,

BUT ONLY CENTURIES AFTER
THE END OF THE EMPIRE.

DID SOMETHING ELSE CATASTROPHIC
END THE ERA OF THE COLOSSEUM

MUCH EARLIER?

GUIDO'S HUNTING FOR CLUES
IN OTHER ANCIENT RUINS

CLOSE TO THE AMPHITHEATER.

Giordano: THIS IS THE THEATER
OF MARCELLUS,

THE LARGEST THEATER
OF ANCIENT ROME,

SIMILAR TO THE COLOSSEUM.

IT HAS SEEN A LOT OF CHANGES.

Narrator: LIKE THE COLOSSEUM,
THE THEATER OF MARCELLUS

WAS ONCE A GRAND SYMBOL
OF AN EMPIRE AT ITS PEAK,

BUT SOMETHING CHANGED,

SENDING THIS
MAGNIFICENT BUILDING

INTO DECLINE, TOO.

YOU CAN SEE AROUND HERE
THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF ROCKS

SCATTERED, THAT SORT OF LITTERED
THE GROUND.

THESE HOLES
USED TO HOIST METAL CLAMPS

THAT THE ROMANS USED TO CONNECT
THESE TRAVERTINE BLOCKS

IN ORDER TO STABILIZE
THE STRUCTURE.

THIS IS ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS
THAT WERE STOLEN

FROM THE MONUMENT.

Narrator: DESPITE 300 YEARS

AS THE HEART OF ROME'S VIBRANT
ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY,

GUIDO BELIEVES THE MARCELLUS
AND THE COLISEUM

SUFFERED A SUDDEN TWIST OF FATE.

IF YOU LOOK AT THE TOP,

YOU WILL NOTICE
THAT THERE ARE APARTMENTS.

THOSE ARE CLEARLY NOT PART

OF THE ORIGINAL STRUCTURE
OF THE THEATER.

BEEN BUILT UP LATER ON
TO REPLACE THE TOP PART

OF THE THEATER
THAT AT SOME STAGE COLLAPSED,

WHEN THIS BEAUTIFUL THEATER
WAS PROGRESSIVELY ABANDONED.

Narrator:
GUIDO THINKS THE THEATER WAS
ABANDONED FOLLOWING A DECISION

TO MOVE POWER AND WEALTH
AWAY FROM ROME.

NEARBY, AT AN ANCIENT BRIDGE,
GUIDO FINDS FURTHER CLUES

ABOUT THE FATE OF THE THEATER.

CONSIDER THIS NICE LAYERING.

THE BLOCK THAT MAKE
THE COLUMNS OF THE THEATER

JUST 500 METERS AWAY FROM HERE
ARE REMARKABLY SIMILAR.

CONSIDERING THE AMOUNT OF
MATERIAL NEEDED FOR THIS BRIDGE,

YOU CAN IMAGINE THAT POSSIBLY
THE THIRD LAYER OF THE THEATER,

WHICH IS PRESENTLY MISSING,

WAS ACTUALLY THE SITE

WHERE MOST OF THESE BLOCKS
HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN TAKEN.

Narrator: WITH THE EMPIRE'S
WEALTH IN DECLINE,

THE LUXURIES OF LIFE,
THEATER, AND FUN

WERE SACRIFICED
FOR BASIC BUILDING MAINTENANCE.

Giordano: PEOPLE DID NOT HAVE
THE WEALTH TO GO TO THEATER

OR TO GO TO OTHER
KIND OF PERFORMANCES.

ENTERTAINMENT STRUCTURE LIKE THE
COLOSSEUM STARTED TO DECLINE,

DETERIORATE, AND EVENTUALLY,
THROUGH TIME, EVEN COLLAPSE.

¶¶

Narrator: THE CRACKS
IN THE EMPIRE WERE SHOWING,

AND THE COLOSSEUM WAS ABANDONED.

AND WITH THAT, THE GOLDEN ERA
OF THE GLADIATOR WAS OVER.

THESE ROCKS ARE WITNESS OF A
VERY COMPLEX AND LONG HISTORY.

Narrator:
YET, ALMOST 2,000 YEARS LATER,

THE COLOSSEUM'S RUINS HAVE
LOST NONE OF THEIR MAGIC.

¶¶

BUILT TO ERASE THE MEMORY
OF A SELFISH EMPEROR,

THE COLOSSEUM WAS DESIGNED
TO ENTERTAIN THE PEOPLE

AND TO FUEL THE RISE
OF AN EMPIRE.

ITS HIDDEN SECRETS
STILL THRILL US EVEN TODAY.

REMINDING US
THAT THE ROMAN EMPIRE

WAS, INDEED,
THE GREATEST ON EARTH.

¶¶

¶¶

¶¶