- On 09/05/2024
- In curiosity
- Tags: Colosseum, History, palatine hill, Roman Forum
THE COLOSSEUM, WHEN THE SOIL CAN SAVE YOU FROM HEARTQUAKES
The Colosseum is now almost 2000 years old. Many events have happened since then, including huge heartquakes. In particular, the most important one happened in 1349 in the region of Central Apennines. However, the particular “asymmetrical” skyline that has made the Colosseum a world-famous landmark and the symbol of Italy itself is a consequence of the particular type of subsoil on which it rests. Although it is not considered a city at high seismic risk, Rome can be affected by the most violent earthquakes generated even hundreds of kilometres away, since seismic waves can pass through loosely compacted soils and can result in an amplificated effect.
The southern part of the Colosseum, the one affected by the collapse, insists on a soft subsoil made of fluvial sediments: in fact, the amphitheatre rises in the depression of a semi-artificial pond that, fed by an ancient tributary of the Tiber, was placed in the centre of the gardens of Nero’s Domus Aurea.
The northern part, on the other hand, rests on far more solid volcanic rock ground; in fact, in this point, the building has remained virtually intact.