View source for Arles Amphitheatre

{{Short description|Roman amphitheatre in Arles, France}}
{{Infobox ancient site
| name = Arles Amphitheatre
| native_name = 
| image = FranceArlesArenes 07-2010.jpg
| alt = 
| caption = Arles amphitheater from the north, with one of the three medieval towers.
| map_type = 
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| latitude = 
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| location = [[Arles]], [[Bouches-du-Rhône]], France
| region = 
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| type = [[Roman amphitheatre]]
| part_of = 
| length = {{convert|136|m|ft|abbr=on}}
| width = {{convert|109|m|ft|abbr=on}}
| area = 
| height = {{convert|21|m|ft|abbr=on}}
| builder = 
| material = 
| built = 90 AD
| abandoned = 
| epochs = [[Roman Empire]]
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| embedded = {{Infobox UNESCO World Heritage Site
 |child    = yes
 |Part_of  = [[Arles, Roman and Romanesque Monuments]]
 |ID       = 164
 |Year     = 1981
 |Criteria = Cultural: ii, iv
 }}
}}
[[Image:Arlesarena.jpg|thumb|Interior with arena]]
The '''Arles Amphitheatre''' ({{langx|fr|Arènes d'Arles}}; {{langx|oc|Amfiteatre d'Arles}}) is a [[Roman amphitheatre]] in [[Arles]], southern France. Two-tiered, it is probably the most prominent tourist attraction in the city which thrived in [[ancient Rome]]. The towers jutting out from the top are medieval add-ons.

Built in 90 AD, the [[amphitheatre]] held over 20,000 spectators of [[Chariot racing|chariot races]] and bloody hand-to-hand battles. Nowadays, it draws smaller crowds for [[bullfighting]] during the [[Feria d'Arles]],<ref>Michel Tournier, Le coq de bruyère,  W. D. Redfern, Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press, 1996, p. 69</ref> as well as [[Play (theatre)|play]]s and [[concert]]s in summer.

In 1981, Arles Amphitheatre was listed as a [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]], together with other Roman and medieval buildings of the city, as part of the [[Arles, Roman and Romanesque Monuments]] group.<ref name="whs">{{cite web |title=Arles, Roman and Romanesque Monuments |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/164 |website = UNESCO World Heritage Centre |publisher = United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization |access-date = 10 October 2021}}</ref>

==Building==
The building measures 136&nbsp;m (446&nbsp;ft) in length and 109&nbsp;m (358&nbsp;ft) wide, and features 120 [[arch]]es. It has an oval [[arena]] surrounded by terraces, arcades on two levels (60 in all), bleachers, a system of [[Balcony|galleries]], drainage system in many corridors of access and staircases for a quick exit from the crowd. It was obviously{{cn|date=August 2021}} inspired by the [[Colosseum]] in [[Rome]] (in 72–80), being built slightly later (in 90). The amphitheatre was not expected to receive 25,000 spectators, the architect was therefore forced to reduce the size and replace the dual system of galleries outside the Colosseum by a single annular gallery. This difference is explained by the conformation of the land. This "temple" of the games housed [[gladiator]]s and [[hunting]] scenes for more than four centuries.

==After Rome==
[[File:ArlesGuibert.JPG|thumb|The amphitheatre in the 18th century]] 
With the fall of the Western Empire in the 5th century, the amphitheatre became a shelter for the population and was transformed into a [[fortress]] with four [[tower]]s (the southern tower is not restored).<ref>As evident in this [http://www.patrimoine.ville-arles.fr/arles/ville.cfm?action=edifice&id=3 aerial view] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029190628/http://www.patrimoine.ville-arles.fr/arles/ville.cfm?action=edifice&id=3 |date=2013-10-29 }}, only three towers exist.<br>In this [http://www.patrimoine.ville-arles.fr/arles/ville.cfm?action=list_documents_edifice&id=3&theme=images_all catalogue] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029185319/http://www.patrimoine.ville-arles.fr/arles/ville.cfm?action=list_documents_edifice&id=3&theme=images_all |date=2013-10-29 }}, the only towers are named ''tour nord'' (north), ''tour ouest'' (west) and ''tour est'' (east).</ref> The structure encircled more than 200 houses, becoming a real town, with its public square built in the centre of the arena and two chapels, one in the centre of the building, and another one at the base of the west tower.

This new residential role continued until the late 18th century, and in 1825 through the initiative of the writer [[Prosper Mérimée]], the change to national historical monument began. In 1826, [[Nationalization|expropriation]] began of the houses built within the building, which ended by 1830 when the first event was organized in the arena &ndash; a race of the bulls to celebrate the [[Invasion of Algiers in 1830|taking of Algiers]].

==Gallery==
<gallery mode="packed">
File:Vincent Willem van Gogh 028.jpg|{{center|''[[Les Arènes]]''<br>[[Vincent van Gogh]]}}
File:Arène de Arles.jpg|{{center|Bullfight from 1963}}
File:Arles - 2017-05-24 - Roman Amphitheatre - 3804.jpg|{{center|Exterior arcades, with a tower added in the 6th century}}
File:Arles - Théâtre Antique.JPG|{{center|The arena}}
</gallery>

==See also==
* [[List of Roman amphitheatres]]
* ''[[Les Arènes]]'', an 1888 painting by [[Vincent van Gogh]] depicting the crowd attending a bullfight in the colosseum
* [[Architecture of Provence]]
* [[Ronin (film)|''Ronin'']], a 1998 film directed by [[John Frankenheimer]] featuring an action sequence inside the Amphitheater

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Arènes d'Arles}}
* [http://www.arenes-arles.com/ Arènes d'Arles] &ndash; official site, information about current events at the amphitheatre
* [http://www.romanheritage.com/en/contenido/?idsec=1473 Romanheritage.com is a site with photos about Arles amphitheatre]

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[[Category:Roman Arles]]
[[Category:Roman sites in Provence]]
[[Category:Roman amphitheatres in France|Arles]]
[[Category:World Heritage Sites in France]]
[[Category:Bullrings in France]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Bouches-du-Rhône]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Bouches-du-Rhône]]
[[Category:90]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures completed in the 1st century]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Arles]]