Sutri amphitheatre, Roman amphitheatre in Sutri, Italy
The Sutri amphitheatre is an oval structure carved entirely from the natural tuff rock on which the town sits, making it one of the few Roman amphitheatres that was not built up with separate materials. It has multiple seating rows arranged around a central arena floor, with a series of entrance gates spaced around its perimeter.
The amphitheatre was most likely carved during the 1st century BCE, when Sutri held a position of some importance along the Via Cassia, the road connecting Rome to the north. Over the following centuries, the site changed hands and purpose several times before being recognized as a protected monument.
At some point in the Middle Ages, the amphitheatre was converted into a church, and traces of that transformation are still visible inside the tuff walls today. This layering of uses makes it one of the few places where Roman and early Christian spaces occupy the same carved rock.
The site sits just outside the center of Sutri and can be reached on foot from the main streets of town. The tuff steps can be uneven and slippery in places, so sturdy footwear is a good idea before exploring the seating areas.
Unlike most Roman amphitheatres, no stone was quarried and transported to build this one since the entire structure was shaped from the hillside itself. This means the rock removed to form the seating was the same rock that once filled the space now used as the arena floor.
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