Roman Amphitheatre of Benevento

Just outside Benevento's medieval walls, near the route of the ancient Via Appia, lie the remains of the Roman amphitheatre, built between the 1st century BC and the early 1st century AD. It was an imposing building: an elliptical plan of about 160 by 130 metres and three superimposed tiers some 25 metres high. Nero very probably watched a gladiator show here in AD 63.Abandoned after an earthquake in 346, it became a burial area and was stripped of its stone to rebuild the city walls. Its remains came to light again only in 1985. Today we see foundations, radial walls and a corridor paved in cocciopesto. We suggest completing the visit at the Museo del Sannio, which holds reliefs with gladiatorial scenes attributed to the amphitheatre.