The Colosseum

‘A racy and occasionally confrontational book… revels in the accretions of detail and myth… first-class scholarship and an engagingly demotic style’ Michael Bywater, Independent

‘A rollicking good read… the authors’ lively style does full justice to their rumbustious subject matter’ Guardian

‘The authors wear their eclectic learning lightly… exemplary prose… quiet, confident and thorough, this is a fine English book in the best sense of the word’ The Times

‘A work of scholarship written with the general reader in mind… a pleasure to read’ Spectator

‘Supported by an impeccably marshalled but never obtrusive evidential base… beautifully written and highly readable’ Times Higher Education Supplement

‘The authors’ educated guesses tend to be more fascinating than the familiar Hollywood portrayal… it enriches our appreciation of the Colosseum’s magnitude and significance’ Independent on Sunday

‘This is a volume to take on any journey; it will tell you as much about the perception of ruins as it does about Rome itself’ BBC History Magazine

‘This lively book carries the reader painlessly through a complex record of legend and history. A delightful and instructive account’ G. W. Bowerstock, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton

‘A splendid monograph’ Irish Catholic

‘Anecdotal, lively and enlightening, Hopkins and Beard’s book is hugely worthwhile’ Italian

‘A small gem of a book… the most engaging and entertaining biography of the site available’ Minerva

‘This lively, engaging and scholarly book brilliantly conveys the complex significance of this potent monument and of the spectacles that took place within it’ Royal Academy Magazine