Departmental Papers (Classical Studies)
Title
Christians in the Amphitheater? The «Christianization» of Spectacle Buildings and Martyrial Memory
Document Type
Journal Article
Date of this Version
2014
Publication Source
Mélanges de l’École Française de Rome: Middle Ages
Volume
126
Issue
1
Start Page
93
Last Page
114
DOI
10.4000/mefrm.1807
Abstract
In order to place the site of Sant’Agnese in Agone in its broader late antique and early medieval context, this article presents an overview of the archaeological evidence for Christian spaces inside spectacle buildings – stadia, hippodromes, theaters and amphitheaters. It suggests that the «Christianization» of such buildings was very rare, and in only a few cases linked to martyrial commemoration. The paper concludes by suggesting some reasons why spectacle buildings should have been so infrequently associated with martyrial memory.
Copyright/Permission Statement
This work was originally published by École Française de Rome in Mélanges de l’École Française de Rome: Middle Ages.
Keywords
Rome, Salona, Caesarea Maritima, Tarragona, Sant’Agnese in Agone, spectacle buildings, christianization, churches, temples, archaeology, martyrium
Recommended Citation
Bowes, K. (2014). Christians in the Amphitheater? The «Christianization» of Spectacle Buildings and Martyrial Memory. Mélanges de l’École Française de Rome: Middle Ages, 126 (1), 93-114. http://dx.doi.org/10.4000/mefrm.1807
Date Posted: 02 November 2017
This document has been peer reviewed.