Discovery and Function of the Cruciform Room 1b
The Cruciform Room, that's the term adopted specifically for this discovery,
that is the ruins found under the arena.
They are preserved in an ensemble made of two tunnels
that intersect at a right angle, under the center of the arena,
and form a cross, which explains why we use the term Cruciform Room. 5b
How was the Cruciform room discovered?
It's when the first excavations of the amphitheater took place,
to restore it to its original function
when the habitations were removed that were built in the arena
we made underground surveys, not very deep
and we realized there were constructions buried under the arena.
That's when those working on it at that time
uncovered the wall that was at the origin of this discovery. 12b
What was this room used for?
There were quite a few hypotheses about what exactly it was
because when the first discoveries were made in the 19th century
we were very unfamiliar with this kind of structure in an amphitheater.
It was during later digs in the 1860s
and then more recently in the 1980s and 90s
that subsequent research
enabled us to better understand its overall function.
It's an understage area used to make the shows run successfully
that took place in the amphitheater.
It's the equivalent of the backstage area in theaters today,
which are used to handle stage sets and to organize the show. 23b
Are there any traces of the facilities installed understage?
Besides the walls which comprise these tunnels the only preserved elements still visible
which are very clear are these kinds of recesses
in the walls.
They are holes that were created specifically,
in the original masonry work, since we can clearly see
that the form is perfectly adapted to the wall and that it was not a hole
made at some later date. These recesses, quite obviously,
are part of the elements, most likely in wood,
that were installed in the underground rooms.
They were undoubtedly inserted into the walls
and most likely inserted in and placed on the floor.
They were used to handle the scenery,
machines, hoists, cages--
all the material that was necessary for smooth operations in the understage area.
This understage area was used to introduce items necessary for everything that was taking place above.
So there was very sophisticated infrastructure which has completely disappeared
because these items were either taken or destroyed, and have disappeared.
But these traces are the proof that these underground installations were indeed used for this type of activity.
We also know some other amphitheaters in the Roman world
that are rather well preserved and in which similar installations were found.