16

Most of the remains of Roman buildings that we see today are white, merely because paint decays much faster than the structure of the building which is naturally whitish. Looking at many of the statues, it is well known that they were painted. We're basically looking at history through a black and white camera.

I've tried to find out what were the original colours of the Colosseum but Google search didn't turn up anything.

What were the original colours of the Colosseum? A reasonable guess based on what other similar buildings looked like will also be accepted if no better information is available.

Improve this question
1
  • Pompeii might offer hints on the colors that were used to decorate buildings at the time. And back in Greece, the Parthenon is thought to have been "brilliant shades of red, blue and green."
    – Denis de Bernardy
    Commented Aug 4, 2017 at 15:15

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
16

According to Rosella Rea, director of the Colosseum, in the restoration from 2013 they found traces of it being brightly painted in red, ochre, blue and green.

https://latunicadeneso.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/colores-coliseo.jpg

Dr. Rossella Rea, the Colosseum’s Archaeological Director: “We need to imagine a building with extreme contrasts of color,”

Restoration Work on Colosseum to Reveal its True Colors

Improve this answer
5

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.