The Santones tribe lived in the Saintonge (today Saintes) region at the time of the Gauls. During the reign of the Emperor Augustus, Saintes (Mediolanum Santonum) became the capital of the Roman province of Aquitania. Mediolanum was one of the first towns to have an amphitheatre, which was constructed during the reign of the Emperor Claudius in 40 to 50 A.D.
Like many amphitheatres in the Roman Empire, that of Saintes was built on the outskirts of the town on a site that is today called the ‘Vallon des Arènes’ (Small valley of the amphitheatre). lts builders took advantage of the local topography to construct part of the amphitheatre
The amphitheatre’s function was to seat the large number of spectators who came to watch such violent and bloodthirsty events as gladiatorial combats and wild animal hunts. Within this large elliptical structure, which is 126 metres long and 102 metres wide, several thousand people – a large part of the local population – couId be seated.
Today, in spite of the disappearance of its superstructures, the remains give an extremely good idea of what this amphitheatre looked like at its peak. The site is now open for visitors to discover throughout the year.
References:Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.
Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.
There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.