Amphitheater of Caligula

The Amphitheater of Caligula (Latin: Amphitheatrum Caligulae) was a Roman amphitheater begun during the reign of Caligula and demolished only a few years after construction commenced. It was located on the Campus Martius in Rome, probably near the Saepta Julia.

Construction began between 37 and 41 CE, when Caligula sought to provide Rome with a stone amphitheater, either to supplement or to replace the Amphitheater of Statilius Tarus. The structure was still incomplete at the time of his death and was subsequently abandoned and demolished by Claudius.

In about 46 CE, Claudius repaired the Aqua Virgo, which had been damaged during construction of the amphitheater. The restoration was commemorated by an inscription on the Arch of Claudius, an arch forming part of the aqueduct that spanned the Via Lata. It reads:

Latin: Ti(berius) Claudius Drusi f(ilius) Caesar Augustus Germanicus / pontifex maxim(imus) trib(unicia) potest(ate) V imp(erator) XI p(ater) p(atriae) co(n)s(ul) desig(natus) IIII / arcus ductus aquae Virginis disturbatos per C(aium) Caesarem / a fundamentis novos fecit ac restituit.