14 DAY TRIAL // Centuries ago, the Colosseum in Rome, Italy, was the place where gladiators fought each other and quite often even beasts like lions, bears, leopards and tigers to the death.
It its heydays, the Colosseum would receive up to 80,000 spectators with a taste for bloodbaths. These days, however, it only receives visitors passionate about the history of the Roman Empire.
Even so, a team of archaeologists and engineers have taken it upon themselves to build a fully functional replica of the lift once used to deliver wild animals into the Colosseum's arena.
The lift, made from timber and put together using ancient Roman technology, took about a year and a half to build. Apparently, it works flawlessly, just as its predecessor did.
Although designed to support a weight of up to 300 kilograms (660 pounds) and deliver it to a height of 24 feet (over 7 meters), the Roman lift replica has so far only been used to bring a wolf into the arena.
Then again, the goal of this project was not to scare the life out of visitors to the Colosseum but merely present them with a demonstration in the capabilities of ancient Roman technology.
“It will help people understand exactly what the Colosseum was like,” Rome cultural heritage official Francesco Prosperetti told the press in an interview, as cited by DM.
Just like the original lift whose design it copies, the replica Roman elevator uses an intricate system of pulleys to keep its cargo steady and deliver it to the arena. In ancient times, it was slaves that operated this system.
