The old Roman amphitheatre (Anfitatro Romano). Lucca was founded in 180 BC and stones from the
Roman amphitheatre have been ransacked over the centuries to build churches and palaces, leaving
only a handful of original fragments. Slum housing clogged the piazza until 1830, when they were
cleared to reveal the amphitheatre’s original shape. Archways into the piazza mark the points at
which gladiators and beasts would once have entered the arena.