How Much Would it Cost to Build the Colosseum Today?

How much did the Colosseum cost to build? And how much would it cost to build an exact replica today? In this video, I tackle both questions...
Special thanks to Magnificus, Tim Wilkinson, and Jim Williams for their help.
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If you liked this video, you might also enjoy my book “Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants: Frequently Asked Questions about the Ancient Greeks and Romans.”
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Chapters:
0:00 How much did it cost build the Colosseum?
9:11 How much would it cost to build an exact replica?
14:00 Conclusions

[@stevejohnson3357]

Just a thought. Lets build our replica as an artificial reef on the most desolate stretch of seafloor we can find. It would be costly but think of the confusion it would bring to future archeologists.

[@ypey1]

lol, dont forget to include a human extinction event to prevent the lore of the build surviving

[@VideoDotGoogleDotCom]

Sounds pretty expensive, but hey, what isn't?

[@paperclip9558]

Hahaha. The most expensive trolling ever.

[@playme129]

@ Steve. If you can think this, you have a wild imagination and far too much time on your hands.

[@playme129]

@paperclip. Fishing. The backbone of the tourist industry. Ha , Ha. 😎

[@spankflaps1365]

Speaking as an architect with 25 years experience, I’ve done loads of pricing, tenders, quantity surveying, and have visited the Colosseum. I would say in todays money it would cost $2.5 - 3 billion to build a replica. The marble supplying and finishing would be by far the most expensive element. Then you’ve got the roof canopy, hypogeum machinery, arena decking, iron clamping, plant, scaffold, shuttering, it goes on and on. The new Wembley Stadium cost $1 billion 15 years ago. It’s a similar size to the Colosseum and holds 90k people. Obviously modern steel framed buildings are much more cost effective, otherwise we would still build everything out of concrete, brick and marble.

[@magnificus8581]

I don't disagree with you, but the parameters were to build an exact replica, so no modern MEP, code, parking, etc were included. Just basically a masonry shell clad with marble.

[@penjim]

Some good points for sure- the newest stadiums in LA and Vegas were 4 billion and 2 billion. The repop Colosseum tho contains no electrical, plumbing, HVAC, or IT. I did include a plug number in my estimate for bronze lanterns to hang in the dark spaces lol.

[@toldinstone]

That estimate is certainly possible. A modernized Colosseum would be a very expensive proposition...

[@tomcollins5112]

It would be expensive, but you can't beat the thousand year life expectancy for a stadium.

[@umadbra]

Much much more... Big dig under Boston cost over 14 billion... Your estimate is way way under.

[@philliphartman2381]

Carpenter here: I think the wide range is an accurate estimate. It will all depend on how true to the original it would be. I think if somebody wanted to build something that was the same scale as the original but that used thin slabs of finished stone to clad, ignored all modern building codes, and used sculptures that were just plaster casts of existing statues, you could do it for $150m or less. But once you start adding in things like electricity, stair height limitations, guard rails, sprinklers, alarms, elevators, ramps, automatic doors, authentic travertine, hand-crafted marble sculptures, parking spaces, sewage systems, storm drains, insurance, gold decorations, hand-chiseled signs...well...sky is the limit in terms of price.

[@cartman2dk]

just transport of the marble and travertine would be millions of dollars.

[@stephenkamps8925]

Roman emperor here: We do not care about the safety of the plebians and the plebians do not travel in vehicles that need parking. Thus, both shall be ignored. Also no electricity; we must stay true to the era. Nevertheless, spare no expenses with the statues.

[@martinnolhaf3151]

​@@stephenkamps8925 based and Emperor pilled!

[@DrPeculiar312]

Carpenter here = opinion discarded. The marble facades alone would cost over $150m

[@charlesclifton1006]

While in Rome, back in the mid 70s, I decided to leave my hotel and "find" the Colosseum. I took the subway via the "B" line and got off at the "Colosseo" station. All of this I had to look up on recent City of Rome subway maps but what I remember as clear as the day Kennedy was assassinated was the absolutely jaw-dropping sight of the structure as it sits directly across the street from the subway station. Keep in mind that as the Colosseum exists today, much of it's outer structure (wall) is gone.... still, it is huge and (to me) beautiful. This was a fascinating video ... thank you.

[@bobdinitto]

The scope and scale of the Colosseum project is absolutely awe inspiring when you consider that it was done with manual labor and no modern machinery. That the ancients were so adept at organizing and managing such large building projects is a testament to human ingenuity, perseverance, and engineering discipline.

[@jk-gb4et]

go write an essay for high school english class

[@ReallyNoAlex]

The Ancient Greek temples such as temple of hera are even more impressive imo

[@jasoncuculo7035]

85,000 Jewish slaves from the Great Jewish Revolt worked in shifts to build it!

[@kaloarepo288]

@@ReallyNoAlex The Roman temple at Baalbec in modern Lebanon was the biggest Roman temple and bigger than any Greek temple .

[@RareTS]

@@ReallyNoAlex how so

[@HowardxDuck]

I’m not surprised at the large difference in estimated cost. I work at an architecture firm and we see massive variations in estimates and quotes all the time. You are right that we would not get an exact answer unless we actually built it. Everyone has a different way to measure the cost of a project

[@penjim]

Indeed an engineering estimate is not the same thing as a bid..

[@jhonatancock2302]

I always underbid my estimations because i always take the all there no delay happy path, my oldest boss told me one time "think your number, multiply by 3, add 1M". That was a good number in reality.

[@guyfawkesuThe1]

It would cost about what an NFL stadium would cost today, so about $2 billion USD.

[@tylerdurden3722]

@@guyfawkesuThe1 Then how much would a colloseum with water, electricity, lights, restrooms, etc cost?

[@guyfawkesuThe1]

@@tylerdurden3722 That is what I am saying.

[@justinian-the-great]

It should be noted that to even get to building the actual Colosseum, a lot and I mean A LOT of pre-building job had to be done. First of all they had to clear the area for building. The area where Colosseum was to be built was actually already occupied by Nero's gigantic Domus Aurea (Golden House). So that monstrosity of a complex that spanned over multiple hills of Rome had to be demolished. Just the cost of demolishing it and then clearing the ruble must've been in millions of sesterces. Worse than that, the exact site where Colosseum was to be built is where Nero built a large indoor lake, which would have to be drained, which would probably be one of the hardest task in overall construction of the arena. Add in multiple smaller work that had to be done, like for example leveling the ground around Colosseum, and just the costs of pre-building would be enormous. Thus it's even harder to accurately measure the then building cost of the Colosseum.

[@petlahk4119]

I don't know really anything about Nero, but it sounds a bit like they may have destroyed his house and built a colosseum instead almost as a public works project? Like demolishing the mansions of the super rich because they're stupid assholes and building a park there instead lmfao.

[@ionpopescu3167]

This shows how capable people were even then. We are not really that much different huh

[@absalomdraconis]

A lot of demolition work would have been involved, but they've actually found Nero's foundations under part or all of the Coliseum, and they might well have _used_ the infrastructure of the lake, since they actually had simulated sea battles inside the Coliseum early in it's history.

[@nathancollins1715]

@@petlahk4119 Oh, it wasn't just because he was rich. The rich were the ones who ordered the construction in the first place, and they DESPISED Nero. They hated him so much that to this day we aren't really sure which stories about him are true and which are outright fabrications, because the Senate and later Emperors' propaganda campaigns demonizing him were so effective that within a few generations everyone in the Empire was convinced that he was like Satan incarnate. Personally, I think that Nero was a mostly well-meaning, if short-sighted and and incompetent Emperor. He was at an obvious disadvantage because he was so young, and his overbearing mother basically made all his decisions for him in the early years of his reign. But he had a bit of a god complex (even greater than the healthy amount of god complex most Emperors had) and made impulsive decisions like abolishing all taxes everywhere, and of course beginning construction on a mile-long mansion in the heart of the city. He was the product of several generations of Julio-Claudians being totally removed from the everyday life of the citizens of Rome, and the Senate in particular saw him as a symbol of all the decadence and depravity of the Imperial experiment coming to a head. So, yeah. When Nero was assassinated and the Flavians took over, their first priority was damning the name of Nero (both because they actually hated him and as a political maneuver to concrete their own imperium) and wrecking all his stuff, which included the Golden House. Vespasian certainly wanted to create the image of a "populist reform" in planting a new stadium right where the Golden House used to be, but that doesn't mean he really held populist intentions. Like everything Emperors did, it was all about the positive PR.

[@Tokru86]

There would be nearly no demolition required. You said it yourself: The Colosseum was built at the site of the artificial lake specificially because the site was already cleared (for the lake obviously). The actual buildings of the Domus Aurea are still there underground in the area surrounding the Colosseum. The lake beeing artificial would have made draining it also very easy because they just had to cut off the supply of water and the lake would have drained itself trough the already present outflow very quickly.

[@IvoryOasis]

It's sad organizations and education institutions didn't reply to you.... your one video exposes more people to these issues than they do in their lifetimes.

[@spankflaps1365]

I got a price from an Italian sculptor (10 years ago) for a white marble statue twice the size of those that were in the Colosseum, but it was a very simple/contemporary design - it was $750k. Also note that the marble blocks for the Parthenon restoration cost $1.5 million each, for a lump the size of a small car. That’s why the Parthenon replica in Tennessee is built from limestone.

[@sergpie]

Depending on the stone used; the Parthenon employs extremely expensive material like porphyry (nowadays sold as a semiprecious stone), travertine, and marbles from Latin and Campanian quarries that have since been exhausted or close to it. There are also green and blue marbles that are believed to have originated in Africa, whose sources have yet to be rediscovered.

[@penjim]

That’s why 2 of us proposed using 3D CNC machines to carve the sculptures. You’d make a 3D scan and convert it to g-code for the machine. There’s a vid on KZbin showing it carving an Asian lion.

[@cashewnuttel9054]

I don't have time to watch this 15 minute video, so could you please just tell me how much in the reply?

[@thr3ddy]

@@cashewnuttel9054 it's complicated.

[@missingremote4388]

Answ: 2.000.000.000 American dollars

[@OptimusMaximusNero]

It is quite curious how the founding of the Colosseum was the only remarkable thing Titus did as Emperor, as the only other things he could do during his reign was trying to repair the massive damage from the eruption of Vesuvius and the Second Great Fire of Rome. Then, he just miserably died of fever shortly after the foundation of the Colosseum, making his disturbed brother Domitian (who also modified it by adding the hypogeum) the first Emperor to actually enjoy the gigantic amphiteatre

[@alimanski7941]

It all depends on perspective, of course. Titus was one of the most significant adversaries in Jewish history, having destroyed and looted Jerusalem and the Second Temple, while fighting the Jewish rebellion in Judea. Though, that all happened before he became Caesar.

[@sdsd2e2321]

@@alimanski7941 based

[@DaDaDo661]

@@sdsd2e2321 Cyrus - 9mm, safety...always off. My old man gave it to me

[@blakelowrey9620]

@@DaDaDo661 safety always off

[@OptimusMaximusNero]

@@alimanski7941 Unfortunely, people usually remember only what an Emperor did during his reign, not what he achieved before reaching that position

[@AaronHahnStudios]

A lot of research and time went into this... well done, toldinstone. Excellent work.

[@N3onDr1v3]

I just want to say how amazing the line " the turrets and battlements of a castle in the air" is.

[@toldinstone]

I do what I can...

[@christosvoskresye]

It is entirely possible that many of the recipients of your emails thought you were a student looking for someone to do his homework. I remember a similar assignment involving estimating the budget for moving the pyramids from a project management course.

[@SobekLOTFC]

You know, Lego have pirate and medieval themes- I think they're leaving money on the table not having an antiquity/Roman theme. Great job as always Garrett!

[@fintan9218]

Theres a lego colosseum, one of the most expensive sets

[@sergpie]

There’s like a $5-600 Colosseum set available. He features it on the first 15 seconds of the video 😁

[@BellSystem1]

@@fintan9218 WHERE

[@SobekLOTFC]

@@sergpie yes, but who can justify spending $600 on an architect set? I was more talking about the pirate and medieval sets Lego had back in the day that went with the space themes.

[@sergpie]

@@SobekLOTFC A Lego-aficionado 😝 I’ve heard of collectors spending twice as much on stuff like that; if it’s for sale, there’s a client for it, somewhere haha

[@robinsydney140]

Great video! So well researched! Thank you for a job well done and the time and effort!

[@98407re]

Fascinating video! Thanks for sharing this analysis with us :)

[@BarfyMan-sh3zf]

I absolutely love this! The transportation of travertine blocks was mindblowing. It must have been a sight to behold seeing thousands of massive blocks being transported. When it was finished it probably felt like the Gods would be in attendance themselves. Could you imagine all that white marble shining in the sun and all those thousands of people filling the stands? Eventhough we live in the best (most comfortable) time in history, I often wish to have been born in a time like this. When I see these things I can certainly understand how people believed in miracles and godly emperors. How else can you build something so magnificent by hand without the blessing and favor of the Gods? Thank you again, you are my favorite youtuber by a mile!

[@datadavis]

Pretty overwhelming odds that you are going to live out your days in a mudhut somewhere nowhere near the glory of rome. With my luck i would probably be born in siberia

[@BarfyMan-sh3zf]

@@datadavis hahahahahaha thats true, the odds of a happy life are pretty much 0. Chances are that you die of an illness long before you reach adulthood. We are lucky to be living in such easy times!

[@scholaroftheworldalternatehist]

Sure bud...very high chance you die in infant age due to some preventable disease we have vaccine for, or die due to dirty drinking water/injury, then live a life worse than the poorest people of Africa.

[@Tokru86]

Don't put so much emphasis on the sight of some blocks beeing transported. For the people of Rome this was daily business because the whole ancient city centre was build in this way. There was constant construction going on and while the number of blocks required for the Colosseum is remarkable the size of them is not. Marble columns (in on piece) erected for a new temple, giant sculptures moved to the numerous fora/pedestals, the occasional egyptian obelisk, all of that would have attracted a far bigger croud of onlookers than some generic blocks moving through the city in a steady stream over a few years.

[@Apokalypse456]

@@Tokru86 its estimated that around 20% of all people alive lived in the roman empire in the second century AD

[@T4NK09]

Love your rebranding, the music you use at the end of your recent videos, and all your recent content! Keep it up Dr. Garrett!

[@sk8trryan1997]

Yeah this guys videos are good.

[@xraceboyex]

Beautiful video, this will be the first time in a while that I've subscribed to a channel on the first video I saw. Kudos

[@CODXxGODZxX]

Very cool stuff. I love these type of videos and shoutout to those guys who helped you out.

[@SnaketheJake87]

I’m an engineering student currently. Despite the fact that this was another amazing video from you, it was really cool and enlightening seeing people (engineers) with experience doing basic cost analysis. Something I’ve struggled in my courses so far. Thanks for that.

[@magnificus8581]

Great video! So curious to see the different estimates! Like I said, always get 3 estimates! Really appreciate your hard work!

[@ferdi6594]

Your estimate makes more sense to me. Even if labour cost increased, modern machinery should have a huge impact on the amount of labour required to both source and transport the materials.

[@toldinstone]

Thanks again for your help!

[@elchaposexcitingadventures1674]

Tell us your cost overruns please.

[@IceniTotalWar]

Thank you for helping out the channel, hope you found it interesting 👍👍

[@cracknigr6065]

Great contribution to this video mate! Sometimes I really like modern humans. :)

[@georgesteffey8375]

Man I love this channel so much, great work toldinstone!

[@giuliolupo]

In reality it would be enough to restore it, recovering the missing parts elsewhere. . In Italy there is an amphitheater, very large and built by the same architects of the Colosseum, which has the lower half practically new and above all preserves almost all the columns and the relative capitals that adorned the last ring, the women's gallery (Matroneo). It is the Flavian Amphitheater of Pozzuoli.

[@dosgos]

Special thanks to Magnificus, Tim Wilkinson, and Jim Williams for those detailed estimates. I suppose one could estimate the land cost in that area of Rome although the value of such a large prime space would likely be well above the cost of small plots. Modern costs from building the Gaudi Cathedral in Barcelona and the Cathedral in NYC on 112th street could be helpful to triangulate estimates.

[@sergpie]

Nowadays, (central) Rome has some ridiculous real estate prices for plots/blocks. A building that used to be a ministry office, that’s about 55000 sqft, sold for €104,000,000. There’s a historic apartment building whose mere first floor, courtyard, and adjacent small office buildings are going for about €65,000,000. Rome isn’t cheap in the central portion of the city. Land there has been claimed and built upon for so long that parcels or buildings for sale are sold at an extreme premium.

[@magnificus8581]

Thanks, it was a fun exercise and appreciate being included!

[@penjim]

Ha- thank you! It was fun to do for sure- Jim Williams

[@lycaonpictus9662]

I imagine another aspect that would make it difficult to make a 1:1 comparison between ancient Rome and a modern building project, is that the Romans might have used slaves for some of the unskilled labor that was involved.

[@barath4545]

You should ignore the land costs. The land was just taken or owned originally, so the replica argument should just be based on a field in random Italy or so.

[@augustgreig9420]

I don't know if you've ever worked in construction, especially with concrete, brick and stone, whatever estimate you come to will never be accurate. Especially on a project this big, projects *ALWAYS* go over budget and almost always over time. That's just how it is. Same people think all contractors are crooks because if this, but in reality, there are always unforseen obstacles and set backs in a project, and the bigger the project, the greater the set backs. Anything from weather, injuries, stolen tools and materials, discovering the ground becomes far more difficult to dig six feet down,broken tools from the very small to very large. Just too many variables, and people tend to estimate optimistically because if the don't, some other company will come in and undercut any realistic bids.

[@cracknigr6065]

And the developers never looking for realistic bids but just CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP, until the next project ends up as a fucking ruin that soils the landscape. Grrrr. Just thinking about my time in the business already makes me so freaking angry again.

[@badcornflakes6374]

"Ballpark estimates"

[@dickJohnsonpeter]

​@@badcornflakes6374 Scrumptious Darron

[@jlwilder8436]

Wow/your videos are kind of amazing and not what I was expecting. I am so intrigued by all of it and have found myself daydreaming lately about this magnificent world that existed in the Roman Empire, that I don't know if I've seen anywhere else bring it to life quite the same. 🙂

[@aaronandcaitlinnelson5617]

The lego colosseum was a hilarious touch. Thanks to those who volunteered to help make the video, it was great!

[@pikXpixelart]

This truly is an interesting video! Both chapters could be A+ videos on their own (original labor, modern labor) but having both in one really makes this a groundbreaking video. Even if these are just rough estimates, I think it's a really interesting take on it.

[@kray3883]

I think you vastly underestimated the cost of hiring contractors... I'm a federal contractor (not in construction) and normally our billing rate is approximately 3x our actual pay.

[@Nick-zw1zw]

Yes I'm a contractor in Canada abd we charge about 2.2-2.8x the actual pay of the workers involved.

[@markcasey2517]

Fantastic. And brilliant that you couched it in estimates on assumptions. A great thought provoking exercise. Very cool.

[@munkittytunkitty]

What fascinating questions and what brilliant research you undertook in order to answer them :)

[@adrianghandtchi1562]

Thank you Magnificus, Jim, and Tim for all they are fabulous estimates and hard work.

[@penjim]

Thanks for the chance to help with this Garrett! I’m sure all three of us that contributed had a lot of fun! Now we just need a gofundme for the project!😂 Jim Williams

[@toldinstone]

Thanks again for your help! I'm hoping than an eccentric billionaire will step in...

[@Perririri]

Gofundme is generally a woke subsidisation scheme

[@KingNik1994]

An amazing video, like all of yours I've watched. Keep making interesting content :)

[@dangermouse9348]

Fascinating video, I really enjoyed it. Thanks.

[@theletterw3875]

Good stuff, especially the honesty about currency conversion over time. I've been seeing a lot of bad economic history on KZbin lately on the subject. Thanks again!

[@carleslazaro6117]

Excellent video, as always, I only miss the cost of the project of the engineering team. I guess it must have been a tiny part of the total cost, but today it would certainly inflate the budget a lot. Commenting on the video with an architect friend while we have a few beers, he tells me that he would charge 10% of the total project. He has no idea of ​​the rates of 1st century Roman engineers or architects. But if you’re really interested in building a replica of the Colosseum, Dr. Ryan, I can invite him over for a couple more beers and I’m sure we can get to 5 or 6% of the total. I really love this kind of videos, thanks you and cheers!

[@Ugly_German_Truths]

Biggest Part of 1st century Salary would probably be being left alive ;)

[@magnificus8581]

The direction for calculating budget was to leave off soft costs such as permits and design. If that had been included, roughly 10% of the budget for the design team, perhaps a little less due to the simplicity of the design (geometric and repetitive)

[@InvestBetter.]

I'm very surprised no one, on Earth, has ever used the Roman Coliseum as a model for future stadium building. It is a beautiful design, and probably the most famous arena ever made.

[@Matticitt]

All modern stadiums are based on the colloseum - just not the achitecture of it.

[@InvestBetter.]

@@Matticitt Thanks for missing the point.

[@francocalvanochiesa909]

Thank you so very much for going through all that research and doing this very illuminating video. Ever since I’ve went to the coliseum for the first time (2002) I was overwhelmed by this magnificent building and the question had haunted me. Very much appreciated. If I ever get filthy rich, I’ll contact you and I’ll finance it. Cheers.

[@michaelv6290]

Just wonderful how when you make videos with a specific narrative like this, it reveals so much about Roman history and life. Awesome video.

[@alecsteven6]

I thought this video was one of your best and most captivating videos to date. I've really been loving your content lately. Thank you and keep up the good work!

[@oldworldchris4187]

Very good analysis, sounds spot on to me!

[@PathHits]

Can I just say real quickly I’m glad this video is blowing up because toldinstone fucking deserves it!

[@ryz8]

this is a question that i've asked myself nearly every day. thanks for the video sir.

[@faithlesshound5621]

A recent project on a similar scale was the replica of St Peter's Cathedral in Rome built by the late dictator of the Ivory Coast in his home town. I believe they used modern materials and machinery and did not take a century to finish it. Do we know anything about the cost and where he got the skilled artisans?

[@Nonamearisto]

Basilica. St. Peter's Basilica. It's not a cathedral. The Basilica of Our Lady of Peace in Ivory Coast is not as large as the one in Vatican City, and it's nowhere near as elaborate. Just look at them in a pair of pictures side-by-side and you'll see they aren't even that close.

[@faithlesshound5621]

@@Nonamearisto According to Wikipedia, the basilica in Yamoussoukro is the largest church in the world. The dome is twice the diameter of St Peter's, but it is not as high since the base is lower.

[@Nonamearisto]

@@faithlesshound5621 Wikipedia lists St. Peter's as larger. Look up the list of largest church buildings there.

[@faithlesshound5621]

@@Nonamearisto I suppose it depends on which WP page you look at. Unfortunately, many people enjoy poisoning the wells there, so it's never certain what is true or just made up for amusement.

[@manishjugran5021]

seeing this effort for research is amazing

[@00nerd4]

I really enjoyed this video! If it does well maybe another on how much did roman roads cost per mile or league :)

[@samaraortega21]

I always look forward to your videos, I love your book 📕 perfect reading

[@jeremiahcutright81]

Garrett, I read your book Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators and War Elephants last week. literally insanely well written and your story telling skills are so impressive. Sometimes reading non fiction can feel like a chore but I was not bored or uninterested at any point while reading it. Keep up the great work and thanks for everything you're doing here! Also if you see this comment, I'm curious if you've read "The Immortality Key" or are familiar with Brian Muraresku's work and what you think about all of that.

[@toldinstone]

I'm very glad you enjoyed my book! I haven't read "The Immortality Key" - yet. To be honest, I'm deeply suspicious of the central thesis, but I'd have to read it to give you a genuine assessment.

[@ShieldAre]

This is an interesting back-of-the-envelope estimate, or a Fermi estimate. It might even be surprisingly accurate, because often when people make assumptions, they will overestimate one thing, and underestimate another, and in a happy coincidence these mistakes will often cancel each other out. If the assumptions are anywhere near to being correct, the real cost for building a replica of the Colosseum is almost certainly somewhere within an order of magnitude of one billion dollars. Perhaps something between 3 billion and 300 million, for example. That is a wide range, but still very useful in giving us some idea of the scale of the project. It tells us whether building a Colosseum-replica would be an astounding mega-project that only a major country could be able to do, or whether it is something that your average billionaire could build as some sort of personal project, or whether even some relatively wealthy multi-millionaire could afford it on a whim. A price tag of 3 billion max would mean that a major country could easily afford to build one just as easily as any other large stadium, that there are indeed a fair number of multi-billionaires who could probably afford to single-handedly finance the cost of building one, but that it would probably be out of the price range of even a hundred-millionaire.

[@harrisedgar]

Wonderful video...!!! Thank you...

[@Renzsu]

Very informative, this must've been a tricky video to make!

[@joaquinmig]

I absolutely loved the tiny jokes sprinkled here and there in text, love your new format!!!

[@derekofoma5120]

Very well made video. I learned much more than I expected and it was very entertaining. Admittedly, I assumed productivity increases would decrease building costs much more than it did because we could build it in a fraction of the time with a fraction of the workers. Regardless, thank you for your time and effort.

[@middleburyastrology]

What a smart and interesting video to find...this is great... eye opening for both me and my 7 year old daughter...perfect :) Thanks!

[@Dannykhc]

Very interesting topic to ponder over. Speaking as a former quantity surveyor on the contractor side, perhaps a more reliable estimate would have been possible if there were a good set of general building plans along with the structural drawings to enable quantities to be "taken off" (using UK quantity surveying jargon) by a QS. That would allow a common basis for estimates of the total contract sum by contractors and consultants and subsequent tender comparison. If contractors are perhaps worried about any errors in quantities, perhaps the contract could be done on a remeasurement basis that would better allay their fears. From my experience, most of the delays and therefore additional cost in a project arise from construction work to do with the ground such poor ground conditions, underground obstructions, hard material, unforeseen utilities, water seepage into the excavation, etc, Once the substructure is completed, unless there are labour shortages and materials shortages, there is really nothing that will further obstruct a main contractor on the superstructure apart from incompetence in project management and foot dragging by the client over variations. Further cost and time savings could be had by using Building Information Modelling BIM for planning of the construction process and greater use of precast concrete elements made off-site. Talking about the substructure, if the Colosseum is built today using modern techniques, it would be reasonable to assume that it would use diaphragm walls for support for the substructure. That would be a site to behold, a massive excavation held up by diaphragm walls along with a great quantity of temporary works. Great video.

[@scottishbarnss]

Could you do a similar video on the cost of Hagia Sophia and if that cost the eastern Romans the chance to re-conquer the Italian peninsula from the barbarians?

[@aka99]

Good Point! I Would like to Know that too

[@nicksacco5041]

Good to know; I was considering building one around my house, but it looks like I’ll have some extra for a moat too. How much would that cost?

[@lukeprowse3215]

In really enjoyed this video. Thanks.

[@QuantumHistorian]

Do we also have estimates of: Imperial yearly revenues, and total GDP for the reign of Titus? Would be interesting to compare the cost of the Colosseum to these, to see how much of a strain it was on the state/the country.

[@toldinstone]

Stay tuned...I have a video on the GDP of the Roman Empire planned for the relatively near future.

[@leolego2]

In those years and even partly now spending money on public infrastructure meant that the economy would go around more and benefit the workers. Much better to waste money that way than to invest it in a war where money did not come back if you lost

[@Synochra]

You honestly always come up with the most interesting and entertaining scenarios.

[@jayson8372]

Pause at 5:58; could you imagine walking down that hallway with the stands filled with cheering spectators? Amazing!

[@danknight1979]

A question we did not ask, a question we needed the answer.

[@Gainn]

A look at how much the Luxor Las Vegas project was estimated at, how much it cost, and then the extra cost of refining it gives a good idea of how much use estimates are on large-scale projects. A client of ours (we do acoustic engineering and wiring for studios/theatres) had a ~1/10th scale 'Great Pyramid' built as his recording studio and office - steel frame skinned with limestone, granite and various other materials including a (stunning looking) solid naval brass pyramideon. It ended up costing almost double the quoted price (before we even got started), and that's using modern techniques.

[@Dead_Goat]

Paris Las Vegas a structure 4 times larger in sqft than the coliseum not even mentioning height cost $760 million. The collesium would cost much much less, closer to the 150 million quote.

[@Nikotheleepic]

@@Dead_Goat says someone with no concept of materials, methods, and modularity, oh yeah also hand scuplted artisanal statues, an entire facade of marble, an entire cloth covering of the stadium, and countless other reasons why you are wrong.

[@michaelvisconti869]

As always a great video . Now if a replica was built where would be the best place to build one ? My choice would be outside of Las Vegas . Where would be your ideal place to build it ?

[@tomcollins5112]

Vegas would be too hot. As far as climate goes, you can't beat San Diego.

[@elijahgrocock6164]

"The turrets and battlements of a castle in the air", beautifully said sir, great content.

[@KevinBReynolds]

Another fascinating video from Told In Stone. Thank you. As a manufacturing estimator for a good number of years, I can pretty much guarantee that you should double whatever estimates you have come up with. You can't just say "Okay, the stones costs this much, labor this much, engineering and architects this much, and put it together and have a good cost estimate. It just doesn't work that way. It may look good on paper but in reality things tend to happen rather differently. Somebody made a mistake, the numbers don't match, you better double check this and sooner rather than later, etc. Just go ahead and double whatever you've got.

[@davepowell1661]

Call it 'Trump Colosseum' and the contractors costs drop

[@nicholaiginovaef4861]

I would like to see someone do a mock hiring of everyone needed to build a modern colosseum.. see how much the contractors would estimate the job for

[@playme129]

"Special thanks to Magnificus, Tim Wilkinson, and Jim Williams for their help." Great video and 3 wonderful subscribers.

[@matthewharris3938]

Cool video, interesting topic. Would be neat to see a replica built for sure.

[@yb6715]

One of the best videos that I listened in KZbin.

[@SewolHoONCE]

Being from Los Angeles, CA, my first thought was: ¿Has anyone done a line item, side-by-side comparison of the Colosseum in Rome, Italy, and the Los Angeles Memorial Olympic Colosseum? Start with their dimensions and seating capacities for a scale ratio. (I did a performance in the Colosseum and attended an event with 105,000 participants including seating on the playing field.)

[@automaticmattywhack1470]

I'm going to go with Magnificus. No modern amenities like wiring, lighting, air conditioning ducts, etc. Plus no modern safety equipment like fire suppression, fire escapes, etc.

[@johndododoe1411]

Lots of ductwork for water chilling and perfume though. Lots of hand cranked ventilation fans above the seating aeea.

[@shawndale1552]

Wonderful mind and manner you have.

[@antonhuman8446]

Most interesting. Thank you.

[@iamgermane]

An NFL stadium today costs about $2 billion US dollars.

[@joshuapatrick682]

Did you genuinely expect a response from the joke that is our modern academic system? They have no desire to engage in thought experiments but to buddy up to corporations and government bureaucracy to increase the department’s budget

[@yeeticus_maximus9616]

I think Tennessee should be the place to build a new colosseum. We’ve got a weird obsession with antiquity in this state idk why. We’ve got several classical names for cities like Athens, Sparta, Lebanon, Antioch, Memphis (which literally has a pyramid in it), we refer to multiple of our stadiums as colosseums, and we built a replica of the Parthenon over a century ago in Nashville that’s still standing

[@_lithp]

The fact that it cost the same as a modern stadium just blows my mind. I can't believe wealth of this magnitude was even possible back then.

[@Aaron-ed5xs]

They built a modern sized stadium with no electricity, no power, and it effectively had running water. What a catastrophically impressive achievement. I wish to see it someday

[@djolley61]

You've indirectly taught a great lesson in economics. Human labor has always been expensive. Today's human labor is very much more expensive, but is far, far more productive than 2000 years ago. This is why a modern brick layer can live better today than a king could 2000 years ago.

[@faithlesshound5621]

Adam Smith said something similar about the relative standard of living of a British working man in the 18th century compared to an African king of his own time. The key to how they felt about it, however, is that both then and two millennia ago the kings had far more power and control and were visibly better off than the labourers. What matters to a lot of people is not how high their standard of living is in absolute terms, but how it compares to everybody else.

[@californiaplant-basedeater2761]

The whole typical comparing the standard of living argument is always lacking the fact that many working class people (in the US, for example) are often a paycheck or two from being kicked out into the street. That kind of dread and mental weight does not allow one to live better than kings and queens, along with the subjugation of being underlings at various awful workplaces and much more ills of modern day society. A lot of it is overcomeable. A lot is also not... not to the extent that one can be as comfortable as a king with servants. Not that that is necessary to have happiness.

[@sternamc919sterna3]

The best stone masons were never underpaid. Some were and have been very powerful and their associations and brotherhood had political influence. Some even funded the careers of famous politicians. That is a well kept secret😉

[@protocetid]

this video hooked me on your channel

[@windowsxp9120]

10:33 idk why but the comedic timing of your face reaction here is just so funny.

[@PakaBubi]

Meanwhile in China: hold my beer

[@chasethebase5986]

3 to 8 billion if unions did the work!

[@cnc-beginner]

Mathematician here, with no idea of Engineering. But: from Germany, all big projects (Berlin airport, Stuttgart metro revamp, etc) cost at the end 5 to 10 times more than initial estimations, estimations which were done by professionals by the way. Infact, comparing with NotreDame , France, where the roof and some parts have to be rebuilt, it will cost all in all about less than 1billion Euros. Comparing with the size of the Colosseum, I would pretend, the Colosseum would cost 5 billions. So I believe you ve got from far the best estimation. On the other side, Magnificus with all his knowledge - that I do not have - gives us quite a ridiculous estimation, but thank you in all cases Magnificus! As always, love your channel PS: would like to see Magnificus use his methodolody to estimate the cost of NotreDame roof rebuilt. Then we would be able to compare with the real costs. My guess: Magnificus would estimate the cost at 30 millions ( its full Colosseum costs 150.000.000), considering the respective sizes. But the real cost is about 1billion, so a factor 30. Applying this factor gives us for the Colosseum: 4.5 Billions!

[@faceit9331]

Love it. Thank you.

[@zop57]

The Roman’s didn’t see things as impossible. They thought “how do we make it possible?”

[@ROLtheWolf]

It makes sense that it would cost less (when comparing historical values and costs) to build a replica than the original. Modern tools and techniques and automation have replaced lots of workers and made productivity very high compared to 2000 years ago.

[@andrasfogarasi5014]

Improper surveying of the area would necessitate that the foundations be relaid 4 months after the beginning of construction. A quarter of the material would turn out to be substandard after delivery. Government regulation would change 1 year in, resulting in the plans needing to change once again. The workers would regularly steal gasoline from the vehicles. Equipment would become damaged after a freak storm. Several work safety violations would lead to a string lawsuits. The investors would hurry the construction along the entire way, resulting in a variety of planning errors. The architect would have a nervous breakdown and quit. No matter how much money you give it, the project would end up 7 years behind schedule and 11 times over-budget before being cancelled.

[@StanJan]

Very good. Thank you

[@RedSiegfried]

You've got to make sure to factor in all the gifts you have to give out to politicians and other people in positions of power to allow it to happen. Around any big project, there are always a lot of people with their hand out that you have to make happy somehow, and preferably within the law. This is a cold, hard fact of the building business. Even a Roman Emperor can't suspend the laws of economics; he can only bend them a little.

[@johndododoe1411]

Notice that the very best seats are reserved for senators. That's a massive political handout.

[@welcome763]

I think that since there were several exclusions from the pricing, ie. paying architects to design the building alone. Any setbacks would drive up costs as well

[@Aninkovsky]

With Caesar III or Pharaoh game simulation, we can guess that building an outstanding monument is something, not an issue of just constructing it. The stressful phase is opening a new query, enlarging an old one, transporting materials, etc which can be very problematic and added cost astronomically.

[@danielkrcmar5395]

I read somewhere that the purchasing power of gold has stayed roughly the same since the Roman era, if you can convert to gold and then adjust that could be a roughly accurate estimate.

[@Michael_______]

I love you very much. I really enjoy your videos

[@N4chtigall]

It such an interesting topic I would love to read a book full of such analysis. Every time I look at those marvelous building like Colosseum I wonder how insanely hard it was to build. Insane amount of money, work, materials, organization, time - it would be incredibly hard to complete nowadays but thousands years ago?

[@TWOCOWS1]

thank you Doc. done logically and systematically. Ab Fab!

[@chrisworthen1538]

As the retired VP of a commercial construction company I found this video to be a fascinating exercise.