Avenches Amphitheatre

Avenches, Switzerland

Avenches (earlier known as Aventicum) became the capital of the Roman Helvetia province around 15-13 BC. The heyday of the city was in the 2nd century AD when it had over 20,000 inhabitants. The amphitheatre was also erected in the early 2th century. Today it is Switzerland's best preserved amphitheatre.

Address

Avenue Jomini 2, Avenches, Switzerland

See all sites in Avenches

Details

Founded: 2th century AD
Category: Prehistoric and archaeological sites in Switzerland

More Information

www.myswitzerland.com

Rating

4.5/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby

Murten (7,7 km)
Avenches Castle (0,1 km)
Münchenwiler Castle (7,3 km)

Old City of Berne (31,9 km)
Bern Minster (31,9 km)
Zytglogge (31,7 km)
Federal Palace of Switzerland (31,4 km)
Chillon Castle (52,6 km)
Palais de Rumine (50,5 km)
French Church (31,6 km)
Lausanne Historical Museum (50,6 km)
Nydeggkirche (32,4 km)

User Reviews

Ben Walpoth (3 years ago)
Old roman amphitheater in Avenches. It is definitely worth a visit!

Hansjürg Hürzeler (4 years ago)
Great mixture of ancient and well explained

Nuno Martins (4 years ago)
Great example of the Roman empire, here in the ancient Aventicum

Guy Romagnoli (4 years ago)
Old Romain Town, nice little place and good restaurants

Prince Dziwornu (4 years ago)
Lovely place. Highly recommended

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Finest Norman castles in Italy

Exploring the History of Northern Poland

Discovering Slovenia's Historic Wonders

Photo from Flickr, copyright w_lemay

Historic Site of the week

Temple of Edfu

The Temple of Edfu is one of the best preserved ancient shrines in Egypt. It was built in the Ptolemaic Kingdom between 237 and 57 BC.

Edfu was one of several temples built during the Ptolemaic Kingdom, including the Dendera Temple complex, Esna, the Temple of Kom Ombo, and Philae. Its size reflects the relative prosperity of the time. The present temple initially consisted of a pillared hall, two transverse halls, and a barque sanctuary surrounded by chapels. The building was started during the reign of Ptolemy III Euergetes and completed in 57 BC under Ptolemy XII Auletes. It was built on the site of an earlier, smaller temple also dedicated to Horus, although the previous structure was oriented east–west rather than north–south as in the present site.