Two marble columns
From the stage wall.
GFreihalter — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Sailko — CC BY 3.0 · Tylwyth Eldar — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Sailko — CC BY 3.0 · Tylwyth Eldar — CC BY-SA 4.0
The Roman Theatre of Arles is an ancient theatre in the old town of Arles, in Provence in southern France, right beside the Roman amphitheatre and about 33 km in a straight line south of Avignon. It was built in the reign of the emperor Augustus, and in Roman times it had 33 rows of seats for about 8,000 people, as large as the better-known theatre of Orange. In the Middle Ages it served as a quarry, and its stone went into the town wall and other buildings, so far less of it stands today. What survives is the stage area, the semicircular orchestra, the lower rows of seats and two tall marble columns from the old stage wall, set among scattered carved blocks under the trees. A medieval tower built into the outer wall, the Tour de Roland, rises above the ruins. In summer the theatre is used again for open-air shows and festivals. It is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site with the other Roman and Romanesque monuments of Arles. A visit takes under an hour and is easily combined with the amphitheatre next door.
From the stage wall.
Medieval tower.
Open-air events.
Rue de la Calade, Arles, Bouches-du-Rhône, France
Under an hour.
It was used as a stone quarry in the Middle Ages.
