Arènes de Lutèce

 

The 2nd-century Roman Lutetia Amphitheatre (Arènes de Lutèce) once seated 10,000 people for gladiator fights, theatrical presentations, and other public spectacles, including grisly engagements with large animals. 

Rendering of the original construction:

Discovered by accident in 1869 when Rue Monge was under construction, it’s now used by young locals playing soccer and older locals playing boules (a kind of lawn bowling). There is an adjacent park and garden, down a flight of wide stone steps:

The arena was used until c. 1210, when Philippe Augustus had it filled in while building his adjacent city wall, a remnant of which is still visible on Rue Clovis (marked with a plaque), at the intersection of Rue Cardinal Lemoine. Photo at end of post.

Arena hours: 8:00a to 8:30p May through September. Shorter hours rest of year (usually closing at dusk). No admission charge.

METRO: Cardinal Lemoine. Entry at 49 rue Monge, but it's easy to miss, so here's a photo of the arched entrance, adjacent to the Hôtel des Arènes at #51, with green awnings.Walking south from the METRO station, the arena will be on the left side of rue Monge.

Retrace your steps to the METRO station, turn left onto rue Cardinal Lemoine, then take the first right onto Rue Clovis. Remnants of the 13th-century city wall built by Philip Augustus will be on the left side of Rue Clovis. Part of the rubble used as fill during construction is visible: