The Colosseum as a quarry: the looting that built Rome
Photos of Rome from 1840-1870 reveal the huge business of looting: the Colosseum served as a quarry for half the city. What did it cost not to demolish it?
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
The photos of Rome from 1840-1870 that show the looting of the Colosseum
What does an economist see when looking at the first photographs of Rome? A deposit of building materials. The images captured between 1840 and 1870 portray the Colosseum, the forums and the Appian Way in a state that looks post-war: truncated walls, fallen columns, ground covered in rubble. This is not the natural decay of centuries; it is the result of systematic looting that financed the construction of much of modern Rome.
A luxury quarry: stones, columns and marble at zero cost
Many houses in Rome were built with stones, columns and parts of the ancient monuments. So were the Vatican and a good number of churches. It was a profitable practice: materials taken from the ruins had no extraction or transport costs, and their quality surpassed that of local quarries. There are even interpretations claiming that St Peter's Basilica itself dates from the same period as the ruins, a hypothesis with no academic consensus but one that adds a speculative twist to the debate. Construction shenanigans are not a modern invention: as early as the 18th century, the painter Giovanni Battista Piranesi documented in his engravings the state of ruins that were still being plundered. The issue is not exclusive to Italy. In Spain, the wrecking ball devastated heritage to put up housing blocks, and in Athens the landscape was even worse: a wasteland with shanties, as travellers of the time described.
The cost of preserving versus demolishing
Preserving ruins means accepting an opportunity cost: the land they stand on is not developed and the materials are not sold. The opposite option, demolition, offers short-term income but destroys an asset that over time proves far more valuable. The Colosseum generates millions of euros in tourism every year; no Soviet-style apartment block would pay that rent. The next time a city council puts a price on a historic building, it is worth remembering that the value of ruins is measured not only by the land they occupy, but by the legend they turn into business.
What does an economist see when looking at the first photographs of Rome? A deposit of building materials. The images captured between 1840 and 1870 portray the Colosseum, the forums and the Appian Way in a state that looks post-war: truncated walls, fallen columns, ground covered in rubble. This is not the natural decay of centuries; it is the result of systematic looting that financed the construction of much of modern Rome.
A luxury quarry: stones, columns and marble at zero cost
Many houses in Rome were built with stones, columns and parts of the ancient monuments. So were the Vatican and a good number of churches. It was a profitable practice: materials taken from the ruins had no extraction or transport costs, and their quality surpassed that of local quarries. There are even interpretations claiming that St Peter's Basilica itself dates from the same period as the ruins, a hypothesis with no academic consensus but one that adds a speculative twist to the debate. Construction shenanigans are not a modern invention: as early as the 18th century, the painter Giovanni Battista Piranesi documented in his engravings the state of ruins that were still being plundered. The issue is not exclusive to Italy. In Spain, the wrecking ball devastated heritage to put up housing blocks, and in Athens the landscape was even worse: a wasteland with shanties, as travellers of the time described.
The cost of preserving versus demolishing
Preserving ruins means accepting an opportunity cost: the land they stand on is not developed and the materials are not sold. The opposite option, demolition, offers short-term income but destroys an asset that over time proves far more valuable. The Colosseum generates millions of euros in tourism every year; no Soviet-style apartment block would pay that rent. The next time a city council puts a price on a historic building, it is worth remembering that the value of ruins is measured not only by the land they occupy, but by the legend they turn into business.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (10 replies).
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