Anfiteatri e contesti urbani: una riconciliazione necessaria. Il ‘Colosseo’ di Catania

The archaeological remains of Roman amphitheatres constitute significant historical evidence. However, these ruins, if they are inside historic centres, can lose value due to urban transformation processes, which are almost never planned in an integrated way with archaeological stratifications. The archaeological areas often represent real cuts in the urban fabric, interrupting its continuity and complicating the road flows and, in the worst case, they are reduced to waste spaces. The Sicilian case of the Catania Amphitheatre, inside the historic centre, is one of the most representative examples of hypogeal monumental archaeology that suffers an evident unfinished integration, both physical and cultural, with its context. The paper presents the results of a complex cognitive process useful to provide the basis for a conservation and restoration plan for the monument. Finally, the research proposes a design solution for physical and cultural accessibility for visitors to involve, suggest and guide the local community in the experience of the stratified city within the archaeological site, both on the urban and architectural scale.