Ladiatorial combat originated from funerals as part their anient rituals. Soon when this ritual developed into a sport, the gladiators would hold combat in market places. They would erect a temporary stand for spectators to watch, called a Forum Romanum. In 53 B.C., the politician Gaius Scribonius Curio, erected a wooden amphitheatre. The amphitheatre would have a semi-circular wooden stands built on a pivot and you would be able to sit back to back. But wooden amphitheatres were known to be very dangerous. From time to time they were known to collapse. One tragedy of a massive scale occurred in Fidenae, just north of Rome . The earliest known permanent arena was built by Titus, whose family already owned a gladiator school. But the arena was destroyed in the great fire during Nero's reign. The first arenas built were located in Campania and Pompeii . The one in Pompeii was very large. It could seat up to 20,000 people and was round in shape. The arena was dug deep into the earth with a low frontage and external steps. The most famous of arenas was the great Colosseum.