The work to repave the area around the base of the Colosseum on its western side has brought to light new archaeological findings. At the beginning of April a marble piece measuring a metre and a half of an equestrian statue was found and then two days later the head of a male statue was discovered, both of which had been only 50cm below the surface. According to archaeologists the piece of the equestrian statue suggests one of an emperor due to its size and most likely adorned the arch over the imperial entrance. The head is too small to be that of the rider of the horse in the equestrian statue.

The goal of the repaving of the area around the Colosseum is to bring it back to its original height by lowering the cobblestones by 80cm. Soon work will also begin on redoing the ramp that leads from Via Capo Africa to the amphitheatre, while work has already begun for the metro line C on the side of the Fori Imperiali. The digging that these projects require is expected to uncover further archaeological findings.

The Colosseum, originally known as the Flavian Amphitheatre, was constructed between AD 72 and AD 80, under emperors Vespasian and Titus, and then modified under Domitian. It is the largest amphitheatre built in the Roman Empire and had a seating capacity of around 50, 000. Statues once embellished its arches on all three levels.