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Origin and history

The amphitheatre of Agen, built between the reign of Augustus and the second half of the 1st century AD, is part of the development of Aginnum, Gallo-Roman city founded at the confluence of the Garonne and the creek of the Mass. Its architecture, close to the amphitheatres of Bordeaux or Poitiers, evolves in two phases: a first state (107 × 90 m, 6,000 places) followed by an enlargement (115 × 100 m, 12,000 to 15,000 places) with an external portico. Local materials (Aquitanian limestone) and masonry techniques (opus vittatum, opus caementicium nucleus) characterize its construction.

Its abandonment progressed from the second half of the fourth century, with a systematic recovery of its stones for other constructions. Forgotten after the Middle Ages, its existence was projected in the 19th century thanks to the odonymy (rue des Arenes) and confirmed in 1988-1989 by archaeological excavations in the Tanneries district. These discoveries, followed by an inscription in the Historical Monuments in 1991, reveal an eighth of the structure, buried under modern arrangements, prompting debate on its preservation.

The amphitheatre is integrated into an ancient urban network organized around the decumanus and the cardo, at the ends of which are the theatre and the amphitheatre. Aginnum, without enclosure, extends over 80 hectares and declines from the second century, although the city (Civitas Agenensium) persists until the fifth century. The remains, partially excavated, show a wooden and stone cellara, axial vomitories, and an arena (67 × 50 m) without underground development, due to the water table.

The rediscovery of the monument owes much to the works of Jean Florimond Boudon de Saint-Amans (early 19th century) and to the excavations of 1988-1989, led by archaeologists such as Bruno Bizot and Myriam Fincker. This research highlights similarities with the amphitheatres of Pula (Croatia) or Poitiers, suggesting a possible intervention by the same architect. Today, its remains, protected but not visible, remain a key testimony of antiquity in the South-West.

The site, initially marshy and then dry, illustrates the Roman adaptation to local constraints. Its history also reflects the urban dynamics of Aginnum: prosperity linked to river and road trade under the High Empire, then progressive decline. Medieval re-uses (XIII-XIV centuries) of its foundation structures show a continuing disoccupancy, despite forgetting its original function.

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