How to build Colosseum in Minecraft

The Flavian Amphitheatre as it stands today: an elliptical travertine shell with three tiers of arches framed by engaged columns and the solid attic band with its small windows, the broken southern side where the outer ring has fallen away to reveal the inner arcade, brick buttresses holding up the broken ends, banks of stepped seating, and the arena with its maze of hypogeum tunnels exposed beneath a partly rebuilt wooden floor. Umbrella pines and the paved piazza surround it.

Open the interactive 3D plan above to build it one layer at a time: every layer has a numbered top-down plan, a block list and full-screen step-by-step instructions you can tick off as you go. You can also download it for Litematica, WorldEdit or Minecraft Bedrock, or view it in your room in AR.

Materials list

BlockAmountStacks
Smooth Sandstone5,64288 stacks + 10
Sandstone5,49985 stacks + 59
Bricks2,33436 stacks + 30
Andesite2,26535 stacks + 25
Sandstone Stairs1,99831 stacks + 14
Cut Sandstone1,48823 stacks + 16
Gravel6379 stacks + 61
Dirt4857 stacks + 37
Jungle Leaves4567 stacks + 8
Cracked Stone Bricks4046 stacks + 20
Stone Bricks2293 stacks + 37
Polished Andesite2243 stacks + 32
Moss Block2113 stacks + 19
Spruce Planks1161 stack + 52
Mossy Stone Bricks1021 stack + 38
Smooth Stone Slab961 stack + 32
Chiseled Sandstone661 stack + 2
Spruce Log48
Dark Oak Fence28
Spruce Slab21
Spruce Fence11
Lantern5

Building tips

  1. Mark out the ellipse first. It is 89 blocks long and 73 wide. Every ring (outer wall, inner arcade, seating, arena wall) is the same ellipse pulled in by a fixed number of blocks, so do the outer ring and count inward.
  2. Count the bays before you build up. Each bay is one pier and three blocks of opening, and the piers of the outer and inner rings line up.
  3. Build the arches in rows: four open blocks, then one row where only the middle block stays open. From a distance that reads as a round arch.
  4. The entablature bands and engaged columns stick out one block from the wall. That shadow line is what makes it look like the Colosseum and not a big tube.
  5. Mix in andesite and a little cut sandstone at random. Travertine is pitted and streaky, and a single block type looks like plastic.
  6. For the broken side, build the whole ring first and then knock it down in steps, finishing the ends with a sloping wedge of bricks.
  7. Dig the hypogeum five blocks deep and leave the tunnel walls uneven at the top so they look excavated.

Step-by-step: all 32 layers

  1. Layer 1 Dirt ×302, Gravel ×232, Moss Block ×211
  2. Layer 2 Bricks ×143, Andesite ×84, Stone Bricks ×38, Cracked Stone Bricks ×32, Mossy Stone Bricks ×23, Cut Sandstone ×1
  3. Layer 3 Bricks ×141, Andesite ×85, Stone Bricks ×48, Cracked Stone Bricks ×24, Mossy Stone Bricks ×22, Cut Sandstone ×1
  4. Layer 4 Bricks ×137, Andesite ×69, Stone Bricks ×64, Mossy Stone Bricks ×26, Cracked Stone Bricks ×24, Cut Sandstone ×1
  5. Layer 5 Bricks ×142, Andesite ×85, Stone Bricks ×52, Cracked Stone Bricks ×34, Mossy Stone Bricks ×7, Cut Sandstone ×1
  6. Layer 6 Bricks ×114, Andesite ×53, Stone Bricks ×27, Mossy Stone Bricks ×24, Cracked Stone Bricks ×18, Cut Sandstone ×1
  7. Layer 7 Smooth Sandstone ×1474, Andesite ×1348, Gravel ×405, Polished Andesite ×224, Dirt ×183, Spruce Planks ×116, Cut Sandstone ×97, Spruce Slab ×21
  8. Layer 8 Sandstone ×205, Cut Sandstone ×129, Bricks ×127, Andesite ×26, Cracked Stone Bricks ×25, Smooth Sandstone ×12, Spruce Fence ×11, Dark Oak Fence ×6, Chiseled Sandstone ×5, Spruce Log ×4
  9. Layer 9 Sandstone ×200, Bricks ×136, Cut Sandstone ×130, Andesite ×19, Cracked Stone Bricks ×18, Smooth Sandstone ×14, Dark Oak Fence ×6, Spruce Log ×4
  10. Layer 10 Sandstone ×233, Cut Sandstone ×133, Bricks ×122, Cracked Stone Bricks ×27, Andesite ×24, Smooth Sandstone ×11, Dark Oak Fence ×6, Spruce Log ×4
  11. Layer 11 Sandstone ×225, Sandstone Stairs ×142, Bricks ×137, Smooth Sandstone ×104, Cut Sandstone ×47, Andesite ×29, Cracked Stone Bricks ×11, Dark Oak Fence ×6, Spruce Log ×4
  12. Layer 12 Sandstone ×294, Sandstone Stairs ×136, Bricks ×120, Smooth Stone Slab ×96, Cut Sandstone ×59, Smooth Sandstone ×34, Andesite ×33, Cracked Stone Bricks ×19, Lantern ×5, Spruce Log ×4, Dark Oak Fence ×3
  13. Layer 13 Sandstone ×457, Smooth Sandstone ×203, Sandstone Stairs ×130, Bricks ×117, Andesite ×42, Cut Sandstone ×38, Cracked Stone Bricks ×20, Spruce Log ×4, Dark Oak Fence ×1
  14. Layer 14 Smooth Sandstone ×1066, Sandstone ×184, Sandstone Stairs ×127, Bricks ×114, Andesite ×23, Cracked Stone Bricks ×23, Cut Sandstone ×14, Spruce Log ×4
  15. Layer 15 Sandstone ×462, Smooth Sandstone ×146, Bricks ×110, Cut Sandstone ×75, Sandstone Stairs ×62, Andesite ×44, Cracked Stone Bricks ×22, Spruce Log ×4
  16. Layer 16 Sandstone ×216, Sandstone Stairs ×169, Bricks ×110, Cut Sandstone ×59, Andesite ×47, Smooth Sandstone ×16, Cracked Stone Bricks ×11, Spruce Log ×5
  17. Layer 17 Sandstone ×250, Sandstone Stairs ×137, Bricks ×108, Cut Sandstone ×51, Jungle Leaves ×36, Andesite ×18, Cracked Stone Bricks ×18, Smooth Sandstone ×11, Spruce Log ×6
  18. Layer 18 Sandstone ×265, Sandstone Stairs ×152, Jungle Leaves ×129, Bricks ×93, Cut Sandstone ×58, Andesite ×21, Cracked Stone Bricks ×18, Smooth Sandstone ×9, Spruce Log ×4
  19. Layer 19 Sandstone ×340, Jungle Leaves ×171, Smooth Sandstone ×110, Bricks ×93, Sandstone Stairs ×85, Cut Sandstone ×64, Andesite ×30, Cracked Stone Bricks ×9, Spruce Log ×1
  20. Layer 20 Smooth Sandstone ×1081, Sandstone ×213, Sandstone Stairs ×116, Jungle Leaves ×99, Bricks ×62, Andesite ×17, Cracked Stone Bricks ×14, Cut Sandstone ×7
  21. Layer 21 Sandstone ×455, Sandstone Stairs ×185, Cut Sandstone ×75, Bricks ×59, Smooth Sandstone ×48, Andesite ×40, Jungle Leaves ×21, Cracked Stone Bricks ×10
  22. Layer 22 Sandstone ×271, Sandstone Stairs ×177, Cut Sandstone ×48, Bricks ×40, Andesite ×16, Smooth Sandstone ×11, Cracked Stone Bricks ×6
  23. Layer 23 Sandstone ×288, Sandstone Stairs ×175, Cut Sandstone ×55, Bricks ×29, Andesite ×15, Smooth Sandstone ×8, Cracked Stone Bricks ×6
  24. Layer 24 Sandstone Stairs ×200, Sandstone ×73, Cut Sandstone ×50, Bricks ×20, Andesite ×14, Smooth Sandstone ×10, Cracked Stone Bricks ×2
  25. Layer 25 Sandstone ×133, Cut Sandstone ×50, Smooth Sandstone ×20, Andesite ×18, Bricks ×15, Sandstone Stairs ×5, Cracked Stone Bricks ×3
  26. Layer 26 Smooth Sandstone ×979, Bricks ×13, Cracked Stone Bricks ×3, Andesite ×2
  27. Layer 27 Sandstone ×217, Cut Sandstone ×57, Smooth Sandstone ×32, Andesite ×21, Bricks ×10, Cracked Stone Bricks ×2
  28. Layer 28 Sandstone ×92, Cut Sandstone ×44, Smooth Sandstone ×21, Andesite ×8, Bricks ×8, Cracked Stone Bricks ×1
  29. Layer 29 Sandstone ×105, Cut Sandstone ×51, Smooth Sandstone ×18, Andesite ×9, Bricks ×6, Cracked Stone Bricks ×3
  30. Layer 30 Sandstone ×121, Chiseled Sandstone ×61, Cut Sandstone ×40, Smooth Sandstone ×18, Bricks ×5, Andesite ×4, Cracked Stone Bricks ×1
  31. Layer 31 Sandstone ×115, Cut Sandstone ×41, Smooth Sandstone ×15, Andesite ×13, Bricks ×2
  32. Layer 32 Smooth Sandstone ×171, Sandstone ×85, Cut Sandstone ×11, Andesite ×8, Bricks ×1

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