Rome's Colosseum Sparkles After Soot and Grime Removed in First Phase of 25million Restoration

The Colosseum has emerged more imposing than ever after its most extensive restoration, a 25million (15million) clean up to remove decades of grime caused by traffic pollution in Rome.Footing the bill is shoe-and-luxury goods maker Tod's. In an act of modern-day cultural patronage, company founder Diego Della Valle responded to a government call to the private sector to help care for Italy's art and archaeological treasures.

The Colosseum's new look was unveiled on Friday and during the ceremony Italy's culture minister, Dario Franceschini, announced that a further 18 million (15million) has been found to replace the arena's floor, by the end of 2018.Scroll down for videoA new floor might be used to support modern-day entertainment, although monument-rocking rock concerts have been ruled out.The stage would be used for 'cultural events of the highest level,' Franceschini said.

The first phase of the Colosseum's restoration consisted essentially of gently removing pollution's ravages on the exterior of the monument, which dates from the first century, with water misters and brushes wielded by hand.The monument stayed open to tourists during the nearly three-year-long restoration of the outside, with scaffolding covering only one section at a time.The exterior cleaning cost some 6.

5 million ($7.2million) (5.4million).

Tod's is paying 25million (20million) for the entire project, whose next steps include constructing a visitors' centre with a cafeteria and shoring up the bottom, where gladiators prepped, and wild beasts and scenery were kept for spectacles for the ancient Roman masses.Della Valle received thanks today from Italy's Premier Matteo Renzi.Companies ranging from Italian fashion houses to a mattress manufacturer to a Japanese textile maker have paid for restorations including the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps and Rome's own Pyramid.

Culture Minister Dario Franceschini pointed out that the shoe magnate was especially generous, since Della Valle offered the funds before a new Italian law took effect, in late 2014, giving modern-day versions of Medici princes of the arts huge tax breaks.Under that new strategy, more than 100million ($112million) (84million) have been donated, Franceschini said.Architect Gisella Capponi, who directed the restoration, says the cleaning allows the Colosseum's creamy hues of travertine stone to be appreciated again.

'The coloration highlights the monument' while the dirt and crime 'gave an image of being more a ruin than it really is,' she said.Indeed, the stone had been so blackened that the Colosseum almost seemed to fade into the background for Romans who passed it daily on their commutes.But now 'the effect is one of surprise,' Colosseum director Rossella Rea said.

Besides Della Valle's generosity, the Colosseum benefited from a city ordinance forbidding private cars on the nearby boulevard, which flanks Roman and Imperial Forums.Taxis and buses, but not private cars, are allowed on weekdays.On weekends, only pedestrians and cyclists can use the boulevards.

Shopkeepers and other businesses in the area have complained bitterly about the traffic ban but Rea is unrepentant about the need to protect the arena, a Unesco World Heritage site that is considered Italy's most famous icon.'If the heavy traffic, which did the damage, returns, all you'll need is three, four years' to coat the Colosseum again in soot,' she said.Otherwise, to keep its clean look, all the monument will need in the next years is an annual checkup, with workers going up in cherry-pickers to remove weeds that sprout in the stone's spaces.

Shoring up the ancient walls and arches of the bottom level could also help fulfill the dream of those who want to see the ancient arena regain new glory as a contemporary entertainment venue.But first, architects and engineers must determine that 2,000-year-old foundations are sturdy enough to support a new stage. And drainage -- which still exploits ancient Roman pipes -- must be upgraded and thoroughly cleaned.

A cultural ministry architect, Pia Petrangeli, who oversees sponsorship procedures, says the Colosseum is structurally sound.'This monument has foundations 15 metres (50ft)' down, Petrangeli said.Each year, some five million to six million tourists traipse through the first two tiers of Italy's most visited monument.

'It was built to be an arena for shows,' Petrangeli said.'It held many more people than it does today.'Stressing the entwined relationship, especially in Italy, between culture and the economy was the arena's current champion, Della Valle.