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Abstract: AN ARCHAELOGICAL SURVEYOR AT THE COLISEUM BETWEEN THE FRENCH AND THE RESTORATION. THE CASE OF LUIGI M. VALADIER This article reviews the history of the excavations and surveys carried out in the arena of the Flavian Amphitheater which brought about a collection of archaeological documentation which is still used. The coliseum, which underwent continuous analysis from the end of the eighteenth century, was excavated during the Napoleonic Administration (1809-1814). During this excavation, the hypogean structure on which the wooden floor of the arena rested was unearthed. Architectural survey was the best means with which to resolve the controversy that had arisen concerning these structures which were considered medieval by traditional antiquarians. We can now add the recently found drawings of the architect Luigi Maria Valadier, the son of previously unknown and now renowned Giuseppe, to the well-known ones by Pietro Bianchi. The graphic work of the young Valadier (its slow progress may be followed through the archival documents) is characterized by the scrupulous attention to the existing walls and its avant-guarde instrumental- topographic layout.