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The Great Theater in Ephesus was based on an original Greek structure. In the Roman period, it was expanded under the reigns of Domitian (A.D. 81 to 96) and Trajan (98 to 117). One estimate gives the theater's capacity as 44,000 spectators and as such it would have been the largest in the ancient world. While generally used for theatrical performances and public assemblies, it was also used for gladiatorial contests in the later imperial period.