The Colosseum was included in a UNESCO World Heritage listing in 1980.
UNESCO did not initially inscribe the Colosseum as a completely standalone property. It formed part of the “Historic Centre of Rome,” a cultural World Heritage site covering Rome's extraordinary concentration of ancient, Christian, Renaissance and Baroque monuments. The Colosseum is one of the key ancient monuments within that protected historic area.
The listing reflects more than the amphitheatre's fame. Rome preserves layers of urban history spanning the Roman Empire, the rise of Christianity and later European architectural traditions. The Colosseum, Roman Forum and Pantheon help illustrate the city's importance as both an imperial capital and a centre of the Christian world.
The property was later expanded in 1990 to include additional areas and renamed “Historic Centre of Rome, the Properties of the Holy See in that City Enjoying Extraterritorial Rights and San Paolo Fuori le Mura.” That expansion date is a common mix-up; the original World Heritage inscription was in 1980.