1.
Rioni of Rome
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A rione of Rome is a traditional administrative division of the city of Rome. Rione is an Italian term used since the 14th century to name a district of a town, the term was born in Rome, originating from the administrative divisions of the city. The word comes from the Latin word regio, during the Middle Ages the Latin word became rejones, currently, all the rioni are located in Municipio I of Rome. According to tradition, Servius Tullius, sixth king of Rome, first divided the city into regiones, all but Transtiberim were on the left bank of the river Tiber. During the 12th century a division in 12 parts started being used, though not officially, even if the areas were different from the ancient ones, they still used the same name, regio in Latin and rione in the vulgar language. The limits of the rioni became more definitive and official in the 13th century, their number increased to 13, in this period, anyway, the limits were quite uncertain. The rione was not an entity, but only an administrative one. The chief of a rione was the Caporione, during the Renaissance there was a deep reorganization and expansion of the city, so it became necessary to delimit the rioni exactly. In 1586 Sixtus V added to the 13 rioni another one, Borgo and this situation, thanks to the low population increase, did not change until the 19th century. In 1744 Pope Benedict XIV, because of frequent misunderstanding, decided to replan the administrative division of Rome, the marble plates defining the borders of each rione, many of which still exist, were installed in that year on the facades of houses lying at each riones border. So the smaller rioni were united to the large ones, at this time the French affixed in each street a plate with its name and the areas it belonged to. After Napoleon lost his power there were no significant changes in the organization of the city until Rome became the capital of the newborn Italy, the needs of the new capital caused a great urbanization and an increase of the population, both within the Aurelian walls and outside them. In 1874 the rioni became 15, with the addition of Esquilino, at the beginning of the 20th century some rioni started being split up and the first parts outside the Aurelian walls started being considered part of the city. In 1921 the number of the rioni increased to 22, Prati was the last rione to be established and the only one outside the walls of Urbanus VIII. The latest reform, which is still valid, was made in 1972, Rome was divided in 20 circoscrizioni and 20 rioni constituted the first one. The two remaining, Borgo and Prati, belonged to the XVIIth municipality until 2013, since then they belong too to the first Municipio. Media related to Districts of Rome at Wikimedia Commons
Rioni of Rome
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A map of the center of Rome ("centro storico", roughly equal to the walled city) with its rioni
2.
Municipio I
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The Municipio I, is an administrative subdivision of the city of Rome. It is the center of the municipality of Rome and it was firstly created by Romes City Council on 19 January 2001 and it has a president who is elected during the mayoral elections. Since 11 March 2013 its borders were modified and was expanded with the incorporation between Municipio I and Municipio XVII, Municipio I is home to the Rioni of Rome, which are the citys historic districts. Municipio I is divided into localities, The localities of Prati, Delle Vittorie. The current majority is formed by Democratic Party and Left Ecology Freedom
Municipio I
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Location of Municipio I of Rome
3.
Dragon
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A dragon is a legendary creature, typically scaled or fire-spewing and with serpentine, reptilian or avian traits, that features in the myths of many cultures around world. The two most well-known cultural traditions of dragon are The European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Balkans, most are depicted as reptilian creatures with animal-level intelligence, and are uniquely six-limbed. The Chinese dragon, with counterparts in Japan, Korea and other East Asian, most are depicted as serpentine creatures with above-average intelligence, and are quadrupeds. The two traditions may have evolved separately, but have influenced each other to a certain extent, the English word dragon and Latin word draco derives from Greek δράκων, dragon, serpent of huge size, water-snake. The Greek and Latin term referred to any great serpent, not necessarily mythological, a dragon is a mythological representation of a reptile. In antiquity, dragons were mostly envisaged as serpents, but since the Middle Ages, it has become common to them with legs. Dragons are usually shown in modern times with a body like a huge lizard, the European dragon has bat-like wings growing from its back. A dragon-like creature with wings but only a pair of legs is known as a wyvern. The association of the serpent with a monstrous opponent overcome by a deity has its roots in the mythology of the Ancient Near East, including Canaanite, Hittite. Humbaba, the fire-breathing dragon-fanged beast first described in the Epic of Gilgamesh, is described as a dragon with Gilgamesh playing the part of dragon-slayer. The folk-lore motif of the dragon guarding gold may have come from earlier Bronze Age customs of introducing serpents to village granaries to deter rats or mice. Although dragons occur in many legends around the world, different cultures have varying stories about monsters that have been grouped together under the dragon label, some dragons are said to breathe fire or to be poisonous, such as in the Old English poem Beowulf. They are commonly portrayed as serpentine or reptilian, hatching from eggs and they are sometimes portrayed as hoarding treasure. Some myths portray them with a row of dorsal spines, European dragons are more often winged, while Chinese dragons resemble large snakes. Dragons can have a number of legs, none, two, four, or more when it comes to early European literature. Dragons are often held to have spiritual significance in various religions. In many Asian cultures, dragons were, and in some still are, revered as representative of the primal forces of nature, religion. They are associated with wisdom—often said to be wiser than humans—and longevity and they are commonly said to possess some form of magic or other supernatural power, and are often associated with wells, rain, and rivers
Dragon
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Sculpture of Mario the Magnificent, the dragon mascot of
Drexel University, by
Eric Berg
Dragon
–
Carved imperial Chinese dragons at
Nine-Dragon Wall,
Beihai Park,
Beijing
Dragon
–
Dragon
Dragon
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Saint George Killing the Dragon, 1434/35, by
Martorell
4.
Pope Silvester I
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Pope Sylvester I, whose name is also spelled Silvester, was pope from 31 January,314 to his death in 335. He filled the See of Rome at an important era in the history of the Catholic Church and his feast is jubilantly celebrated as Saint Sylvesters Day among the Western Christian Churches on December 31, while Eastern Christian Churches commemorate it on January 2. Sylvester did not attend the First Council of Nicaea in 325 and these also appear in the Donation of Constantine. The Pope, in return, offered the crown of his own good will to Constantine, such a useful legend quickly gained wide circulation, Gregory of Tours referred to this political legend in his history of the Franks, written in the 580s. Pope Sylvester II, himself a close associate of Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor, in the West, the liturgical feast of Saint Sylvester is on 31 December, the day of his burial in the Catacomb of Priscilla. This is the last day in the year and, accordingly, in German-speaking countries and in some close to them. In other countries, too, the day is referred to as Saint Sylvesters Day or the Feast of Saint Sylvester. In São Paulo, Brazil, a running event called the Saint Silvester Road Race occurs every year on 31 December. According to it, Pope Sylvester was offered the imperial crown, lu Santu Papa Silvestru, a story in Giuseppe Pitrès collection of Sicilian fables, recounts the legend as follows, Constantine the king wants to take a second wife, and asks Sylvester. Sylvester denies him permission, calling on heaven as witness, Constantine threatens him, not long after, Constantine falls ill, when he is desperate of ever regaining his health he has a dream which commands him to send for Sylvester. He obeys, and Sylvester receives Constantines messengers in his cave and swiftly baptizes them, whereafter he is led back to Constantine, whom he baptizes also, in this story, Constantine and his entourage are not pagans but Jews. Another legend has Sylvester slaying a dragon and he is often depicted with the dying beast. List of longest-reigning popes List of Catholic saints List of popes Gisela Schmitt, Pope St. Sylvester I CE Francesco Scorza Barcellona, SILVESTRO I, santo. In, Enciclopedia dei Papi, Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana Template, LThK Horst Fuhrmann, Konstantinische Schenkung in, vol.5, Artemis & Winkler, Munich/Zurich 1991, ISBN 3-7608-8905-0, Col. 1385–1387. Papst in, Lexicon of the Middle Ages, vol.7, LexMA-Verlag, Munich 1995, ISBN 3-7608-8907-7, Col. 1905–1908. Opera Omnia by Migne Colonnade Statue in St Peters Square Legenda Aurea
Pope Silvester I
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Sylvester I
Pope Silvester I
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Pope Sylvester I and Constantine
Pope Silvester I
–
Pope Sylvester I portrayed slaying a dragon and resurrecting its victims, a
fresco by
Maso di Banco
Pope Silvester I
–
Virgin Mary
5.
Forum Romanum
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The Roman Forum is a rectangular forum surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings at the center of the city of Rome. Citizens of the ancient city referred to this space, originally a marketplace, as the Forum Magnum, here statues and monuments commemorated the citys great men. The teeming heart of ancient Rome, it has called the most celebrated meeting place in the world. Many of the oldest and most important structures of the ancient city were located on or near the Forum, the Roman kingdoms earliest shrines and temples were located on the southeastern edge. Other archaic shrines to the northwest, such as the Umbilicus Urbis and this is where the Senate—as well as Republican government itself—began. The Senate House, government offices, tribunals, temples, memorials, over time the archaic Comitium was replaced by the larger adjacent Forum and the focus of judicial activity moved to the new Basilica Aemilia. Some 130 years later, Julius Caesar built the Basilica Julia, along with the new Curia Julia, eventually much economic and judicial business would transfer away from the Forum Romanum to the larger and more extravagant structures to the north. The reign of Constantine the Great saw the construction of the last major expansion of the Forum complex—the Basilica of Maxentius and this returned the political center to the Forum until the fall of the Western Roman Empire almost two centuries later. This is the case despite attempts, with success, to impose some order there, by Sulla, Julius Caesar, Augustus. By the Imperial period, the public buildings that crowded around the central square had reduced the open area to a rectangle of about 130 by 50 metres. Its long dimension was oriented northwest to southeast and extended from the foot of the Capitoline Hill to that of the Velian Hill, the Forums basilicas during the Imperial period—the Basilica Aemilia on the north and the Basilica Julia on the south—defined its long sides and its final form. The Forum proper included this square, the buildings facing it and, sometimes, originally, the site of the Forum had been a marshy lake where waters from the surrounding hills drained. This was drained by the Tarquins with the Cloaca Maxima, because of its location, sediments from both the flooding of the Tiber and the erosion of the surrounding hills have been raising the level of the Forum floor for centuries. Excavated sequences of remains of paving show that sediment eroded from the hills was already raising the level in early Republican times. As the ground around buildings rose, residents simply paved over the debris that was too much to remove and its final travertine paving, still visible, dates from the reign of Augustus. Excavations in the 19th century revealed one layer on top of another, the deepest level excavated was 3.60 metres above sea level. Archaeological finds show human activity at that level with the discovery of carbonised wood, an important function of the Forum, during both Republican and Imperial times, was to serve as the culminating venue for the celebratory military processions known as Triumphs. Victorious generals entered the city by the western Triumphal Gate and circumnavigated the Palatine Hill before proceeding from the Velian Hill down the Via Sacra, from here they would mount the Capitoline Rise up to the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the summit of the Capitol
Forum Romanum
–
Roman Forum (Forum Romanum)
Forum Romanum
–
The Forum Romanum. View facing North East from above the
Portico Dii Consentes.
Forum Romanum
–
Map of the Roman Forum. Structures of Republican Rome are shown in red, those of Imperial Rome in black. From Platner's Topography and Monuments of Ancient Rome, 1904. (Adjusted)
Forum Romanum
–
A detailed archeological layout of the Forum. (From Platner, 1904.)
6.
Campidoglio
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The Capitoline Hill, between the Forum and the Campus Martius, is one of the Seven Hills of Rome. The hill was known as Mons Saturnius, dedicated to the god Saturn. The word Capitolium first meant the temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus later built here, Ancient sources refer the name to caput and the tale was that, when laying the foundations for the temple, the head of a man was found. Some sources even saying it was the head of some Tolus or Olus, the Capitolium was regarded by the Romans as indestructible, and was adopted as a symbol of eternity. By the 16th century, Capitolinus had become Capitolino in Italian, influenced by Roman architecture and Roman republican times, the word Capitolium still lives in the English word capitol. The Capitol Hill in Washington, D. C. is widely assumed to be named after the Capitoline Hill, at this hill, the Sabines, creeping to the Citadel, were let in by the Roman maiden Tarpeia. For this treachery, Tarpeia was the first to be punished by being flung from a cliff overlooking the Roman Forum. This cliff was named the Tarpeian Rock after the Vestal Virgin. The Sabines, who immigrated to Rome following the Rape of the Sabine Women, the Vulcanal, an 8th-century BC sacred precinct, occupied much of the eastern lower slopes of the Capitoline, at the head of what would later become the Roman Forum. The summit was the site of a temple for the Capitoline Triad, started by Romes fifth king, Tarquinius Priscus and it was considered one of the largest and the most beautiful temples in the city. The city legend starts with the recovery of a human skull when foundation trenches were being dug for the Temple of Jupiter at Tarquins order, recent excavations on the Capitoline uncovered an early cemetery under the Temple of Jupiter. There are several important temples built on Capitoline hill, the temple of Juno Moneta, the temple of Virtus, the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus Capitolinus is the most important of the temples. It was built in 509 BC and was nearly as large as the Parthenon, the hill and the temple of Jupiter became the symbols of Rome, the capital of the world. The Temple of Saturn was built at the foot of Capitoline Hill in the end of the Forum Romanum. According to legend Marcus Manlius Capitolinus was alerted to the Gallic attack by the geese of Juno. Vespasians brother and nephew were also besieged in the temple during the Year of Four Emperors, the Tabularium, located underground beneath the piazza and hilltop, occupies a building of the same name built in the 1st century BC to hold Roman records of state. The Tabularium looks out from the rear onto the Roman Forum, the main attraction of the Tabularium, besides the structure itself, is the Temple of Veiovis. During the lengthy period of ancient Rome, the Capitoline Hill was the geographical and ceremonial center, however, by the Renaissance, the former center was an untidy conglomeration of dilapidated buildings and the site of executions of criminals
Campidoglio
–
The Capitoline Hill cordonata (centre of picture) leading from Via del Teatro di Marcello to Piazza del Campidoglio.
Campidoglio
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Schematic map of Rome showing the Seven Hills and Servian wall
Campidoglio
–
View from the Piazza del Campidoglio
Campidoglio
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Piazza del Campidoglio at night
7.
Roman Forum
–
The Roman Forum is a rectangular forum surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings at the center of the city of Rome. Citizens of the ancient city referred to this space, originally a marketplace, as the Forum Magnum, here statues and monuments commemorated the citys great men. The teeming heart of ancient Rome, it has called the most celebrated meeting place in the world. Many of the oldest and most important structures of the ancient city were located on or near the Forum, the Roman kingdoms earliest shrines and temples were located on the southeastern edge. Other archaic shrines to the northwest, such as the Umbilicus Urbis and this is where the Senate—as well as Republican government itself—began. The Senate House, government offices, tribunals, temples, memorials, over time the archaic Comitium was replaced by the larger adjacent Forum and the focus of judicial activity moved to the new Basilica Aemilia. Some 130 years later, Julius Caesar built the Basilica Julia, along with the new Curia Julia, eventually much economic and judicial business would transfer away from the Forum Romanum to the larger and more extravagant structures to the north. The reign of Constantine the Great saw the construction of the last major expansion of the Forum complex—the Basilica of Maxentius and this returned the political center to the Forum until the fall of the Western Roman Empire almost two centuries later. This is the case despite attempts, with success, to impose some order there, by Sulla, Julius Caesar, Augustus. By the Imperial period, the public buildings that crowded around the central square had reduced the open area to a rectangle of about 130 by 50 metres. Its long dimension was oriented northwest to southeast and extended from the foot of the Capitoline Hill to that of the Velian Hill, the Forums basilicas during the Imperial period—the Basilica Aemilia on the north and the Basilica Julia on the south—defined its long sides and its final form. The Forum proper included this square, the buildings facing it and, sometimes, originally, the site of the Forum had been a marshy lake where waters from the surrounding hills drained. This was drained by the Tarquins with the Cloaca Maxima, because of its location, sediments from both the flooding of the Tiber and the erosion of the surrounding hills have been raising the level of the Forum floor for centuries. Excavated sequences of remains of paving show that sediment eroded from the hills was already raising the level in early Republican times. As the ground around buildings rose, residents simply paved over the debris that was too much to remove and its final travertine paving, still visible, dates from the reign of Augustus. Excavations in the 19th century revealed one layer on top of another, the deepest level excavated was 3.60 metres above sea level. Archaeological finds show human activity at that level with the discovery of carbonised wood, an important function of the Forum, during both Republican and Imperial times, was to serve as the culminating venue for the celebratory military processions known as Triumphs. Victorious generals entered the city by the western Triumphal Gate and circumnavigated the Palatine Hill before proceeding from the Velian Hill down the Via Sacra, from here they would mount the Capitoline Rise up to the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the summit of the Capitol
Roman Forum
–
Roman Forum (Forum Romanum)
Roman Forum
–
The Forum Romanum. View facing North East from above the
Portico Dii Consentes.
Roman Forum
–
Map of the Roman Forum. Structures of Republican Rome are shown in red, those of Imperial Rome in black. From Platner's Topography and Monuments of Ancient Rome, 1904. (Adjusted)
Roman Forum
–
A detailed archeological layout of the Forum. (From Platner, 1904.)
8.
Palatine Hill
–
The Palatine Hill is the centremost of the Seven Hills of Rome and is one of the most ancient parts of the city. It stands 40 metres above the Roman Forum, looking down upon it on one side, from the time of Augustus Imperial palaces were built here and hence it became the etymological origin of the word palace and its cognates in other languages. According to Livy the Palatine hill got its name from the Arcadian settlement of Pallantium, more likely, it is derived from the noun palātum palate, Ennius uses it once for the heaven, and it may be connected with the Etruscan word for sky, falad. The term palace itself stems from Palatium, according to Roman mythology, the Palatine Hill was the location of the cave, known as the Lupercal, where Romulus and Remus were found by the she-wolf Lupa that kept them alive. Another legend occuring on the Palatine is Hercules defeat of Cacus after the monster had stolen some cattle. Hercules struck Cacus with his characteristic club so hard that it formed a cleft on the southeast corner of the hill, Rome has its origins on the Palatine. Excavations show that people have lived in the area since the 10th century BC, according to Livy, after the immigration of the Sabines and the Albans to Rome, the original Romans lived on the Palatine. The Palatine Hill was also the site of the ancient festival of the Lupercalia, many affluent Romans of the Republican period had their residences there. Augustus also built a temple to Apollo here, the Palace of Domitian which dominates the site and looks out over the Circus Maximus was rebuilt largely during the reign of Domitian over earlier buildings of Nero. Later emperors particularly the Severans made significant additions to the buildings, the House of Livia, the wife of Augustus, is conventially attributed to her based only on the generic name on a clay pipe and circumstantial factors such as proximity to the House of Augustus. The building is located near the Temple of Magna Mater at the end of the hill. It is notable for its beautiful frescoes, the House of Tiberius is located next to the Temple of Cybele, on the platform built by Nero and in the current Farnese Gardens. During Augustus reign, an area of the Palatine Hill was roped off for a sort of archaeological expedition and he declared this site the original town of Rome. Modern archaeology has identified evidence of Bronze Age settlement in the area which predates Romes founding, there is a museum on the Palatine in which artifacts dating from before the official foundation of the City are displayed. The museum also contains Roman statuary, an altar to an unknown deity, once thought to be Aius Locutius, was discovered here in 1820. In July 2006, archaeologists announced the discovery of the Palatine House, head archaeologist Clementina Panella uncovered a section of corridor and other fragments under Romes Palatine Hill, which she described on July 20 as a very ancient aristocratic house. On the ground floor, three shops opened onto the Via Sacra, the location of the domus is important because of its potential proximity to the Curiae Veteres, the earliest shrine of the curies of Rome. In January 2007, Italian archeologist Irene Iacopi announced that she had found the legendary Lupercal cave beneath the remains of Augustus residence
Palatine Hill
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A photo of a fresco work from the Palatine Hill.
Palatine Hill
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A photograph of a model hut from the museum on the Palatine Hill.
9.
Piazza del Campidoglio
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The Capitoline Hill, between the Forum and the Campus Martius, is one of the Seven Hills of Rome. The hill was known as Mons Saturnius, dedicated to the god Saturn. The word Capitolium first meant the temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus later built here, Ancient sources refer the name to caput and the tale was that, when laying the foundations for the temple, the head of a man was found. Some sources even saying it was the head of some Tolus or Olus, the Capitolium was regarded by the Romans as indestructible, and was adopted as a symbol of eternity. By the 16th century, Capitolinus had become Capitolino in Italian, influenced by Roman architecture and Roman republican times, the word Capitolium still lives in the English word capitol. The Capitol Hill in Washington, D. C. is widely assumed to be named after the Capitoline Hill, at this hill, the Sabines, creeping to the Citadel, were let in by the Roman maiden Tarpeia. For this treachery, Tarpeia was the first to be punished by being flung from a cliff overlooking the Roman Forum. This cliff was named the Tarpeian Rock after the Vestal Virgin. The Sabines, who immigrated to Rome following the Rape of the Sabine Women, the Vulcanal, an 8th-century BC sacred precinct, occupied much of the eastern lower slopes of the Capitoline, at the head of what would later become the Roman Forum. The summit was the site of a temple for the Capitoline Triad, started by Romes fifth king, Tarquinius Priscus and it was considered one of the largest and the most beautiful temples in the city. The city legend starts with the recovery of a human skull when foundation trenches were being dug for the Temple of Jupiter at Tarquins order, recent excavations on the Capitoline uncovered an early cemetery under the Temple of Jupiter. There are several important temples built on Capitoline hill, the temple of Juno Moneta, the temple of Virtus, the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus Capitolinus is the most important of the temples. It was built in 509 BC and was nearly as large as the Parthenon, the hill and the temple of Jupiter became the symbols of Rome, the capital of the world. The Temple of Saturn was built at the foot of Capitoline Hill in the end of the Forum Romanum. According to legend Marcus Manlius Capitolinus was alerted to the Gallic attack by the geese of Juno. Vespasians brother and nephew were also besieged in the temple during the Year of Four Emperors, the Tabularium, located underground beneath the piazza and hilltop, occupies a building of the same name built in the 1st century BC to hold Roman records of state. The Tabularium looks out from the rear onto the Roman Forum, the main attraction of the Tabularium, besides the structure itself, is the Temple of Veiovis. During the lengthy period of ancient Rome, the Capitoline Hill was the geographical and ceremonial center, however, by the Renaissance, the former center was an untidy conglomeration of dilapidated buildings and the site of executions of criminals
Piazza del Campidoglio
–
The Capitoline Hill cordonata (centre of picture) leading from Via del Teatro di Marcello to Piazza del Campidoglio.
Piazza del Campidoglio
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Schematic map of Rome showing the Seven Hills and Servian wall
Piazza del Campidoglio
–
View from the Piazza del Campidoglio
Piazza del Campidoglio
–
Piazza del Campidoglio at night
10.
Piazza Venezia
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Piazza Venezia is the central hub of Rome, Italy, in which several thoroughfares intersect, including the Via dei Fori Imperiali and the Via del Corso. It takes its name from the Palazzo Venezia, built by the Venetian Cardinal, Pietro Barbo alongside the church of Saint Mark, the Palazzo Venezia served as the embassy of the Republic of Venice in Rome. One side of the Piazza is the site of Italys Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the Altare della Patria, part of the imposing Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II, the piazza or square is at the foot of the Capitoline Hill and next to Trajans Forum. The main artery, the Viale di Fori Imperiali begins there, in 2009, during excavations in the middle of the square for the construction of the Rome C Metro Line, remains of the emperor Hadrians Athenaeum were unearthed
Piazza Venezia
–
Piazza Venezia, with
Trajan's Column, as seen from the
Victor Emmanuel II monument.
11.
Santa Maria in Aracoeli
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The Basilica of St. Mary of the Altar of Heaven is a titular basilica in Rome, located on the highest summit of the Campidoglio. It is still the designated Church of the city council of Rome, the present Cardinal Priest of the Titulus Sancta Mariae de Aracoeli is Salvatore De Giorgi. Originally the church was named Sancta Maria in Capitolio, since it was sited on the Capitoline Hill of Ancient Rome, for this reason the figures of Augustus and of the Tiburtine sibyl are painted on either side of the arch above the high altar. A later legend substituted an apparition of the Virgin Mary, in The History of Money, Anthropologist Jack Weatherford goes into some detail about the churchs previous incarnation as the temple of Juno Moneta—on the Arx—after whom Money is named. From Moneta came the modem English words mint and money and, ultimately, today, the site of the Temple of Juno Moneta, the source of the great stream of Roman currency, has given way to the ancient. Brick church of Santa Maria in Aracoeli, centuries ago, church architects incorporated the ruins of the ancient temple into the new building. The church is thought to have replaced the auguraculum, the seat of the augurs. The foundation of the church was laid on the site of a Byzantine abbey mentioned in 574. Many buildings were built around the first church, in the part they gave rise to a cloister, while on the slopes of the hill a little quarter. Remains of these buildings - such as the church of San Biagio de Mercato. At first the church followed the Greek rite, a sign of the power of the Byzantine exarch, the arches that divide the nave from the aisles are supported on columns, no two precisely alike, scavenged from Roman ruins. During the Middle Ages, this became the centre of the religious. In 1571, Santa Maria in Aracoeli hosted the celebrations honoring Marcantonio Colonna after the victorious Battle of Lepanto over the Turkish fleet, marking this occasion, the compartmented ceiling was gilded and painted, to thank the Blessed Virgin for the victory. In 1797, with the Roman Republic, the basilica was deconsecrated and turned into a stable. The original unfinished façade has lost the mosaics and subsequent frescoes that decorated it, save a mosaic in the tympanum of the main door. The Gothic window is the detail that tourists can see from the bottom of the stairs. The church is built as a nave and two aisles that are divided by Roman columns, all different, taken from diverse antique monuments. Among its numerous treasures are Pinturicchios 15th-century frescoes depicting the life of Saint Bernardino of Siena in the Bufalini Chapel and it houses also Madonna Aracoeli, in the Altar
Santa Maria in Aracoeli
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Façade of the Basilica with the monumental staircase.
Santa Maria in Aracoeli
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Interior of the church.
Santa Maria in Aracoeli
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Fresco of Madonna and the Child by
Pietro Cavallini.
Santa Maria in Aracoeli
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Central fresco by Pinturicchio in the S. Bernardino Chapel (1486).
12.
Basilica of Santa Francesca Romana
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Santa Francesca Romana, previously known as Santa Maria Nova, is a church in Rome, Italy, situated next to the Roman Forum in the rione Campitelli. The interior has been altered since, since 1352 the church has been in the care of the Olivetans. In the 16th century, the church was rededicated to Frances of Rome and its travertine porch and façade is by Carlo Lambardi, and was completed in 1615. The inscriptions found in Santa Francesca Romana, a valuable source illustrating the history of the church, have collected and published by Vincenzo Forcella. The interior, a nave with side chapels, was rebuilt by Lombardi in the years preceding Francesca Buzzis canonization. In the middle of the nave is the rectangular schola cantorum of the old church, another prominent feature is the confessional designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, in polychrome marbles with four columns veneered in jasper. The church houses the precious Madonna Glycophilousa, an early 5th-century Hodegetria icon brought from Santa Maria Antiqua, the twelfth-century Madonna and Child that had been painted over it was meticulously detached from the panel in 1950, and is now kept in the sacristy. The ancient oratory on which the current church was built was located by Pope Paul I on the place in which Simon Magus died. According to this legend, Simon Magus wanted to prove his powers as stronger than those of the apostles, the two apostles fell on their knees preaching, and Simon fell, dying. The basalt stones where the apostles were imprinted by the knees of the two apostles and are embedded in the wall of the south transept. The tomb of Pope Gregory XI, who returned the papacy to Rome from Avignon, the Deaconry was suppressed on 8 August 1661. S. Maria Nova was reestablished, as the Titulus of a Cardinal Priest, the titulus of the church remains Sancta Mariae Novae, the current Cardinal Priest of the Titulus S. Mariae Novae is Angelo Sodano. A Cardinal Priest no longer has any jurisdiction over his church or its clergy. He is only the Cardinal Protector, saint Francesca Romana has been named the patron of car drivers, because of a legend that an angel used to light her way with a lamp when she travelled at night. Automobiles line up on the day of her feast as far as the Colosseum, the facade of the Church of Holy Cross College, in Clonliffe in Dublin, Ireland, is a replica of Santa Francesca Romana. It was designed by the Gothic Architect J. J, mcCarthy and is the only exception to his list of Gothic works. Pierre Roger de Beaufort Elected Pope Gregory XI, jacobus de Torso Utinensis Pietro Barbo translated to S. Marco, later Pope Paul II Francesco Gonzaga. Translated to the Deaconry of S. Eustachio, translated to the Deaconry of S. Eustachio
Basilica of Santa Francesca Romana
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Santa Francesca Romana's travertine façade (by Carlo Lambardi, 1615) and its 12th-century Romanesque
campanile
Basilica of Santa Francesca Romana
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Rear area of the church, showing the ruins of the
Temple of Venus and Rome.
Basilica of Santa Francesca Romana
–
View from Palatine Hill
13.
San Sebastiano al Palatino
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San Sebastiano al Palatino is a church in Rome. It is dedicated to Saint Sebastian, and is located on the Palatine Hill and that rebuild preserved the apse frescoes from the original church. American Cardinal Edwin Frederick OBrien is the churchs Cardinal-Deacon, created on February 18 by Pope Benedict XVI at St. Peters Basilica
San Sebastiano al Palatino
–
Facade
14.
Santi Cosma e Damiano
–
For the Italian city, see Santi Cosma e Damiano, Lazio. The basilica of Santi Cosma e Damiano is a church in the Roman Forum, the circular building at the entrance onto the Forum was built in the early 4th century as a Roman temple, thought to have been dedicated to Valerius Romulus, deified son of the emperor Maxentius. The main building was perhaps the library of an imperial forum and it became a church in 527 and contains important but much restored early Christian art, especially in its mosaics. Today it is one of the ancient churches called tituli, of which cardinals are patrons as cardinal-deacons, cosmae et Damiani is Beniamino Stella, created Cardinal on 22 February 2014. The basilica, devoted to the two Greek brothers, doctors, martyrs and saints Cosmas and Damian, is located in the Forum of Vespasian, also known as the Forum of Peace. The Temple is traditionally held to have been dedicated by Emperor Maxentius to his son and co-consul Valerius Romulus, the temple has also been speculated as a rebuilding of the original temple of Jupiter Stator, or one dedicated to Penates, restored by Maxentius. The apse was decorated with a Roman-Byzantine mosaic, representing a parousia, the bodies of Saints Mark and Marcellian were translated, perhaps in the ninth century, to this church, where they were rediscovered in 1583 during the reign of Pope Gregory XIII. In 1632, Pope Urban VIII ordered the restoration of the basilica, the works, projected by Orazio Torriani and directed by Luigi Arrigucci, raised the floor level seven metres, bringing it equal with the Campo Vaccino, thus avoiding the infiltration of water. The old floor of the basilica is still visible in the lower church, in 1947, the restorations of the Imperial Forums gave a new structure to the church. The old entrance, through the Temple of Romulus, was closed, and the temple restored to its forms, with the Pantheon. A new entrance was opened on the side, whose arch gives access to the cloister. Next to the new entrance to the complex, there are the rooms with the original marble paving of the Forum of Peace, through the cloister, the entrance to the church opens on the side of the single nave. The mosaics are masterpieces of 6th- and 7th-century art, in the middle is Christ, with Saint Peter presenting Saint Cosmas and Saint Theodorus, and Saint Paul presenting Saint Damian and Pope Felix IV, the latter holds a model of the church. Furthermore, for centuries, in this medical area Roman physicians had their meetings, pietro Chioccioni, La Basilica E Il Convento Dei Santi Cosma E Damiano in Roma. Roberta Budriesi, La Basilica dei Ss, vitaliano Tiberia, Il Restauro Del Mosaico Della Basilica Dei Santi Cosma E Damiano a Roma. Roma, Touring Club Italiano,2004, pp. 276–277, Cosma e Damiano in the Twelfth Century, Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome 49 99–126. Jacalyn Duffin, Medical Saints, Cosmas and Damian in a Postmodern World, photo Official Website Basilica of Saints Cosmas and Damian, Rome Roman architecture List of Roman domes
Santi Cosma e Damiano
–
View of the Temple of Romulus, from the
Palatine Hill.
Santi Cosma e Damiano
–
The mosaics, with the
parousia of Christ, among saints.
15.
San Lorenzo in Miranda
–
The Temple of Antoninus and Faustina is an ancient Roman temple in Rome, adapted as a Roman Catholic church, namely, the Chiesa di San Lorenzo in Miranda or simply San Lorenzo in Miranda. It is in the Forum Romanum, on the Via Sacra, the temple was begun in 141 AD by the Emperor Antoninus Pius and was initially dedicated to his deceased and deified wife, Faustina the Elder. When Antoninus Pius was deified after his death in 161 AD, the building stands on a high platform of large peperino blocks. The later of two dedicatory inscriptions says, Divo Antonino et Divae Faustinae Ex S. C. meaning, “To the divine Antoninus, the rich bas-reliefs of the frieze under the cornice, of garlanded griffons and candelabri, were often copied from the sixteenth through the nineteenth centuries. Miranda may derive from the name of a benefactress and it was then thought that this was the locus of the sentencing of St. Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr to death by the Prefect of Rome, hence its dedication. Christianization accounts for the survival of the cella and portico of the temple through the centuries, the marble cladding of the cella was scavenged. The deep grooves in the columns are supposed to date to a medieval attempt to dismantle the pillared portico. Before the archeological excavations, the level was at this door. Excavations in front of the temple were undertaken in 1546, again in 1810, in 1429 or 30, Pope Martin V gave the church to the Collegio degli Speziali, at the time officially denominated the Universitas Aromatorium. The College still uses its adjoining guildhall, which contains a museum that holds a receipt for medicine that Raphael signed. Side chapels were erected after this date, the church lacks the usual eastern apse, one was never added so as to retain the temples structural integrity. The church was demolished, and the side chapels removed, in 1536. The church, now constrained within the cella of the temple, was remodeled in 1602 by Orazio Torriani, creating a single nave and three new side chapels. The main altar has a canvas by Pietro da Cortona of the Martyrdom of St. Lawrence, while the first chapel on the left hosts the Madonna. Platner, Samuel Ball, A Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome,1929, touring Club Italiano Roma e Dintorni 1965,133
San Lorenzo in Miranda
–
3D reconstruction of the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina.
San Lorenzo in Miranda
–
Temple of Antoninus and Faustina
San Lorenzo in Miranda
–
The
pronaos at the eastern end of the Forum.
16.
Santa Maria Antiqua
–
Santa Maria Antiqua is a Roman Catholic Marian church in Rome, Italy, built in the 5th century in the Forum Romanum, and for a long time the monumental access to the Palatine imperial palaces. Located at the foot of the Palatine Hill, Santa Maria Antiqua is the oldest Christian monument in the Roman Forum, the church contains the earliest Roman depiction of Santa Maria Regina, the Virgin Mary as a Queen, from the 6th century. Built in the middle of the 5th century on the slope of the Palatine Hill. The church contains a collection of wall paintings from the 6th to late 8th century. The discovery of these paintings have many theories on the development of early medieval art. The church was abandoned in the 9th century after an earthquake buried the buildings, therefore, Santa Maria Antiqua represents a key element for the understanding of the cultural and urban development of the Roman Forum from Antiquity into the first centuries of the Christian period. From 1980 to 2012 the monument was closed to the general public, following a conservation program carried out by the Soprintendenza per il Patrimonio Storico in partnership with World Monuments Fund, the church is now open for tours. Santa Maria Antiqua is a church in the Roman Forum. The church itself is not always open to the public, owing to ongoing digging which has started in 2004 under the aegis of the World Monuments Fund and these frescoes date to a period of iconoclasm when in the East, figures in churches were destroyed. Pope John VII used this church in the early 8th century as the seat of the bishop of Rome, the church was partially destroyed in 847, when an earthquake caused parts of the imperial palaces to collapse and cover the church. Santa Maria Antiqua suffered further damages during the Norman Sack of Rome, the church of Santa Maria Liberatrice was built in 1617 on its ruins, but then demolished in 1900 to bring the remains of the old church to light. Santa Maria Antiqua was closed for restoration from 1980 to 2016, the heavily layered walls of Santa Maria Antiqua host numerous frescoes of varying artistic style and adaption during its time of intense decoration from the sixth to the ninth century. Each alcove, wall and altar can be attributed to different times and trends of style representative of its artists and patrons, including the Popes Martin I, John VII, Zachary, the amount of erosion and destruction makes obtaining an accurate record of the styles difficult. Using the fragments of the frescoes, archaeologists and historians have assembled a rough chronology of the decorations, the change of style at Santa Maria Antiqua is recognized through its layering of trends and styles. Rome changed hands multiple times during Santa Maria Antiquas use, the defeat of the Western Roman Empire by the Goths in the fifth century gave way to Byzantine and Lombard influence in the late fifth to mid eighth centuries. This continual change in influences is thought to be a factor in the different styles in this church. Influences can also be traced through remaining inscriptions, Greek in Pope Martin Is decorations, Greek and Latin in Pope John VIIs, the Palimpsest Wall, located in the Presbytery has at least six layers of decoration, representing different styles, dates and influences. The first two layers from the fourth to sixth century are of Ancient Roman Pagan mosaics, which quickly were replaced by the earliest frescoes of Santa Maria Antiqua, about two percent of these mosaics survive because they were overpainted with fresco
Santa Maria Antiqua
–
Oratory of the Fory Martyrs, by the entrance to Santa Maria Antiqua in the
Forum Romanum
Santa Maria Antiqua
–
Santa Maria Liberatrice al Palatino by
Giuseppe Vasi (18th century)
Santa Maria Antiqua
–
Sant'Abbaciro (
Saint Cyrus)
Santa Maria Antiqua
–
Detail: Angel of the Annunciation (On the Palimpsest Wall) (565-578)
17.
Santi Luca e Martina
–
Santi Luca e Martina is a church in Rome, Italy, situated between the Roman Forum and the Forum of Caesar and close to the Arch of Septimus Severus. The church was dedicated to Saint Martina, martyred in 228 AD during the reign of Emperor Alexander Severus. In 625 Pope Honorius I commissioned construction of the church, in 1577 the Accademia di San Luca, the academy of painters, sculptors and architects in Rome, was founded and in 1588 it was given the church which was rededicated as S. Luca in S. Martina. The academy undertook minor refurbishments of the church and also there were projects for a new church prepared in drawings attributed to Ottaviano Mascherino, gradually the academy began to acquire properties adjacent to the church. In 1634, Pietro da Cortona was elected president of the academy, almost at once he began restoration of the crypt and, as was common at this time in Rome, buried remains were found and were attributed to the martyred Saint Martina. No doubt it was hoped that this would precipitate an influx of funds to shelter the relics in a new church, at the time of Cortonas death in 1669, some parts, such as the interior dome decoration, were still incomplete. The plan of the church is almost a Greek cross with nearly equal arms. Large Ionic columns, supporting an entablature, cluster around the crossing and populate the wall spaces of the apsidal transepts, choir. The windows in the vaults are each surmounted by a split pediment with a head in a scallop shell with octagonal coffering above. A circular opening in the vault of the octagonal chapel allows a view through up to the dome of the upper church, other elements such as pediments and mouldings are allowed to project between the columns to create spatial tensions which are reminiscent of Florentine Mannerism. Below this is a marble statue of the martyred S. Martina by Nicolo Menghini. In the left transept is an Assumption and Saint Sebastian by Sebastiano Conca, inside the main entrance door to the upper shurch, a stone slab marks Cortonas burial place and there is a wall memorial with a bust of Cortona by Bernrdo Fioiti in the lower church. The sculptures of the Evangelists in the pendentives of the dome are 18th-century additions sculpted by Filippo della Valle, Camillo Rusconi, to the right of the entrance is the monument to Carlo Pio Balestra by Tommaso Righi and a Monument to Giovanna Garzoni by Mattia De Rossi. In the sacristy is a relief of the Ecstasy of St Mary Magdalene by Alessandro Algardi
Santi Luca e Martina
–
The church of Santi Luca e Martina with the remains of the Roman Forum
Santi Luca e Martina
–
Facade
18.
San Giuseppe dei Falegnami
–
San Giuseppe dei Falegnami is a Roman Catholic church, located in the Forum in Rome, Italy. In 1540, the Congregation of the Carpenters had leased the church of San Pietro in Carcere which was located over the Mamertine Prison. By 1597 work began on the new church, dedicated to the saint of Carpenters. The initial architect was Giacomo della Porta, work continued after 1602 under the direction of Giovanni Battista Montano, who designed the facade and at his death by his pupil Giovanni Battista Soria. The church was completed in 1663 by Antonio Del Grande, the church was restored in 1886 with the construction of a new apse. In the 1930s, the facade was raised above the floor to allow access to the prison below. The interior has a nave with two chapels, they were decorated in the nineteenth century. Among the paintings is a Nativity by Carlo Maratta, next to the church is an oratory, with a wooden ceiling, and the 16th century Chapel of the Crucifix, placed between the church floor and the ceiling below the Mamertine Prison. On 18 February 2012 it became a titular church receiving its first Cardinal-Deacon
San Giuseppe dei Falegnami
–
Church facade
19.
Santa Maria della Consolazione, Rome
–
Santa Maria della Consolazione is a Roman Catholic church in Rome, Italy at the foot of the Palatine Hill, in rione Campitelli. In 1385 a condemned nobleman, Giordanello degli Alberini, paid 2 gold florins for the icon to provide consolation for criminals facing death. A church originally was built here in 1470, but rebuilt during 1583–1600 by Martino Longhi the Elder, the tympanum was completed in 1827 by Pasquale Belli. The first chapel on the right has frescoes of Scenes of the Passion by Taddeo Zuccari, the second chapel on has a Madonna with Child and Saints by Livio Agresti. The third chapel on the right has a Story of Jesus, the chapel to the right of the presbytery has an icon of the Virgin from the 13th century. The altar, designed by Martino Longhi, has a copy of the 14th century Madonna della Consolazione. The walls of the presbytery are frescoed with a Nativity and an Assumption by Niccolò Circignani, the 4th chapel to the left has frescoes on the Life of St. Andrew by Marzio Colantonio Ganassini
Santa Maria della Consolazione, Rome
–
Church of Santa Maria della Consolazione
Santa Maria della Consolazione, Rome
–
Il Crocifissione, Taddeo Zuccari (1556)
20.
San Teodoro al Palatino
–
San Teodoro is a 6th-century church in Rome. It was dedicated to Theodore of Amasea and given to the Orthodox community of Rome by Pope John Paul II in 2004 and it and is located on an ancient road between the Roman Forum and Forum Boarium, along the north-western foot of the Palatine Hill. It may first have been built as early as the 6th century in the ruins of the granaries of Agrippa. The unusual round shape suggests it may have built into the ruined shell of a temple similar in construction to the well-preserved nymphaeum once identified as the Temple of Minerva Medica. An ancient pagan altar was placed in the atrium in front of the church, the apsis mosaic dates to the 6th century and shows Christ seated on an orb representing the heavens, flanked by Peter and Paul and by the two martyrs Theodore and Cleonicus. The church is traditionally one of the seven original deaconries in Rome, being assigned to a deacon by Pope Agatho, though the first titular deacon known by name was Roberto. There is no evidence of the churchs existence before the 9th century. As the dedication to a saint suggests, this places it in a period of strong Byzantine influence in Rome. Its titulus was reestablished on 2 December 1959 by Pope John XXIII, the last titular of the church was Vincenzo Fagiolo, who died on 22 September 2000. At the back of the atrium, outside the church, is an ossuary with stacked skulls and bones, the Capitoline Wolf was kept in this church until the 16th century. A Catholics Guide to Rome, Discovering the Soul of the Eternal City, accurata e succinta descrizione topografica delle antichità di Roma
San Teodoro al Palatino
–
Entrance to the church.
21.
Musei Capitolini
–
The Capitoline Museums are a single museum containing a group of art and archeological museums in Piazza del Campidoglio, on top of the Capitoline Hill in Rome, Italy. The history of the museums can be traced to 1471, when Pope Sixtus IV donated a collection of important ancient bronzes to the people of Rome, the museums are owned and operated by the municipality of Rome. The statue of a rider in the centre of the piazza is of Emperor Marcus Aurelius. It is a copy, the original being housed on-site in the Capitoline museum. Open to the public in 1734 under Clement XII, the Capitoline Museums are considered the first museum in the world, understood as a place where art could be enjoyed by all and this section contains collections sorted by building, and brief information on the buildings themselves. For the history of their design and construction, see Capitoline Hill#Michelangelo, the Capitoline Museums are composed of three main buildings surrounding the Piazza del Campidoglio and interlinked by an underground gallery beneath the piazza. In addition, the 16th century Palazzo Caffarelli-Clementino, located off the adjacent to the Palazzo dei Conservatori, was added to the museum complex in the early 20th century. The collections here are ancient sculpture, mostly Roman but also Greek, the Conservators Apartment is distinguished by elaborate interior decorations, including frescoes, stuccos, tapestries, and carved ceilings and doors. The third floor of the Palazzo dei Conservatori houses the Capitoline Art Gallery, housing the museums painting, the Capitoline Coin Cabinet, containing collections of coins, medals, jewels, and jewelry, is located in the attached Palazzo Caffarelli-Clementino. Statues, inscriptions, sarcophagi, busts, mosaics, and other ancient Roman artifacts occupy two floors of the Palazzo Nuovo, in the Hall of the Galatian can also be appreciated the marble statue of the Dying Gaul also called “Capitoline Gaul” and the statue of Cupid and Psyche. The gallery was constructed in the 1930s and it contains in situ 2nd century ruins of ancient Roman dwellings, and also houses the Galleria Lapidaria, which displays the Museums collection of epigraphs. The new great glass covered hall — the Sala Marco Aurelio — created by covering the Giardino Romano is similar to the one used for the Sala Ottagonale, the design is by the architect Carlo Aymonino. Its volume recalls that of the oval space designed by Michelangelo for the piazza and its centerpiece is the bronze equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius, which was once in the centre of Piazza del Campidoglio and has been kept indoors ever since its modern restoration. Moving these statues out of the palazzo allows those sculptures temporarily moved to the Centrale Montemartini to be brought back. The Centrale Montemartini is a power station of Acea in southern Rome. Its permanent collection comprises 400 ancient statues, moved here during the reorganisation of the Capitoline Museums in 1997, along with tombs, busts, many of them were excavated in the ancient Roman horti between the 1890s and 1930s, a fruitful period for Roman archaeology. They are displayed there along the lines of Tate Modern, except that the machinery has not been moved out, Capitoline Brutus Capitoline Museums official website
Musei Capitolini
–
Michelangelo 's design for Capitoline Hill, now home to the Capitoline Museums. Engraved by
Étienne Dupérac, 1568.
Musei Capitolini
–
The
Palazzo dei Conservatori is one of the three main buildings of the Capitoline Museums.
Musei Capitolini
–
Capitoline Museums gallery
Musei Capitolini
–
Palazzo Nuovo
22.
Palazzo Senatorio
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The Capitoline Hill, between the Forum and the Campus Martius, is one of the Seven Hills of Rome. The hill was known as Mons Saturnius, dedicated to the god Saturn. The word Capitolium first meant the temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus later built here, Ancient sources refer the name to caput and the tale was that, when laying the foundations for the temple, the head of a man was found. Some sources even saying it was the head of some Tolus or Olus, the Capitolium was regarded by the Romans as indestructible, and was adopted as a symbol of eternity. By the 16th century, Capitolinus had become Capitolino in Italian, influenced by Roman architecture and Roman republican times, the word Capitolium still lives in the English word capitol. The Capitol Hill in Washington, D. C. is widely assumed to be named after the Capitoline Hill, at this hill, the Sabines, creeping to the Citadel, were let in by the Roman maiden Tarpeia. For this treachery, Tarpeia was the first to be punished by being flung from a cliff overlooking the Roman Forum. This cliff was named the Tarpeian Rock after the Vestal Virgin. The Sabines, who immigrated to Rome following the Rape of the Sabine Women, the Vulcanal, an 8th-century BC sacred precinct, occupied much of the eastern lower slopes of the Capitoline, at the head of what would later become the Roman Forum. The summit was the site of a temple for the Capitoline Triad, started by Romes fifth king, Tarquinius Priscus and it was considered one of the largest and the most beautiful temples in the city. The city legend starts with the recovery of a human skull when foundation trenches were being dug for the Temple of Jupiter at Tarquins order, recent excavations on the Capitoline uncovered an early cemetery under the Temple of Jupiter. There are several important temples built on Capitoline hill, the temple of Juno Moneta, the temple of Virtus, the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus Capitolinus is the most important of the temples. It was built in 509 BC and was nearly as large as the Parthenon, the hill and the temple of Jupiter became the symbols of Rome, the capital of the world. The Temple of Saturn was built at the foot of Capitoline Hill in the end of the Forum Romanum. According to legend Marcus Manlius Capitolinus was alerted to the Gallic attack by the geese of Juno. Vespasians brother and nephew were also besieged in the temple during the Year of Four Emperors, the Tabularium, located underground beneath the piazza and hilltop, occupies a building of the same name built in the 1st century BC to hold Roman records of state. The Tabularium looks out from the rear onto the Roman Forum, the main attraction of the Tabularium, besides the structure itself, is the Temple of Veiovis. During the lengthy period of ancient Rome, the Capitoline Hill was the geographical and ceremonial center, however, by the Renaissance, the former center was an untidy conglomeration of dilapidated buildings and the site of executions of criminals
Palazzo Senatorio
–
The Capitoline Hill cordonata (centre of picture) leading from Via del Teatro di Marcello to Piazza del Campidoglio.
Palazzo Senatorio
–
Schematic map of Rome showing the Seven Hills and Servian wall
Palazzo Senatorio
–
View from the Piazza del Campidoglio
Palazzo Senatorio
–
Piazza del Campidoglio at night
23.
Palazzo dei Conservatori
–
The Capitoline Hill, between the Forum and the Campus Martius, is one of the Seven Hills of Rome. The hill was known as Mons Saturnius, dedicated to the god Saturn. The word Capitolium first meant the temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus later built here, Ancient sources refer the name to caput and the tale was that, when laying the foundations for the temple, the head of a man was found. Some sources even saying it was the head of some Tolus or Olus, the Capitolium was regarded by the Romans as indestructible, and was adopted as a symbol of eternity. By the 16th century, Capitolinus had become Capitolino in Italian, influenced by Roman architecture and Roman republican times, the word Capitolium still lives in the English word capitol. The Capitol Hill in Washington, D. C. is widely assumed to be named after the Capitoline Hill, at this hill, the Sabines, creeping to the Citadel, were let in by the Roman maiden Tarpeia. For this treachery, Tarpeia was the first to be punished by being flung from a cliff overlooking the Roman Forum. This cliff was named the Tarpeian Rock after the Vestal Virgin. The Sabines, who immigrated to Rome following the Rape of the Sabine Women, the Vulcanal, an 8th-century BC sacred precinct, occupied much of the eastern lower slopes of the Capitoline, at the head of what would later become the Roman Forum. The summit was the site of a temple for the Capitoline Triad, started by Romes fifth king, Tarquinius Priscus and it was considered one of the largest and the most beautiful temples in the city. The city legend starts with the recovery of a human skull when foundation trenches were being dug for the Temple of Jupiter at Tarquins order, recent excavations on the Capitoline uncovered an early cemetery under the Temple of Jupiter. There are several important temples built on Capitoline hill, the temple of Juno Moneta, the temple of Virtus, the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus Capitolinus is the most important of the temples. It was built in 509 BC and was nearly as large as the Parthenon, the hill and the temple of Jupiter became the symbols of Rome, the capital of the world. The Temple of Saturn was built at the foot of Capitoline Hill in the end of the Forum Romanum. According to legend Marcus Manlius Capitolinus was alerted to the Gallic attack by the geese of Juno. Vespasians brother and nephew were also besieged in the temple during the Year of Four Emperors, the Tabularium, located underground beneath the piazza and hilltop, occupies a building of the same name built in the 1st century BC to hold Roman records of state. The Tabularium looks out from the rear onto the Roman Forum, the main attraction of the Tabularium, besides the structure itself, is the Temple of Veiovis. During the lengthy period of ancient Rome, the Capitoline Hill was the geographical and ceremonial center, however, by the Renaissance, the former center was an untidy conglomeration of dilapidated buildings and the site of executions of criminals
Palazzo dei Conservatori
–
The Capitoline Hill cordonata (centre of picture) leading from Via del Teatro di Marcello to Piazza del Campidoglio.
Palazzo dei Conservatori
–
Schematic map of Rome showing the Seven Hills and Servian wall
Palazzo dei Conservatori
–
View from the Piazza del Campidoglio
Palazzo dei Conservatori
–
Piazza del Campidoglio at night
24.
Mamertine Prison
–
The Mamertine Prison, in antiquity the Tullianum, was a prison located in the Comitium in ancient Rome. It was located on the slope of the Capitoline Hill, facing the Curia and the imperial fora of Nerva, Vespasian. Located between it and the Tabularium was a flight of stairs leading to the Arx of the Capitoline known as the Gemonian stairs, the church of San Giuseppe dei Falegnami now stands above the Mamertine. The origins of the names are uncertain. The name Mamertine is medieval in origin, and may be a reference to a temple of Mars. According to tradition, the prison was constructed around 640–616 BC and it was originally created as a cistern for a spring in the floor of the second lower level. Prisoners were lowered through an opening into the lower dungeon, imprisonment was not a sentence under Roman statutory law, though detention is mentioned in the Twelve Tables and throughout the Digest. Detention, however, includes debt bondage in the early Republic, the wearing of chains, mainly for slaves, slaves or lower-status citizens sentenced to hard labor were held in prison camps. Incarceration in facilities such as the Tullianum was intended to be a temporary measure prior to trial or execution, located near the law courts, the Tullianum was used as a jail or holding cell for short periods before executions and as a site for executions. In 63 BC, certain co-conspirators of Catiline, including Publius Cornelius Lentulus Sura, were briefly in the Tullianum. In this case, the executions were conducted hastily, without due process of appeal, during the consulship of Cicero, who was later exiled for his actions. Sejanus was held in the Tullianum before his execution, which involved the Gemonian stairs. Some Gracchan sympathizers ended up in the Carcer, where the unfortunate haruspex Herennius Siculus hit his head on an architrave and died before he could be executed. There is no evidence that the Tullianum was used for incarceration, and the lowest dungeon was unsuited for the purpose. In some cases, it is whether a source using the word carcer means the Carcer. High-status prisoners, whether Roman or foreign, were held in the custody of individual Romans. The line between being a war captive and a hostage lawfully held by treaty was thin, and conditions of captivity could vary widely, from abject misery, the Tullianum only rarely played a role in these detentions. Captured foreign rulers or generals were paraded in a Roman conquerors triumph and these were strikingly few in number, and included the Samnite Gaius Pontius, the Gaul Vercingetorix, some Cilician pirates, and the Galatian Adiatorix
Mamertine Prison
–
Prison of the Holy Apostles
Peter & Paul (Mamertinum)
Mamertine Prison
–
The Mamertine Prison in Rome, with an altar commemorating the legendary tradition that
Saints Peter and Paul were imprisoned there
Mamertine Prison
–
The entrance to the prison records the tradition that Saint Peter and Saint Paul were imprisoned there
25.
Domus Augustana
–
The Domus Augustana is the modern name for the so-called domestic wing of the ancient and vast Roman Palace of Domitian on the Palatine Hill. Its name is not directly related to Augustus and should not be confused with the Domus Augusti, however, it would seem that only the southern section of this domus was reserved for the private quarters of the emperor. The two peristyles to the north were likely to have functions as they were directly connected with the Domus Flavia. This hypothesis is reinforced by the fact that the section was built a little later. The Domus Augustana consists of at least four parts, the 2nd Peristyle to the northeast, the central 3rd Peristyle, the courtyard complex. The 2nd Peristyle garden is partly exposed but little is known of its architecture, the 3rd Peristyle was filled almost completely with a huge pool as wide as that of the Domus Flavia and included a seascape perhaps of Greek mythology on an island and with sculpture in the water. Other sources say that a temple was built on the island, on its southwest side the walls still stand to a considerable height with several rooms around a semicircular hall. The courtyard complex has two levels, the upper containing complex sets of rooms and the lower,10 m below, the great exedra is a long curving arcaded gallery linking the two wings and overlooking the Circus Maximus allowing the emperor to watch the races. Rome, An Oxford Archaeological Guide, A. Claridge,1998 ISBN 0-19-288003-9 A Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome, Samuel Ball Platner, Oxford University Press,1929
Domus Augustana
–
Fresco in the House of Augustus.
Domus Augustana
–
Domus Augusti
26.
Domus Flavia
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The Flavian Palace, normally known as the Domus Flavia, is part of the vast residential complex of the Palace of Domitian on the Palatine Hill in Rome. It was completed in 92 AD by Emperor Titus Flavius Domitianus, the term Domus Flavia is a modern invention used to describe the northwestern section of the Palace designed for public ceremony, reception, and entertainment. It is interconnected with the wing to the southeast, the Domus Augustana. The Domus Flavia contains several large rooms, the main public reception rooms are the Basilica, the Aula Regia, the Lararium. The Basilica is the first part visible from the Clivus Palatinus, a long portico runs alongside the domus on the west and north sides at the end of which is the main entrance which seems to serve both the public and the private part of the palace. Once inside the visitor enters the Lararium housing a detachment of the Praetorian guard and it is the smallest and most poorly preserved room in the palace. Behind it was once a staircase providing access to the Domus Augustana, below this room parts of the earlier House of the Griffins have been excavated and from which exquisite decorations have been removed to the Antiquarium. The next room is the Aula Regia used for the daily salutatio to the Emperor and to host important receptions, in the time of Domitian, the walls had a marble veneer, and there were Phrygian marble columns and an elaborately carved frieze. The wall at the back is occupied by an apse flanked by two doors, on the wall in front opens a wide single door which leads to the peristyle. The coffered ceiling is more than 30 m above the ground, beneath the Basilica the Aula Isiaca has been excavated, a room with frescoes of about 30BC and probably once part of the Domus Augusti. This was in turn built over by Neros Domus Transitoria, in the centre was a huge peristyle garden filled almost completely with a pool surrounding an octagonal island with a labyrinthine pattern complete with fountains and water features. Suites of rooms lay to the north and south, along the southwest side of the peristyle, is the 2nd largest room in the Palace, the cenatio or Banqueting Room. Like the Aula Regia, it was decorated, with several tiers of columns in exotic marbles. It opened onto two courtyards with fountains to the north and south visible from the windows of the dining room. The centre of the wall of the hall has an apse surrounded by two passages which allow access to the library of the temple of Apollo. The floor of the hall is covered with marble concealing a hypocaust whose bricks date from the reign of Maxentius and this heating system suggests that this hall served as a banqueting hall in the winter and has been identified with the Cenatio Iovis mentioned in ancient literary sources. Beneath the floor of the cenatio have been traces of two earlier versions both built by Nero. Scholars usually identify this room as the Triclinium, but it could possibly be the Aula Regia, Domus Roman architecture List of Roman domes List of Greco-Roman roofs History of Roman and Byzantine domes
Domus Flavia
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Domus Flavia and Circus Maximus
Domus Flavia
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Domus Flavia
27.
Insula Romana
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The Insula Romana is a building dating back to the 2nd century AD, set in Via del Teatro di Marcello in Rome, at the base of the Capitoline Hill and close to the Basilica of Santa Maria in Aracoeli. During Middle Ages, the church of San Biagio del Mercato was established in the higher part of the building. Its demolition revealed the underlying Roman building, that was preserved, of the medieval oratory only the tower bell and a frescoed apse still survive, the main scene of the fresco depicts Christs burial, with Mary and St. John. All the structures, included the bell, have very small sizes. The insula was discovered between 1931 and 1942, during the works for the isolation of the Capitoline Hill and these dwelling were used directly by Roman population and maybe leased by rich lairds. As many coeval buildings of this kind, at the floor it houses some tabernae, little rooms facing a courtyard and protected by a portico. The higher floors house the dwellings, designed for lease and they show a wooden-board flooring and the provision for rectangular windows with wooden lockings. This hypothesis is supported by both the greater stuffiness in reaching the higher floors through the ladders, and the greater dangerousness resulting from the frequency of fires and collapses. All along the depth of the building, the only take light by windows in the direction of the street, at the second floor. It has been evaluated that the insula romana could host around 380 people, filippo Coarelli, Guida archeologica di Roma, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, Verona 1975
Insula Romana
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Insula Romana, internal dwellings at the 2nd floor
Insula Romana
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Insula Romana
Insula Romana
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Frescoed lunette of the Church of San Biagio del Mercato (12th century)
28.
Curia, Roman Forum
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The Curia Julia is the third named Curia, or Senate House, in the ancient city of Rome. It was built in 44 BC, when Julius Caesar replaced Faustus Cornelius Sullas reconstructed Curia Cornelia, Caesar did so to redesign both spaces within the Comitium and the Roman forum. The alterations within the Comitium reduced the prominence of the senate, the work, however, was interrupted by Caesars assassination at the Theatre of Pompey, where the Senate had been meeting temporarily while the work was completed. The project was finished by Caesars successor, Augustus Caesar. However, the roof, the elevations of the side walls. There were many curiae during the history of the Roman civilization, the Curia Julia is the third named curia within the comitium. Each structure was rebuilt a number of times but originated from a single Etruscan temple, when this original temple was destroyed, Tullus Hostilius rebuilt it and gave it his name. It lasted for a few hundred years until fire destroyed the curia. In fact, the now in the forum is the second incarnation of Caesars curia. From 81 to 96, the Curia Julia was restored under Domitian, in 283, it was heavily damaged by a fire, at the time of Emperor Carinus. From 284 to 305, the Curia was then rebuilt by Diocletian and it is the remnants of Diocletians building that stands today. In 412, the Curia was restored again, this time by Urban Prefect Annius Eucharius Epiphanius. On July 10,1923, the Italian government acquired the Curia Julia, the exterior of the Curia Julia features brick-faced concrete with a huge buttress at each angle. The lower part of the front wall was decorated with slabs of marble, the upper part was covered with stucco imitation of white marble blocks. A single flight of steps leads up the bronze doors, the current bronze doors are modern replicas, the original bronze doors were transferred to the Basilica of St. John Lateran by Pope Alexander VII in 1660. Interestingly enough, a coin was found within the doors during their transfer and that allowed archaeologists to date repairs made to the Senate House and the addition of the bronze doors to the reign of Emperor Domitian. The original appearance of the Senate House is known from an Emperor Augustus denarius of 28 BC, the interior of the Curia Julia is fairly austere. The hall is 25.20 m long by 17.61 m wide, there are three broad steps that could have fitted five rows of chairs or a total of about 300 senators
Curia, Roman Forum
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Curia Julia
Curia, Roman Forum
Curia, Roman Forum
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Curia Julia front
Curia, Roman Forum
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Inside the Curia (or Curia Julia), the restored Senate House (2006).
29.
Temple of Antoninus and Faustina
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The Temple of Antoninus and Faustina is an ancient Roman temple in Rome, adapted as a Roman Catholic church, namely, the Chiesa di San Lorenzo in Miranda or simply San Lorenzo in Miranda. It is in the Forum Romanum, on the Via Sacra, the temple was begun in 141 AD by the Emperor Antoninus Pius and was initially dedicated to his deceased and deified wife, Faustina the Elder. When Antoninus Pius was deified after his death in 161 AD, the building stands on a high platform of large peperino blocks. The later of two dedicatory inscriptions says, Divo Antonino et Divae Faustinae Ex S. C. meaning, “To the divine Antoninus, the rich bas-reliefs of the frieze under the cornice, of garlanded griffons and candelabri, were often copied from the sixteenth through the nineteenth centuries. Miranda may derive from the name of a benefactress and it was then thought that this was the locus of the sentencing of St. Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr to death by the Prefect of Rome, hence its dedication. Christianization accounts for the survival of the cella and portico of the temple through the centuries, the marble cladding of the cella was scavenged. The deep grooves in the columns are supposed to date to a medieval attempt to dismantle the pillared portico. Before the archeological excavations, the level was at this door. Excavations in front of the temple were undertaken in 1546, again in 1810, in 1429 or 30, Pope Martin V gave the church to the Collegio degli Speziali, at the time officially denominated the Universitas Aromatorium. The College still uses its adjoining guildhall, which contains a museum that holds a receipt for medicine that Raphael signed. Side chapels were erected after this date, the church lacks the usual eastern apse, one was never added so as to retain the temples structural integrity. The church was demolished, and the side chapels removed, in 1536. The church, now constrained within the cella of the temple, was remodeled in 1602 by Orazio Torriani, creating a single nave and three new side chapels. The main altar has a canvas by Pietro da Cortona of the Martyrdom of St. Lawrence, while the first chapel on the left hosts the Madonna. Platner, Samuel Ball, A Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome,1929, touring Club Italiano Roma e Dintorni 1965,133
Temple of Antoninus and Faustina
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3D reconstruction of the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina.
Temple of Antoninus and Faustina
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Temple of Antoninus and Faustina
Temple of Antoninus and Faustina
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The
pronaos at the eastern end of the Forum.
30.
Temple of the Dioscuri
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The Temple of Castor and Pollux is an ancient temple in the Roman Forum, Rome, central Italy. It was originally built in gratitude for victory at the Battle of Lake Regillus, Castor and Pollux were the Dioscuri, the twins of Gemini, the twin sons of Zeus and Leda. Their cult came to Rome from Greece via Magna Graecia and the Greek culture of Southern Italy, the last king of Rome, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, and his allies, the Latins, waged war on the infant Roman Republic. Before the battle, the Roman dictator Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis vowed to build a temple to the Dioscuri if the Republic were victorious, the temple stands on the supposed spot of their appearance. One of Postumius’ sons was elected duumvir in order to dedicate the temple on 15 July 484 BC. In Republican times the temple served as a place for the Roman Senate. During the imperial period the temple housed the office for weights and measures, the archaic temple was completely reconstructed and enlarged in 117 BC by Lucius Caecilius Metellus Dalmaticus after his victory over the Dalmatians. Gaius Verres again restored this temple in 73 BC. Tiberius temple was dedicated in 6 AD, the remains visible today are from the temple of Tiberius, except the podium, which is from the time of Metellus. According to Edward Gibbon, the temple of Castor served as a meeting place for the Roman Senate. Frequent meetings of the Senate are also reported by Cicero and he said the senate was roused to rebellion against Emperor Maximinus Thrax and in favor of future emperor Gordian I at the Temple of Castor in 237 AD. The temple was already falling apart in the fourth century. Nothing is known of its subsequent history, except that in the 15th century, the street running by the building was called via Trium Columnarum. In 1760, the Conservatori, finding the columns in a state of imminent collapse, today the podium survives without the facing, as do the three columns and a piece of the entablature, one of the most famous features in the Forum. The octastyle temple was peripteral, with eight Corinthian columns at the short sides, there was a single cella paved with mosaics. The podium measures 32 m ×49.5 m and 7 m in height, the building was constructed in opus caementicium and originally covered with slabs of tuff which were later removed. According to ancient sources, the temple had a central stairway to access the podium. The temple complex was excavated and studied between 1983 and 1989 by a joint archaeological mission of the Nordic academies in Rome, led by Inge Nielsen and B
Temple of the Dioscuri
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Temple of Castor and Pollux
Temple of the Dioscuri
Temple of the Dioscuri
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1866 depiction of the Forum Romanum
Temple of the Dioscuri
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Another view of the three columns of the Temple of Castor and Pollux
31.
Temple of Divine Julius
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The temple was begun by Augustus in 42 BC after the senate deified Julius Caesar posthumously. Augustus dedicated the temple to Caesar, his adoptive father, on 18 August 29 BC. Caesar was the first resident of Rome to be deified and so honored with a temple, a fourth flamen maior was dedicated to him after 44 BC, and Mark Antony was the first to serve as Flamen Divi Julii, priest of the cult of Caesar. The high platform on which the temple was built served as a rostra and, in Greek and Roman culture, comet is an adjective describing the distinctive characteristic of a special star. Comet star means long-haired star, and it was so represented on coins and his late Majesty Augustus had deemed this comet very propitious to himself, as it had appeared not long after the decease of his father Caesar. People believed that this signified the soul of Caesar received among the spirits of the immortal gods. The Divine Star was represented on coins, and probably worshiped in the temple itself either as a star or as a simple star. However, the Roman priests prevented them doing so and the corpse of Caesar was carried back to the Forum near the Regia. It seems that in that place there was a tribunal praetoris sub divo with gradus known as the tribunal Aurelium. Aurelius Cotta around 80 BC near the so-called Puteal Libonis, a used for sacred oaths before trials. After the funeral of Caesar and the building of the temple, the crowd, moved by the words of Mark Antony, Caesars will, and the sight of the wax image, attempted but failed to carry the corpse to the Capitol to rest among the gods. It seems that an ordinary funeral had been prepared for Caesar at the Campus Martius, the column was of Numidian yellow stone and had the inscription Parenti Patriae, i. e. to the founder of the nation. But this first monument was almost immediately taken down and removed by the anti-Caesarian party, in 42 BC Octavian, Lepidus and Mark Antony decreed the building of a temple to Caesar. Some time after the death of Caesar a comet appeared in the sky of Rome and remained clearly visible every day for seven days, after the appearance of this sign, Augustus delivered a public speech giving an explanation of the appearance of the comet. The speech is known since a partial transcription by Pliny the Elder has been handed down. His father was announcing the birth of his adoptive son, he was the one born under the comet. Other messianic prophecies about Augustus are related by Suetonius, including the story of the massacre of the innocents conceived in order to kill the young Octavius soon after his own birth, Augustus wanted to be considered the real subject of any kind of Messianic prophecies and accounts. Later during his reign, he ordered all other books of prophecies
Temple of Divine Julius
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Temple of Divus Iulius Plan
Temple of Divine Julius
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Temple of Divus Iulius
Temple of Divine Julius
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Remains of the temple, seen from behind.
Temple of Divine Julius
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Temple of Julius Caesar
32.
Temple of Venus and Rome
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The Temple of Venus and Roma Latin, Templum Veneris et Romae is thought to have been the largest temple in Ancient Rome. Located on the Velian Hill, between the edge of the Forum Romanum and the Colosseum, it was dedicated to the goddesses Venus Felix. The architect was the emperor Hadrian and construction began in 121 and it was officially inaugurated by Hadrian in 135, and finished in 141 under Antoninus Pius. Damaged by fire in 307, it was restored with alterations by the emperor Maxentius, apollodorus was banished and executed not long after this. According to the ancient historian Ammianus Marcellinus the temple was among the buildings of Rome which astonished the Emperor Constantius II on his visit to the city in 357. Further restoration was performed under Eugenius, a usurper against Theodosius I, whose policy was the restoration of Pagan cults. However, as many of Romes majestic ancient buildings the temple was later targeted for its rich materials. In 630 Pope Honorius I with the consent of the Emperor Heraclius, a severe earthquake at the beginning of the 9th century is believed to have destroyed the temple. Around 850 Pope Leo IV ordered the building of a new church, Santa Maria Nova, after a major rebuilding in 1612, this church was renamed Santa Francesca Romana, incorporating Romas cella as the belltower. A somewhat fanciful vedute engraving by Giovanni Battista Mercati depicts the site in 1629, the vast quantity of marble that once adorned the temple has all but disappeared due to its use as a raw material for building projects from the Middle Ages onwards. The Italian archaeologist Rodolfo Amedeo Lanciani makes reference to his discovery of a kiln in close proximity to the temple in his work The Destruction of Ancient Rome. Presently only a few columns surrounding remain standing in their original positions, the temple itself consisted of two main chambers, each housing a cult statue of a god—Venus, the goddess of love, and Roma, the goddess of Rome, both figures seated on a throne. The cellae were arranged symmetrically back-to-back, Romas cella faced west, looking out over the Forum Romanum, and Venus cella faced east, looking out over the Colosseum. A row of four columns lined the entrance to each cella, the west and east sides of the temple had ten white columns, and the south and north featured eighteen white columns. All of these columns measured 1.8 metres in width, resting on the columns a double impost forms a double entablature extending back into the exedra, with a cofferred half-dome ceiling above the seated statue. The walls behind the aisles are inset with smaller columns standing some distance above the floor on a plinth, small statues set in niches between these columns punctuate the walls, the niches surmounted by alternating arched and triangular pediments. More small statues are positioned on the entablature above each small column, as an additional clever subtlety by Hadrian, Venus also represented love, and AMOR is ROMA spelled backwards. Thus, placing the two divinities of Venus and Rome back-to-back in a temple created a further symmetry with the back-to-back symmetry of their names as well
Temple of Venus and Rome
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Temple of Venus and of Rome
Temple of Venus and Rome
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Temple of Venus and Roma
Temple of Venus and Rome
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The temple's apse by night
Temple of Venus and Rome
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Temple of Venus and Roma seen from the Colosseum
33.
Temple of Vesta, Rome
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The Temple of Vesta is an ancient edifice in Rome, Italy, located in the Roman Forum near the Regia and the House of the Vestal Virgins. The temples most recognizable feature is its circular footprint, since the worship of Vesta began in private homes, the architecture seems to be a reminder of its history. The extant temple used Greek architecture with Corinthian columns, marble, the remaining structure indicates that there were twenty Corinthian columns built on a podium fifteen meters in diameter. The roof probably had a vent at the apex to allow smoke release, all temples to Vesta were round, and had entrances facing east to symbolize connection between Vesta’s fire and the sun as sources of life. The Temple of Vesta represents the site of ancient cult activity as far back as 7th century BCE, numa Pompilius is believed to have built this temple along with the original Regia and House of the Vestal Virgins in its original form. Around the Temple stood The Sacred Grove, in which there was a graveyard for the priests. It was one of the earliest structures located in the Roman Forum although its present reincarnation is the result of subsequent rebuilding, instead of a cult statue in the cella there was a hearth which held the sacred flame. The temple was the storehouse for the legal wills and documents of Roman Senators and cult objects such as the Palladium. The Palladium was a statue of Athena believed to have been brought by Aeneas from Troy, the statue was felt to be one of the Pignora Imperii, or pledges of imperium, of Ancient Rome. That the Romans believed that the Sacred fire of Vesta was closely tied to the fortunes of the city, the temple was rebuilt many times, for it was destroyed many times. The first destruction of the temple was by the Gauls in 390, such fires occurred again in 210 BC and again in the early first century BC, however, the building was safe. It was rebuilt again during the reigns of Augustus and Nero, finally, it burnt down in 191 AD and was later built for the last time during the reign of Septimius Severus. The Temple of Vesta remained reasonably intact until the Renaissance, however, in 1549, the building was completely demolished and its marble reused in churches and papal palaces. The section standing today was reconstructed in the 1930s during the dictatorship of Benito Mussolini, the round Temple of Hercules Victor in the Forum Boarium was initially thought to be a temple of Vesta. Brockman, Norbert, Encyclopedia of Sacred Places,1, ABC-CLIO, ISBN 978-1-59884-654-6 Gorski, Gilbert J. Packer, the Roman Forum, A Reconstruction and Architectural Guide, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-521-19244-6 Howatson, M. C. The Oxford Companion to Classical Literature, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-954855-2 Middleton, the Temple and Atrium of Vesta and the Regia. Archaeologia, Or, Miscellaneous Tracts Relating to Antiquity,395, Middleton, John Henry, The Remains of Ancient Rome,1 Stamper, John W
Temple of Vesta, Rome
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Remains of the Temple of Vesta
Temple of Vesta, Rome
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Temple of Vesta
Temple of Vesta, Rome
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The most prominent feature of the ruins that were once the Temple of Vesta is the hearth (seen here in the foreground).
34.
Basilica of Maxentius
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The Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine, sometimes known as the Basilica Nova - meaning new basilica - or Basilica of Maxentius, is an ancient building in the Roman Forum, Rome, Italy. It was the largest building in the Forum, construction began on the northern side of the forum under the emperor Maxentius in 308, and was completed in 312 by Constantine I after his defeat of Maxentius at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge. The building rose close to the Temple of Peace, at that time probably neglected, the lateral forces of the groin vaults were held by flanking aisles measuring 23 by 17 metres. The aisles were spanned by three barrel vaults perpendicular to the nave, and narrow arcades ran parallel to the nave beneath the barrel vaults. The nave itself measured 25 metres by 80 metres creating a 2000 square meter floor, like the great imperial baths, the basilica made use of vast interior space with its emotional effect. Running the length of the face of the building was a projecting arcade. On the south face was a porch with four columns. The south and central sections were destroyed by the earthquake of 847. In 1349 the vault of the collapsed in another earthquake. The only one of the eight 20-meter-high columns, which survived the earthquake was brought by Pope Paul V to Piazza Santa Maria Maggiore in 1614, all that remains of the basilica today is the north aisle with its three concrete barrel vaults. The ceilings of the vaults show advanced weight-saving structural skill with octagonal ceiling coffers. The wrestling events were held here during the 1960 Summer Olympic Games, in ancient Rome a basilica was a rectangular building with a large central open space, and often a raised apse at the far end from the entrance. Basilicas served a variety of functions, including a combination of a court-house, council chamber, there might be, however, numerous statues of the gods displayed in niches set into the walls. As a result of the programmes of the Christian Roman emperors the term basilica later became largely synonymous with a large church or cathedral. The color of the building before it was destroyed was white, a map depicting Mussolinis New Roman Empire was removed from the wall after the war. The Basilica Maxentius is a marvel of Roman engineering work, at the time of construction, it was the largest structure to be built and thus is a unique building taking both aspects from Roman baths as well as typical Roman basilicas. At that time, it used the most advanced engineering techniques known including innovations taken from the Markets of Trajan, another difference from traditional basilicas is the roof of the structure. Colossus of Constantine, originally situated in the west apse of the Basilica
Basilica of Maxentius
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Remains of the
Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine. The building's northern aisle is all that remains.
Basilica of Maxentius
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Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine
Basilica of Maxentius
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Reconstruction of the plan.
Basilica of Maxentius
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John Goldicutt, View in Rome, 1820. Watercolor over pencil. The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens, Gilbert Davis Collection.
35.
Basilica Julia
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The Basilica Julia was a structure that once stood in the Roman Forum. It was a large, ornate, public building used for meetings, the Basilica Julia was built on the site of the earlier Basilica Sempronia along the south side of the Forum, opposite the Basilica Aemilia. It was initially dedicated in 46 BC by Julius Caesar, with building costs paid from the spoils of the Gallic War, and was completed by Augustus, the building burned shortly after its completion, but was repaired and rededicated in 12 AD. The Basilica was again reconstructed by the Emperor Diocletian after the fire of 283 AD, the Basilica housed the civil law courts and tabernae, and provided space for government offices and banking. In the 1st century, it also was used for sessions of the Centumviri, in his Epistles, Pliny the Younger describes the scene as he pleaded for a senatorial lady whose 80-year-old father had disinherited her ten days after taking a new wife. It was the meeting place of the Roman people. This basilica housed public meeting places and shops, but it was used as a law court. On the pavement of the portico, there are diagrams of games scratched into the white marble. One stone, on the tier of the side facing the Curia, is marked with an eight by eight square grid on which games similar to chess or checkers could have been played. The Basilica Julia was partially destroyed in 410 AD when the Visigoths sacked Rome, part of the remains of the basilica was converted into a church in the 7th or 8th century. The building consists now only of an area, levelled off and raised about one metre above ground level. The site was excavated by Pietro Rosa in 1850 who reconstructed a single marble column, in 1852 segments of concrete vaulting with stuccowork coffering was unearthed but later destroyed in 1872
Basilica Julia
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Basilica Julia
Basilica Julia
Basilica Julia
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The reconstructed remains of a center column with support. The flaring at the top is the beginning of arches for the bottom tier
36.
Arch of Septimus Severus
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After the death of Septimius Severus, his sons Caracalla and Geta were initially joint emperors. Caracalla had Geta assassinated in 212, Getas memorials were destroyed and all images or mentions of him were removed from public buildings, accordingly, Getas image and inscriptions referring to him were removed from the arch. The arch was raised on a travertine base originally approached by steps from the Forums ancient level, the central archway, spanned by a richly coffered semicircular vault, has lateral openings to each side archway, a feature copied in many Early Modern triumphal arches. The Arch is about 23 metres in height,25 metres in width and 11.85 metres deep, the three archways rest on piers, in front of which are detached composite columns on pedestals. Winged Victories are carved in relief in the spandrels, a staircase in the south pier leads to the top of the monument, on which were statues of the emperor and his two sons in a four-horse chariot, accompanied by soldiers. The Arch stands close to the foot of the Capitoline Hill, a flight of steps originally led to the central opening, as one still does to the Arch of Trajan at Ancona. By the 4th century erosion had raised the level of the Forum so much that a roadway was put through the Arch for the first time, so much debris and silt eroded from the surrounding hills that the arch was embedded to the base of the columns. The damage wrought by wheeled medieval and early modern traffic can still be seen on the column bases, above the bas-reliefs of the socles. The well-preserved condition of the Arch owes a good deal to its having been incorporated into the structure of a Christian church, half the Arch belonged to the Cimini family, who are also attributed for the preservation of the structure. The stronghold included a tower placed on top of the Arch itself, when the church was refounded elsewhere, the arch remained ecclesiastical property and was not demolished for other construction. The parenthesized section in the middle is text that replaced an original reference to his other son Geta, Arch of Septimius Severus photo gallery and virtual reality movie. Hinterhöller, Monika, Der Triumphbogen des Septimius Severus und die historischen Reliefs der Partherkrieg,2008, GRIN Verlag
Arch of Septimus Severus
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Arch of Septimius Severus
Arch of Septimus Severus
Arch of Septimus Severus
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The Arch of Septimius Severus painted by
Canaletto in 1742, before the excavation of the Roman Forum (Royal Collection, UK)
Arch of Septimus Severus
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The Arch of Septimius Severus
37.
Arch of Titus
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The Arch of Titus is a 1st-century AD. honorific arch, located on the Via Sacra, Rome, just to the south-east of the Roman Forum. AD.82 by the Emperor Domitian shortly after the death of his older brother Titus to commemorate Tituss victories, including the Siege of Jerusalem. The arch has provided the model for many triumphal arches erected since the 16th century—perhaps most famously it is the inspiration for the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. Based on the style of sculptural details, Domitians favored architect Rabirius, sometimes credited with the Colosseum, without contemporary documentation, however, attributions of Roman buildings on basis of style are considered shaky. The restoration was a model for the side of Porta Pia. The arch is large with both fluted and unfluted columns, the latter being a result of 19th century restoration, the spandrels on the upper left and right of the arch contain personifications of victory as winged women. Between the spandrels is the keystone, on which stands a female on the East side. The soffit of the archway is deeply coffered with a relief of the apotheosis of Titus at the center. The sculptural program includes two panel reliefs lining the passageway within the arch. Both commemorate the joint triumph celebrated by Titus and his father Vespasian in the summer of 71, the south panel depicts the spoils taken from the Temple in Jerusalem. The golden candelabrum or Menorah is the focus and is carved in deep relief. Other sacred objects being carried in the procession are the Gold Trumpets, the fire pans for removing the ashes from the altar. These spoils were likely originally colored gold, with the background in blue, in 2012 the Arch of Titus Digital Restoration Project discovered remains of yellow ochre paint on the menorah relief. The north panel depicts Titus as triumphator attended by various genii and lictors, a helmeted Amazonian, Valour, leads the quadriga or four horsed chariot, which carries Titus. Winged Victory crowns him with a laurel wreath, the juxtaposition is significant in that it is one of the first examples of divinities and humans being present in one scene together. This contrasts with the panels of the Ara Pacis, where humans, the sculpture of the outer faces of the two great piers was lost when the Arch of Titus was incorporated in medieval defensive walls. The attic of the arch was originally crowned by more statuary, the main inscription used to be ornamented by letters made of perhaps silver, gold or some other metal. The Arch of Titus measures,15.4 meters in height,13.5 meters in width,4.75 meters in depth, the inner archway is 8.3 meters in height, and 5.36 in width
Arch of Titus
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The Arch of Titus, showing the "Spoils of Jerusalem" relief on the inside arch
Arch of Titus
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Arch of Titus
Arch of Titus
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Front view of the Arch of Titus
Arch of Titus
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Close up of
relief showing spoils from the
siege of Jerusalem.
38.
Column of Phocas
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The Column of Phocas is a Roman monumental column in the Roman Forum of Rome, Italy. Erected before the Rostra and dedicated or rededicated in honour of the Eastern Roman Emperor Phocas on August 1,608, the fluted Corinthian column stands 13.6 m tall on its cubical white marble socle. On stylistic grounds, the column seems to have made in the 2nd century for an unknown structure. Likewise, the socle was recycled from its original use supporting a dedicated to Diocletian. The precise occasion for this honour is unknown, though Phocas had formally donated the Pantheon to Pope Boniface IV. Atop the columns capital was erected by Smaragdus, the Exarch of Ravenna, in October 610, Phocas was overthrown and killed, his statues everywhere were overthrown. The monument remains today in its original location and its isolated, free-standing position among the ruins has always made it a landmark in the Forum, and it often appears in vedute and engravings. The rise in ground level due to silt and debris had completely buried the socle by the time Giuseppe Vasi, the square foundation of brick was not originally visible, the present level of the Forum not having been excavated down to its earlier Augustan paving until the 19th century. Zygmunts Column René Seindal, The Column of Phocas Encyclopaedia Romana Column of Phocas The Column of Phocas, the Roman Forum, Its History and Its Monuments The Column of Phocas
Column of Phocas
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The Column of Phocas, against the backdrop of the
Arch of Septimius Severus.
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Monti (rione of Rome)
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Monti is the name of one of the twenty-two Rioni of Rome, rione I, located in Municipio I. The name literally means mountains in Italian and comes from the fact that the Esquiline and the Viminal Hills, and parts of the Quirinal and its logo consists of three green mountains with three tops on a silver background. Today the Esquilino, Castro Pretorio and Celio districts do not belong to it anymore, in ancient times the rione was densely populated, in Monti there were the Forum Romanum and the so-called Suburra, this was the place poor people lived, full of disreputable locals and brothels. In the Middle Ages the situation was different, the Roman aqueducts were damaged. Hence many inhabitants moved to Campus Martius, a level part. From the Middle Ages to the beginning of the 19th century, Monti was not densely populated because of the lack of water and because it was quite far from the Vatican, the center of Christian culture. The area did not become abandoned thanks to the church of San Giovanni in Laterano, still in the Middle Ages the inhabitants of Monti, called monticiani, developed a strong identity, their Roman dialect was different from that spoken in the other rioni. Their main enemies were the people from the other rione with an identity, Trastevere. The Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas, Angelicum is located in Monti History, maps and images of the rione
Monti (rione of Rome)
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via dei Fori Imperiali, on the edge of the rione
Monti (rione of Rome)
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Logo of the rione
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Trevi (rione of Rome)
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Trevi is the rione II of Rome, located in Municipio I. Its logo is made of three swords on a red background and this rione, during the Roman republic belonged to the third region, while during the Roman empire was split up into two regions, the VI, called Alta Semita and the VII, called via Lata. During the ancient Roman period, in rione Trevi there were groups of private houses with some monumental buildings. Since that time the area was split up into two parts, a lower one, level and next to the river Tiber, and a higher one on the hills. The first one was one of the center of the activities of the city, while the one was a rich. After the fall of the Roman empire, a lot of people moved away from the hills to settle next to the river, in the lower part. The urbanization followed the people, next to the river Tiber the rione was full of buildings while almost nothing was built again on the hills until the Renaissance. In 1600 urbanization, new streets, churches and fountains caused the rione Trevi to be quite crowded, the Quirinal Hill, partially isolated from the crowded part close to the river, was slowly becoming a center of power thanks to numerous buildings belonging to the Pope. Under the domination of Napoleon, in 1811, the Quirinal Hill was selected to be the center of the power in Rome. The plan was not completed because of the fall of Napoleon, in fact nowadays several ministers are placed in the rione Trevi. This changed completely the appearance of the part of the rione. The most famous monument in the rione is Trevi Fountain, public libraries in Trevi include Romana Sarti and Casa delle Traduzioni. Piazza Barberini Piazza della Pilota Piazza del Quirinale Piazza San Bernardo Piazza San Silvestro Piazza Santi Apostoli Piazza Scanderbeg Piazza di Trevi
Trevi (rione of Rome)
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Piazza dei Crociferi, with the Church of Santa Maria in Trivio
Trevi (rione of Rome)
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Logo of the rione
Trevi (rione of Rome)
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Trevi Fountain: the most famous monument in the area
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Colonna (rione of Rome)
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Colonna is the III rione of Rome and located at the citys historic center in Municipio I. It takes its name from the Column of Marcus Aurelius in the Piazza Colonna, today the rione covers 0.2689 km2 and as of 2011 had 2547 inhabitants. The rione reaches to one side of the Pincian Hill, during the short-lived Roman Republic of 1798 it also included the hill itself and was called Pincio rather than Colonna. The riones insignia is a now a column representing the Column of Marcus Aurelius on a red background. However, the insignia originally consisted of three azure bands against a silver background
Colonna (rione of Rome)
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Piazza Colonna and the
Column of Marcus Aurelius from which the rione takes its name
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Ponte (rione of Rome)
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Ponte is the fifth rione of Rome, and is located in Municipio I. Its name comes from Ponte SantAngelo, which connects Ponte with the rione of Borgo and this bridge was built by Emperor Hadrian in 134 AD to connect his mausoleum to the rest of the city. Though Pope Sixtus V changed the limits so that the bridge belongs now to Borgo, not to Ponte any more. Its logo is obviously a bridge, in ancient Rome, the area belonged to the IX Augustan region called Circus Flaminius, that was a part of the Campus Martius. Neros bridge was also called Pons Vaticanus, because it connected the Ager Vaticanus to the bank, later Pons ruptus. In ancient Rome there was a port that was used to carry the materials for temples, the active life of the area went on during the Middle Ages and the modern period, and this activity deleted almost all signs of ancient Rome in the rione. Moreover, the rione was on the edge of Ponte SantAngelo, thus all the streets of Rome were leading there. That is why it was full of locals, restaurants, shops of holy objects, a common event in the area was to see a small procession led by a person dressed in black, covering his face, carrying a crucifix on his shoulders. On a wagon there was a condemned man kissing continuously another image of Jesus. The destination of the procession was the square in front of Ponte SantAngelo, although Ponte was a quite rich area, it was the one most affected by the frequent flooding of the River Tiber. All the narrow leading to the river were lost, to make space for the embankments. La grande guida dei Rioni di Roma, ISBN 88-7983-509-2 History, maps and images of the rione
Ponte (rione of Rome)
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Church of
Santa Maria della Pace
Ponte (rione of Rome)
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Logo of the rione
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Parione
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Parione is the VI rione of Rome. It is located in Municipio I and its logo is a rampant griffon, a Greek mythological creature with the head of an eagle and the body of a lion. It was chosen as a symbol of pride and nobility, during Antiquity, it belonged to the IX Augustan region called Circo Flaminio. In this area Domitianus built his stadium and an Odeon, for musical, under Sixtus IV the rione lost its chaotic look, typical of the Middle Ages, for a cleaner and tidier one, typical of the Renaissance. Recovering buildings, enlarging streets, building the new bridge ponte Sisto connecting Trastevere and Parione, thanks to this renewal, urbanization increased between the 1400 and 1500. In the same period, several artists were asked to renew the front of the greatest buildings, in 1500 most of the commercial activity slowly moved from Campo de Fiori to Piazza Navona, that was the favorite place since it was wider. From 1574 to 1674, the appearance of Piazza Navona changed vastly, thanks to the work of Bernini, Borromini, if one palace was jutting, its front was moved backwards to preserve it
Parione
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Sign of the rione
Parione
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Logo of the rione
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Regola
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Regola is the 7th rione of Rome, Italy. It is located in Municipio I of the city, the name comes from Arenula, which was the name of the soft sand that the river Tiber left after the floods, and that built strands on the left bank. The logo of the rione is a rampant deer with a turquoise background, during the Roman empire, the area belonged to the Campus Martius. In particular, in the modern Regola there was the Trigarium, emperor Augustus divided Rome into 14 regions, according to this, the modern Regola belonged to the IX region called Circus Flaminius. In the Middle Ages it entered the fourth of the seven new ecclesiastic regions, also because of the very frequent floods of the river Tiber, the area was unhealthy and it was drained at the end of the Middle Ages. In 1586, when rione Borgo was made, the number of rioni increased to 14, and Regola became the VII with the name of Arenule et Chacabariorum. In 1875, after the walls to stop the floods of the Tiber were built, though small, the rione contains many kinds of buildings, palaces, hospitals, churches, embassies, run down prisons and dirty poor houses. Public libraries in Regola include the Biblioteca centrale Centrale dei Ragazzi, media related to Rione VII - Regola at Wikimedia Commons History, maps and images of the rione
Regola
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Palazzo Farnese
Regola
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Logo of Rione VII
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Pigna (rione of Rome)
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Pigna is the name of rione IX of Rome, located in Municipio I of the city. The name means pine cone in Italian, and the symbol for the rione is the bronze pine cone. The giant bronze pine cone once decorated a fountain in Ancient Rome next to a vast Temple of Isis, there water flowed copiously from the top of the pinecone. The Pigna was moved first to the Old Basilica of Saint Peter, there it stands today under Pirro Ligorios vast niche at the far end, flanked by a pair of Roman bronze peacocks brought from Hadrians mausoleum, the Castel SantAngelo. This rione is centrally located in the Campus Martius area of ancient Rome and it is roughly square-shaped, extending from the Pantheon on its northwest corner to the Piazza Venezia on the southeast. This relatively small area contains numerous churches and palazzi, public libraries in Pigna include Rispoli
Pigna (rione of Rome)
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Bronze Pigna at Vatican
Pigna (rione of Rome)
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Logo of the rione
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Trastevere
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Trastevere is the 13th rione of Rome, on the west bank of the Tiber, south of Vatican City, and within Municipio I. Its name comes from the Latin trans Tiberim, meaning literally beyond the Tiber and its logo is a golden head of a lion on a red background, the meaning of which is uncertain. To the north, Trastevere borders the XIV rione, Borgo, in Romes Regal period, the area across the Tiber belonged to the hostile Etruscans, the Romans named it Ripa Etrusca. Rome conquered it to control of and access to the river from both banks, but was not interested in building on that side of the river. In fact, the connection between Trastevere and the rest of the city was a small wooden bridge called the Pons Sublicius. By the time of the Republic c.509 BC, the number of sailors and fishermen making a living from the river had increased, immigrants from the East also settled there, mainly Jews and Syrians. The area began to be considered part of the city under Augustus, since the end of the Roman Republic the quarter was also the center of an important Jewish community, which inhabited there until the end of the Middle Ages. With the wealth of the Imperial Age, several important figures decided to build their villae in Trastevere, including Clodia, and Julius Caesar. The regio included two of the most ancient churches in Rome, the Titulus Callixti, later called the Basilica di Santa Maria in Trastevere, and the Titulus Cecilae, Santa Cecilia in Trastevere. In the Middle Ages Trastevere had narrow, winding, irregular streets, moreover, at the end of the 15th century these mignani were removed. Nevertheless, Trastevere remained a maze of narrow streets, there was a strong contrast between the large, opulent houses of the upper classes and the small, dilapidated houses of the poor. The streets had no pavement until the time of Sixtus IV at the end of the 15th century, at first bricks were used, but these were later replaced by sampietrini, which were more suitable for carriages. In 1744 Benedict XIV modified the borders of the rioni, giving Trastevere its modern limits, nowadays, Trastevere maintains its character thanks to its narrow cobbled streets lined by ancient houses. At night, natives and tourists flock to its many pubs and restaurants. The unique character of this neighborhood has attracted artists, foreign expats, in the sixties and seventies, the American musicians/composers Frederic Rzewski and Richard Teitelbaum, of the group Musica Elettronica Viva, lived in Via della Luce. Sergio Leone, the director of Spaghetti Westerns, grew up in Viale Glorioso, ennio Morricone, the film music composer, went to the same school, and for one year was in the same class as Sergio Leone. Public libraries in Trastevere include Casa della Memoria e della Storia
Trastevere
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A typical narrow alley in Trastevere seen from the lower slopes of the
Gianicolo hill
Trastevere
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Logo of the rione
Trastevere
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Piazza
Santa Maria in Trastevere at night
Media related to Rione X - Campitelli at Wikimedia Commons
