Monuments in Rome

Monuments in Rome: Discovering the City's Treasures

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Monuments in Rome: Colosseum and Domus Aurea
You can start your tour, visiting one of the most important symbol of Rome, the Colosseum, which stands as a glorious reminder of the Roman imperial power and cruelty. It is an elliptical amphitheatre placed in the centre of the city of Rome, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire. It goes back to 72 a.d. and was used for gladiators’ games and public spectacles such as sea battles, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on classical mythology. Its structure is enormous and it could hold more than 50,000 spectators. The Colosseum is an iconic symbol and  the expression of Rome’s power and today it offers a spectacular view especially by night.

Nearby the Colosseum you can find the Domus Aurea, so called (it means “golden house”) because of the richness of its decorations and pieces of art. It was built few years before the suicide of one of the cruellest emperor of Rome, Nerone, that wanted it as his residence. One of the most visible features of the Domus Aurea was the Colossus Neronis: a 36 meter high bronze statue of Nerone placed just outside the entrance. Soon after the emperor’s death, the palace and grounds were filled with earth and built over because the Golden House was a severe embarrassment to Nerone’s successors.

Monuments in Rome: Imperial Forum
Keep on walking through Via dei Fori Imperiali, you can admire the signs of the ancient city, in particular the Imperial Forum, designed as a celebration of Caesar's power. Originally the Fora were meeting points where politics discussed public business. They consist of a series of monumental public squares, constructed over a period of one and half centuries and the main ones are dedicated to Cesar, August, Nerva and Trajan. During the early 20th century, the fascist Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini revamped the Imperial Fora as a part of his campaign to evoke and emulate past glories.

Monuments in Rome: Piazza Venezia and the Capitoline Museums
Via dei Fori Imperiali can take you directly to Piazza Venezia where you can be astonished by another spectacular structure, the national monument dedicated to Vittorio Emanuele II, the first king of Italy, also known as Altare della Patria. The monument holds the Tomb of an unknown soldier with an eternal flame, built after World War I.
Its beautiful steps take visitors in Piazza del Campidoglio where we find the Capitoline Museums: a group of art and archeological museums that preserve priceless pieces of art. The museums are contained in three buildings surrounded a central square in a plain conceived by Michelangelo Buonarroti in 1536. Their history can be traced to 1471, when the pope Sixtus IV donated a collection of important ancient bronzes to the people of Rome and located them on Capitoline Hill. Since then, the museums’ collection has grown to include a large number of ancient Roman statues, inscriptions, collection of jewels, coins and other artefacts.

Monuments in Rome: Pantheon
In your personal sightseeing the Pantheon deserves attention and can really astonish you: it is a pagan temple devoted to gods containing the tomb of Raphael. It is 43 metres high and it was the largest dome in the ancient Roman empire. At the top of the ceiling there is giant hole, called the oculus, the main source of light, that originally served as a kind of chimney for the smoke from the ceremonial fires which were burned on the temple’s floor.

Monuments in Rome: Piazza Navona

Just arrived in Piazza Navona you will be surely surprised by wonderful fountains, but the square is also full of other treasures: the church of Sant’Agnese and the palace Pamphilj. The central Four Rivers Fountain was realized by Gianlorenzo Bernini and it is a jewel of the Baroque art. It was built on the site of the Stadium of Domitian and follows the form of the open space of the stadium. The ancient Romans came there to watch the games. Piazza Navona is now the pride of Baroque Roman architectural and art history.

Finally if you prefer a walk in a museum and looking for modern exhibitions, Rome can also satisfy you by proposing interesting art collections gathered in specific modern art galleries that include  paintings of the greatest contemporary artists, but also interesting realities concerning new talented artists.

More and different things to come on Rome Monuments.
 

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