Pantheon, Rome

The Pantheon was originally commissioned during the reign of Augustus (27 BC-14 AD) but was destroyed by the great fire of 80 AD. The restored Pantheon, as we see today, was built by Emperor Hadrian in 120 AD. As is evident from the exterior, it consists of a portico (square entry) leading into a rotunda (round room) with dome.

I find it amazing this building, the best preserved of all ancient Roman buildings, is still standing after nearly 2000 years! We know the Roman architects back then used creative methods and materials for construction. One source reveals, "The structure itself is way ahead of its time. In fact, the exact composition of the material is still unknown and appears to be structurally similar to modern day concrete." Inventive structural techniques were also used to support the dome, using decreased amounts of material and narrowing the thickness of the wall toward the top of the dome.

PORTICO

I was impressed by the massive size of the Pantheon as I approached it from the street and entered the portico. I didn't realize just how impressive a building this is from pictures I saw previously. Even the entry was immensely bigger than I imagined, with three lines of 39 foot granite columns waiting for visitors to wade through. Apparently these columns were made in Egypt then transferred via barge and carried to the site of the Pantheon.

ROTUNDA

The rotunda is a spectacularly designed circular room off the entry, intended to draw a person's attention upward to the dome and opening above. Without a doubt, the architecture does just that!

Our guide said the preservation of this building is due, in part, to its functional use as a church since the 7th century. The Pantheon was the first pagan temple in Rome turned into a Christian church and Catholic services are still held there every Sunday! Ever since the Renaissance period, the Pantheon has also been used to hold tombs of the famous artist Raphael and several Italian kings and poets. Vittorio Emanuele, known as the 'Father of the Nation', tomb is often guarded by a volunteer and is shown below.

Carved in the walls around the Pantheon are niches to hold statues of famous and influential leaders of Roman society. Four of the recesses are chapels dedicated to St Joseph, the Madonna of Clemency, the crucifixion, and the annunciation. The marble floor, which features a design consisting of a series of geometric patterns, is still the ancient Roman original.

Almost 2000 years after it was built, the Pantheon's dome is still one of the world's largest un-reinforced concrete domes. This is an amazing accomplishment especially when considering the height and diameter of the interior dome is 142 feet that had not been surpassed for 1300 years. Consider the Capital Building in Washington DC (see post), designed and built using more modern technology in 1800, an incredibly beautiful building but still only 96 feet in diameter.

Notice the sun spot on the inside of the dome wall indicating the position of the sun. The hole in the top of the dome (oculus) allows natural sun rays to light the interior; this was intended to be a connection to the gods above.

Upon further research, one quickly realizes how influential the Pantheon has been on European and American architects since. There is evidence of portico and rotunda use in many city halls, universities and public libraries on these continents. One prime example is that of Thomas Jefferson's rotunda at the University of Virginia that I visited back in August 2011 (see post).

Vatican City, Rome

It is an understatement to say the Vatican has had influence over the past 2000 years on international political life and direction of the established Christian Church. As the Roman Empire expanded, so did the building of churches and increase of influence. I certainly wanted to see where this influence resides while I had opportunity.

Visiting the Vatican city-state is like going to another country, moving through its walled perimeter and levels of security. Within this walled enclave near the center of Rome, visitors are allowed to see the incredible edifices of St Peter's Basilica, the Sistine Chapel along with numerous museums that house centuries of papal history.

I didn't think much about this during my visit but I learned that the Vatican is defended by the Italian Armed Forces while soldiers of the Swiss Guard are entitled to hold Vatican passports/nationality as they oversee the security of the Pope himself. Arrangements of the Swiss Guard are worked out between the Vatican and country of Switzerland with guard members needing to be young men between ages of 19-25 and of Swiss origin.

Our tour started at the Vatican museums that, as I understand, has the oldest and largest collections in the world and where admission tickets support a large part of the Vatican budget. Actually, the museums were started in 1506 when the Laocoon statue was discovered buried in Rome. Pope Julius II sent Michelangelo out to appraise it and on his advice bought it and started collecting sculptures for the Vatican. Popes have added to the collection ever since, most of which is on display throughout the museums today.

I found the museums well-organized as we moved from one room to the next, each focusing on a different theme or genre. And later I discovered a list of popular museums on the Vatican's website that are open to the public, revealing varying museum artifacts on display (see above).

Our group certainly didn't visit all 40+ museums at the Vatican but we did walk through The Gallery of Maps that displayed over 40 maps of Italy through the centuries.

The Tapestry Gallery displayed two sets of tapestries with varying themes. One set depicted gospel scenes from the life of Jesus done by Raphael's students and the other set are scenes from the life of Pope Urban VIII Barberini.

Disciples with Jesus in the Gallery of Tapestry

The Gallery of the Candelabra contains ancient Roman statues and artifacts. The name of this gallery refers to various candle holders on display that were used to light the Vatican over the centuries.

Pope Julius paid Michelangelo to paint the Sistine Chapel ceiling and then paid Raphael to paint the papal apartments, which are now part of the museums open to visitors listed as The Raphael Rooms. This is the period of Renaissance as seen by the paintings and sculptures in these rooms.

The Expulsion of Heliodorus from the Temple

Walking between rooms was a treat in and of itself when remembering to look up and down! Floors were often tiled with inlaid marble design while the ceilings could be considered painted masterpieces. Our guide said if we were to look at every article in the 40+ museum rooms at the Vatican, each for 1 minute, then we would be in the museum for some 20 years... and I believe it based on the amount I saw there in just one morning!

One of the highlights of the tour for me was visiting the Sistine Chapel whose name takes after Pope Sixtus IV, the one who restored the Chapel between 1477 and 1480.

My first impression of the Sistene Chapel was that it seemed smaller than I imagined it would. Perhaps the interior space seemed smaller because of all the detailed artistry on the ceilings and walls...? Regardless, it was amazing to witness Michelangelo's scenes from Genesis to the story of Noah on the ceiling, Botticelli's frescoes along the side walls and various statues throughout.

The Creation of Adam

A piece of trivia I learned from our guide: there is a door in the corner of the Chapel above which Michelangelo painted someone who criticized his work. The scene depicts a snake eating at this individual and when that person went to the Pope to complain, the Pope said "he was in charge of heaven, not hell".

Vatican City is home to some of the most famous art in the world and St. Peter's Basilica, whose successive architects include Bramante, Michelangelo, Giacomo della Porta, Maderno and Bernini, is a renowned work of Renaissance architecture. St Peter's Basilica, considered the burial site of the apostle Peter under the high altar, is the largest church in the world and the dome remains the highest point in central Rome since building highrises is not allowed near the Vatican!

St Peter's is also regarded as one of the holiest of Catholic shrines. When the authorities open the main door to the Basilica, they advertise that all who enter can be absolved of their sin. While I appreciate the Catholic Church's respect for God and Scripture, I do not respect their teaching of blatant contradictions to the New Testament, such as making saints out of humans/disciples and guaranteeing that which only God can do in the absolving of sin.

A highlight of the tour for me was entering St Peter's and witnessing the enormity of the interior. The basilica is in the shape of a cruciform with elongated nave and a central space that is dominated by one of the largest domes in the world.

Pietà is a work of Renaissance sculpture by Michelangelo 1499

After spending some time in the Basilica, we ended the tour by walking in St Peter's Square located directly in front of the church. It was not difficult to imagine the masses who gather in the Square at Easter and Christmas to listen to the Pope's address from the balcony.

According to an internet source, an Egyptian obelisk is located at the center of the Square, erected at the current site in 1586. Gian Lorenzo Bernini designed this piazza almost 100 years later, including the massive Tuscan colonnades (four columns deep) which embrace visitors in "the maternal arms of Mother Church". A granite fountain constructed by Bernini in 1675 matches another fountain designed by Carlo Maderno in 1613. Here is an image of St Peter's Square in 1909...

After visiting the Vatican, I decided to have lunch in an outdoor cafe with a view of the wall that surrounds the Vatican. The wall was started by Pope Leo in early 1500s and its purpose was to protect the holy shrine, not papal seat, since raiders and pillagers were common during this time. The perfect ending to an incredible morning.

Colosseum, Rome

The Colosseum is one of the most recognized landmarks of Imperial Rome that exists today and became a definite 'must-see' for me while in Italy. Experience from past travels encouraged me to locate myself within walking distance to as many local highlights as possible, not only to save on transportation costs but to enjoy these landmarks in context of their neighborhood. I was fortunate to find a hotel online, named the Caesar Hotel, located at the center of Rome so the Colosseum and other ancient ruins would be within easy walking distance.

To give you a flavor of my neighborhood in Rome, imagine going for a walk after dinner on a nearby cobblestone street and looking up to see the Colosseum at the end of it! When this happened after my first day there, it seemed like I was walking on a set from the movie Roman Holiday... I kept looking for Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn to ride by on a bike =)

During my stay in Rome I learned a number of interesting facts, like:

• slaves and prisoners of war were forced to construct many of the ancient buildings, like the Colosseum under the direction of Flavian dynasty emperors (following the reign of Nero) during the years 72-96 AD
• the Colosseum was primarily made of large stone from a local quarry, chiseled, put into place via brute strength and later tied together with iron clamps to hold in place
• these clamps were removed during the Middle Ages since metal was scarce yet the building still stands nearly 2000 years later

Our guide also informed us that:

• the Colosseum was built on land that used to occupy a man-made lake; this land was originally part of Nero's Domus Aurea or palace grounds as seen in the above pictures
• the original name of the Colosseum was Amphitheatrum Flavium but people started referring to it as "the building beside the colossal statue of Nero" which stood nearby and was similar to the famous statue Colossus of Rhodes... hence, the nickname Colosseum took hold

The closer I got to the Colosseum on the day of the tour, the more I was amazed at this towering structure. I didn’t notice this at first but our guide highlighted that the exterior relief columns on the first level is of Doric design, the columns along the second level is Ionic while the upper third tier has Corinthian columns.

The exterior is quite intriguing in and of itself with its 80 arched gates at ground level, intended to effectively move estimated crowds of 50-60,000. Even 2000 years ago authorities were concerned about crowd control! Visitors would have their ticket in hand – made from a piece of pottery – and enter/exit from the gate identified via roman numeral. We were standing at gate 10, as identified by the X above the arch.

It obviously wasn’t enough to just see the Colosseum from the outside, so I arranged to go on an extended tour that included the arena, underground chambers and upper tier. Our guide took us through a locked gate into the middle of the arena where the action once took place.

As it was, the Colosseum from the 1st to 5th centuries was used for (what I would term) gruesome entertainment that could last all day – audiences could observe simulated animal hunts in the morning, executions of criminals at high noon, and to-the-death gladiator combats in the afternoon.

The arena floor was built with a wooden platform covered by sand. In this way, the sand could soak up blood while trap doors could be built and used to elevate animals onto the arena floor from below. Nothing like entertaining the audience with an element of surprise such as introducing a hungry lion into the arena.

I expressed my surprise that crowds would enjoy watching people die but our guide explained that people back then had a different view of death: they were more concerned about how they died than when they died. We were told slaves and thieves often wanted a chance to die in a 'dignified manner' as hero before crowds, which would elevate their status, rather than simply die execution style somewhere behind the scenes.

This thinking ended after the year 538 when Christian rulers did not want to be responsible for putting criminals or slaves to a premature death since Christians believe that God should be in control of when and how a person dies.

Not only were we able to see what lay beneath the arena floor from above (since the wooden platform disintegrated) but we were allowed to visit the maze of rooms and corridors underground. For instance, our group walked the same corridors where gladiators were held for days and escorted to the arena, visited the man-powered elevators that hoisted animals and scenery through trap doors to the arena above and got a close-up view of the construction of the Colosseum's foundation.

Before our tour group left the Colosseum, we went up quite a few flights of stairs to get to the upper tiers. These steps were not exactly easy to navigate and I learned the steep uneven stairways were intended to slow the movement of crowds. Hence, soldiers were able to monitor the masses better when the people had to watch where they were going as they climbed up and down. After visiting the upper tiers, I can imagine it would have been difficult for the lower class (who were forced to sit there) to see exactly what was going on in the arena below... but the views of Rome were amazing from up there!