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Rome 2006

Pantheon

 
Pantheon
Pantheon
The Pantheon was one of those buildings that, for as long as I've known anything about Rome, I've wanted to see. Imagine an enormous roof - a huge dome that is help up by nothing, with just a big hole at the very top to let in light. How cool is that! It was originally built to honor the seven major gods of Rome, under whatever name subject peoples might be worshipping them, thus the name pan (all) theon (deity temple).  Built in around 125 CE under the orders of the Emperor Hadrian, various sources I've read have called it "the the oldest important building in the world with its original roof intact."

 
Pantheon
Pantheon
Pantheon
Pantheon
With a columned facade that gives little real hint of what's inside, the Pantheon is located in a square filled with hustle and bustle. Every time I walked by, the place was packed with people hanging out around the fountains. Come to think of it, I liked the fountains too. Check out the pictures at the bottom of the page.
Pantheon
Pantheon
 There are people selling food, bubble machines, and everything in between. Behind the Pantheon is the famous little Elephant obelisk (called Pulcino della Minerva which doesn't mean anything about an elephant but rather a chick. Go figure). It is located right in front of the Santa Maria sopra Minerva church.
 
Pantheon

Day and night the rattle and hum continues outside. I guess those Romans knew what they were doing when they set up these public squares - they do get used!

Pantheon

 
Entering the huge bronze front doors - they are still the originals! - you get a sense of the sheer size of the place. It is built either as a cube or a sphere, depending on how you look at it; the height equals the length and the width. The only source of light in ancient times (and during the days now) is from the oculus, the round hole at the top of the dome. The opening also creates an updraft of sorts, as wind whisking over it 'sucks' out the interior air and constantly draws more in from the doors. An open roof does, of course, have the unfortunate effect of letting in whatever precipitation might be passing through, but that was apparently an acceptable discomfort to endure.
Inside there used to be statues of the gods, but they have all since long disappeared. The building was converted to a Christian church in the 600s, which probably saved it from being destroyed, but that didn't save its marble and goldwork from being stripped off. Even the roof wasn't sacrosanct: the bronze that once sheathed the dome was ripped out in the early 1600s and used to make cannons and the baldacchino (a fancy metal frame) over the main altar in St. Peter's cathedral.

There are remnants and burial places for various Roman leaders and saints scattered throughout where Jupiter used to be worshipped. The Madonna below is over the tomb of the artist Raphael. A section of the marble floors were being painstakingly cleaned during my visit (below right).

Pantheon
Pantheon
Pantheon

 
Pantheon
Of course, not everyone gets as excited as I do about 'old buildings.' Looks like dad's pretty caught up in the moment while the youngsters are content to soak up all that culture by osmosis!

One of my favorite pictures from the trip!


The fountain around the Pantheon:

 
Pantheon fountain
Pantheon fountain
Pantheon fountain
Pantheon fountain
Pantheon fountain

Rome 2006:

Main Rome 2006 Page - Pyramide - Baths - Circus Maximus - Colosseum - Forum - Trajan's Column - Piazza Venezia - Capitoline - Trevi Fountain - Santa Maria sopra Minerva - Pantheon - Navano - Spanish Steps - Sant Angelo - St. Peter's - Vatican - Life in Rome - Other


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