After not wanting to wait in the long line to enter the Pantheon yesterday, we got an early start this morning and arrived just after it opened at 9:00 a.m. This is the time to do Rome! There was no line at all and we walked right in.
The Pantheon is known as the “The best preserved monument of ancient Rome, a privileged place of dialogue between art and faith”, on its official website. Started in the year 27, it was completely rebuilt 100 years later. To see a 360° view go to https://www.pantheonroma.com/virtual-tour-pantheon/.
Formerly a Roman temple, it was closed in 399 and abandoned for over 200 years. In 609 it became a Catholic Church, the Basilica of St. Mary and the Martyrs. The building is circular and made of concrete with brick facing with a “front porch” supported by enormous Corinthian columns. Huge bronze double doors, 24 feet high, provide entrance.
The dome is totally made of concrete, is 142 feet across and rises 71 feet from the base of the dome to the top. The method of construction has never been determined, but the quality of the concrete and the engineering of supporting structures has kept it intact for more than 2000 years.
Light is provided solely through an opening in the dome called the oculus or eye that is 27 feet across. The polychromatic marble floor is sloped from the middle to the outside to enable runoff from rains that fall through the eye.
Inside the Pantheon there are eight recessed spaces. Three of them are tombs, one for the famous Renaissance painter Raphael, who only lived to age 37. But by the age of 17, he was known as a master of High Renaissance art and “the Prince of Painters”. Two of the tombs are for former kings of Unified Italy (which was only completed in 1871), four are chapels – one of which is dedicated to Joseph, the Father of Jesus.
We don’t hear much about Joseph after the birth of Jesus. I like to think of him teaching Jesus carpentry and Scripture and how to care for the donkeys, and wonder what he thought as he put Jesus to bed at night and watched him sleep.
I don’t know what is more impressive about the Pantheon. The ancientness, the marble, the size, the architecture… it’s all a package of wonderment, and thousands come to see it every day.
In the Piazza in front of the Pantheon is one of the Obelisks found in various locations around the city of Rome. There are 13 ancient obelisks in Rome, more than any other city. Eight of them are Egyptian and five are Roman. Obelisks are different from columns but you can check that out on your own. Suffice it to say they are big, heavy, and very impressive. I could do a whole tour of obelisks in Rome. There’s a reason to come back! Although my favorite tall thing is still the Stone Pines. I’m absolutely in love with them.
When we finally left the Pantheon, we walked west toward Piazza Navona, a large, open, public space with three large fountains by Bernini (mentioned in an earlier post) and Borromini among others. In 80 AD the site was the Stadium of Diocletian, another location for Romans to view competitions. Eventually, after the fall of the western portion of the Roman Empire, like so many other places, it fell into ruin and stones and building materials were scavenged for other projects. The Piazza follows the outline of the former stadium.
Romans and tourists alike frequent Piazza Navona. It is definitely a gathering place, day and night. Until the mid-1800’s, the drains in the square were blocked every summer and the Piazza was filled with water to create a lake for the citizens to enjoy.
While we were there a photo shoot was ongoing for a model in a pink, lacy, flowing gown, and a couple were having wedding photos made. Both were by the center fountain, the Fountain of the Four Rivers, which represents the four most important rivers in the lands to which Christianity had spread. They included the Nile, the Danube, the Ganges, and the Rio de la Plata. In the middle there is a 52 foot high obelisk.
We had tickets for a noon visit at a fairly new attraction called, “Welcome to Rome”, a venue that uses 3D images and virtual reality to display the history of Rome and how the ancient buildings and streets may have looked. We were guided to various “exhibits” in which 3D images were projected, and also into a theater where we sat through a 30 minute presentation of projections on three screens and on a contoured surface at the base of the screens. It was a fascinating way to “see” ancient Rome and to hear its rich history.
We made three other primary stops on Friday, the first at the Castel Sant’ Angelo – the Mausoleum Emperor Hadrian had built for himself and his family in the early second century. Not even the pictures do it justice but I’ll add some of the outside anyway. Situated near the Vatican, it was later a papal fortress, a castle, and is now a museum.
Next to last was the Rome Duck Store. If you can imagine it they likely have a duck for it.
And our final stop was a second-hand vintage clothing store touting a “Fashion Revolution”. Young women in particular were buying vintage hand-me-downs like an episode of the Lucy Show. Trying on clothing in the dressing rooms and the aisles they were buying some of everything. Keep holding on to your clothes ladies, the fashions will rotate back around and you’ll make a mint!
Somewhere in the day we had lunch – or a gelato and dinner – or a gelato, and crawled into bed to prepare for a big day of underground ruins on Saturday.
From pagan temples to churches, from sporting arenas to swimming pools and Piazzas, from Mausoleums to museums, and new fashions from old, we are reminded once again of the wisdom of Solomon, that “there is nothing new under the sun”. Trusting in Him who knows the end from the beginning, we ramble on…