When Old meets young harmony.
The great opening of the movie The belly of an architect by Peter Greenaway shot in front of Pantheon, so I knew I had to get that shot myself one day.
Pantheon, without a doubt, is my favorite architecture in Rome. The outstanding, elegant, marvelous outlook gives me a huge impression when I read about Rome history as a kid. Not knowing one day I will be so lucky enough to visit here with the love of my life, Pantheon gives us more than we had imaged. walk inside is a must, the admission fee is free so far.
The short history summary up here:
Pantheon is a former Roman temple, now a church. on the site of an earlier temple commissioned by Marcus Agrippa during the reign of Augustus (27 BC – 14 AD). It was completed by the emperor Hadrian and probably dedicated about 126 AD.
“Pantheon” is from the Ancient Greek “Pantheon” – “to all the gods”:
Originally, the Pantheon was a Roman temple dedicated to worshipping the planetary gods (the Sun, the Moon, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter, Mercury, and Mars) in Roman times. Around the 7th century A.D., the Pantheon was turned into a church as dedicated to “St. Mary and the Martyrs” (informally known as “Santa Maria Rotonda”.)
From the eight tall and rounded iconic Greek columns to the triangle pediment outlook, ah… this style creates such peaceful harmony over thousands of years. then the dome is truly remarkable work that I couldn’t stop thinking how did they make it?! Roman definitely know architects deeply, isn’t it? At the center of the dome, is the Oculus. Pantheon has no windows and the only light penetrates from above streaming down to provide the only lighting resource. yet not only the outside is amazing, but the inside is taking us by surprise.
Nowadays not only the gods are worshipped here, but every chapel or niche is also dedicated to some important figures of Rome. The second chapel is the tomb of Victor Emmanuel II, the father of fatherland. The third niche holds the one and only, great artist Raphael, who died young at age 37. His fiancée, Maria Bibbiena is buried to the right of his sarcophagus; she died before They could marry. The sarcophagus was given by Pope Gregory XVI, and its inscription reads ILLE HIC EST RAPHAEL TIMUIT QUO SOSPITE VINCI / RERUM MAGNA PARENS ET MORIENTE MORI, meaning “Here lies Raphael, by whom the mother of all things (Nature) feared To be overcome while he was living, and while he was dying, herself to die”. The epigraph was written by Pietro Bembo, a poet.
we couldn’t agree with that more, the poem is tremendously moved us as we walk out of the place. Pantheon is not only beautiful at outside, but the inside has marked the first highlight of our journey. See you Pantheon and Raphael, we will continue to explore Rome under your influence.
Tips for visiting Pantheon:
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- open at 8:30 am on Monday- Saturday, 9 am on Sunday. highly recommend come when they open to avoid the crowd. we saw from 9 to 12 the visors is hugely different.
- Suggest coming on a sunny day to see the beautiful light than raining day. when it rains, it also rains in the Pantheon, although the floor is slightly convex so the water flows away.
- respect the place with talk and walk with low volume.
Day 1:
Fontana di Trevi (Trevi Fountain)→ Pantheon & Fontana del Pantheon→ Obelisco Della Minerva (Elephant and Obelisk)→ San Luigi dei Francesi (Church of St. Louis of the French)→ Largo di Torre Argentina→ Capitoline Museums
I wish you like today’s post, Rome has so many beautiful histories and stories that I would like to share with you, following me ＠gabbie_arciniegas & @betterthanauthentic on Instagram or sign up the newsletter of the blog! you will get notification of new post here! Ciao!
xo,
Gabrielle
