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FIRST ITINERARY THE CAPITOLINE HILL, THE ROMAN FORUM, THE PALATINE HILL, THE COLOSSEUM AND THE BASILICA OF ST. JOHN IN LATERAN |
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Tempio di Antonino e Faustina |
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Beyond the Temple of Caesar, following the Via Sacra which climbs the Velia
(one of the three peaks of the ancient Palatine hill) is the grandiose temple of
Antoninus and Faustina, the best preserved in the Forum, decorated with
candelabras in heraldic schemes; the circular temple of Romulus Maxentius with
its bronze doors flanked by two porphyry columns; the Tempium Sacrae Urbis,
which on one of its external walls the Forma Urbis (or map of the city) was
drawn, giving the idea of the marble tables illustrating the expansion of the
Roman Empire along the Via dei Fori Imperiali; just under the hill of the Carine
(today no longer) separated by a picturesque via still existing is the Basilica
of Maxentius, which surpasses all not only for its grandeur but for the
magnificence and splendour of its coloured marbles. Its immense hall is divided
by four enormous pilasters decorated by colossal Corinthian capitols into three
naves with vaults covered with guilt bronze tiles reaching the height of 35
meters in the central nave. The interior was decorated with an unequalled amount
of statues, marbles and guilt stucco decorations. Opposite is the House of the
Vestals, built around a peristyle and adorned with the statues of the high
Vestals which were distinguished by their different functions, and the great
arcades of the imperial palace of Tiberius. In the background, the Temple of
Venus and Rome is surrounded by a portico of 150 columns with two apses one
opposite the other and adorned with porphyry columns and covered with guilt
bronze tiles. The Arch of Titus was erected to commemorate the recapture of
Jerusalem and in its simplicity is the most solemn and elegant of the Roman
triumphant arches. Next are the Temple of Jupiter and another grandiose temple
on a high and immense foundation. All this wealth was concentrated in such a
small area. One remains astounded when faced with such greatness, and it seems
that from these ruins a sublime Carmen Saeculare di Orazio rises high: |