Report on the Pantheon in Rome. Roman Pantheon - "a temple in the name of all the gods

Tourists who came to Italy aspired to write poems about him, his images are taken home in photographs and postcards. The Temple of All Gods located in Rome (or, as this building is now called, the Pantheon) at the time of its construction was dedicated to the main gods revered in the majestic building is one of the most famous architectural monuments of the ancient period that has survived to this day. Years passed, the world changed, and after the fall of the empire, the pagan sanctuary was consecrated as the Christian church of St. Mary and the New Martyrs.

Story. First Pantheon - Agrippa's Pantheon

The first Temple of All the Gods in Rome was built between 27 and 25 BC. Despite the fact that the construction was carried out on the territory of the Roman Empire, the name of the Temple of All Gods in Rome comes from the Greek words: "pan" - "comprehensive", and "theon", which means "divine". It was dedicated to the main gods of the Romans:

• Jupiter - the supreme god of thunder, to whom Zeus corresponds in Greek mythology.
• Neptune - the god of the seas and earthquakes, the Greek counterpart is Poseidon.
• Mars - the god of war, he corresponds to the Greek Ares.
• Venus - the goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite in Hellas.
• Pluto - the god of the underworld analogue - Hades.
• Mercury - the messenger of the gods, the patron of merchants and travelers (Hermes in Ancient Greece).
• Saturn - the titan of time, the Greek version - Kronos (Chronos).

The emperor’s close friend and son-in-law, Consul Mark Agrippa, took over the construction management, as evidenced by the inscription on the building lined with bronze letters. The first Pantheon was facing south and had the shape of a rectangle. The main decoration of the facade of the Roman Pantheon were columns and caryatids - statues dressed women, replacing the columns that first appeared in ancient Greece. Opposite the Pantheon, on the opposite side of the square, stood the Temple of Neptune. At least it is this description of the Temple of all the gods in Rome that has come down to us.

The first Roman Pantheon burned down in a fire in the first century AD, but, like many other temples, it was rebuilt under the emperor Domitian, and its remains are now located at a depth of about two and a half meters.

The construction of the modern Temple of all the gods in Rome

The Pantheon of Mark Agrippa, restored under Domitian, was finally destroyed during the reign due to the fact that lightning struck it, therefore, under the emperor Hadrian, who wanted "this sanctuary of all the gods to represent the globe and the celestial sphere", it was completely rebuilt.

According to the markings on the bricks that make up the temple, its construction was carried out in the first half of the second century AD. The architect was one of the largest architects of that time, Apollodorus of Damascus, who supervised the construction of significant structures (among them the Baths and the Arc de Triomphe) not only under Hadrian, but also before him, under Trajan.

architectural features

Unlike its predecessor, the Pantheon of Apollodorus was oriented to the north, and its size has increased significantly. Moreover, in the new project, a podium of eight steps was added to the architectural composition. The temple is able to accommodate a sphere - an ideal model of the Universe - with a diameter of 43 meters. The very architecture of the Temple of All Gods reflects the ideas of the Romans about the structure of the universe. The walls of the temple are quite thick, and their composition changes with height - they are denser at the bottom, and their upper part consists of lighter materials.

Of course, the most famous view from the facade - in most photos of the Temple of All the Gods in Rome, you can see sixteen tall columns on which the triangular pediment rests. On the pediment there is the same inscription as on Agrippa's Pantheon. There are holes under the pediment, with the help of which a bronze image of the symbol of power was fastened - an eagle with outstretched wings, which holds an oak wreath in its beak. Many of the bronze images by Diogenes of Athens that adorned the façade were later used to work on St. Peter's Basilica, an act considered barbaric by many people at the time.

Pantheon after the fall of the empire

After the collapse of the Roman Empire, the Pantheon only escaped destruction due to the fact that in 608 AD it was turned into a church by Pope Boniface IV, who a year later consecrated it in honor of St. Mary and the Martyrs. The name was due to the fact that it was here that the relics from the Roman catacombs were transported. Approximately forty-five years later, the emperor of Constantinople, Constant II, took bronze statues from the former Temple of All the Gods. decorative elements and gilded tiles, which were replaced with lead only almost two centuries after the visit of the Constantinopolitan monarch. In addition, after the Pantheon became a Christian temple, all objects of the pagan cult of the Romans, images of the Roman gods, were destroyed. An altar was erected in the temple, sculptural images of saints, frescoes on biblical subjects appeared.

In subsequent years, the fate of this majestic building was also unenviable. For a long time it was in disrepair, as, for example, during some period, it was at the center of the struggle between the noble Roman families Colonna and Orsini, acting as a fortress.

Who is buried in the Temple of All Gods?

The Renaissance brought the tradition of burying prominent people of their time in large cathedrals. She did not bypass the Pantheon, where many Renaissance painters found their last refuge, including one of the greatest masters of his era - Rafael Santi, who lies here with his bride Maria Bibbiena, architect Baldassare Peruzzi, musician Arcangelo Corelli.

The Savoy dynasty is also buried here. In the former Temple of All Gods, the first of the kings of united Italy is buried - Victor Emanuel II, Father of the Fatherland, as the inscription on his tombstone says. He was famous for his hard work for the good of the country and his struggle for its unity. The son and successor of the unifier of Italy, King Umberto, who was shot dead in 1900, is also buried in the Pantheon, next to his father. Thirty-six years later, Umberto's wife, Queen Margherita, was also buried in the Pantheon. Guards at the royal graves are provided on a voluntary basis by representatives of the National Institute of Honor Guard.

Excursions to the Pantheon

You can come to the Pantheon both with an organized tour, for example, during a tour of Rome, or go on your own, seeing with your own eyes the grandeur of ancient architecture. The entrance to the temple is open from half past nine in the morning until half past seven in the evening and is absolutely free, but it is closed to visitors on January 1, May 1 and December 25 - on public holidays. The Pantheon is located in Piazza della Rotonda. However, there are a number of details to consider when visiting.

What should be remembered when visiting the Pantheon?

If someone decides to visit, while in Rome, the Pantheon - the Temple of all the gods, he must remember that some rules must be observed.

• In the Pantheon, first of all, you should follow the dress code, since it is an active temple. Clothing must be closed. In extreme cases, you can wrap one of the scarves from the basket near the entrance around you.
• Food and drinks are not allowed into the temple.
• Must be turned off mobile phone. But at the same time in the temple you can take pictures and record videos.

Curious facts

One of the important distinguishing features of the cultural object we were considering was the fact that the Temple of All the Gods in Ancient Rome was the only place where absolutely any resident of the city could come and pray to their gods. This was an innovation, because before that only priests had access to the temples.

Only once a year - on the day of the summer equinox, June 21 - sunlight passing through the "Eye of the Pantheon" ( round hole in the center of the temple dome), illuminates the people entering the temple. On other days at noon, sunlight forms a kind of "pillar", and at other hours it alternately illuminates niches with sculptures of saints, where statues of the gods were previously installed.

The rounded shape of the main part of the Pantheon is due to the fact that once there was a pool on this site, whose foundation became the basis for the temple built by Agrippa.

The Pantheon is one of the main and significant sights of Rome, which has a rather respectable age of more than two thousand years, and this is the only ancient building in the city that has not turned into ruins and has been preserved in its more or less original form of ancient times.

The first building of the Pantheon was built in 27 BC by the consul Mark Agrippa, and the name of the building in ancient Greek means "Temple of All Gods". In those days, statues of the deified Caesar and the most revered Roman gods - Jupiter, Venus, Neptune, Mars, Mercury, Pluto and Saturn, who were worshiped by the Romans, were placed inside the building. During a fire that occurred in 80 AD. uh. the temple was destroyed by fire. Later it was restored by the emperor Domitian, but in 110 AD. the temple burned down again.

About 118-125 years. AD under the emperor Hadrian, the building of the Pantheon was restored, or rather, rebuilt, while, surprisingly, the name of its original founder was preserved, as evidenced by the inscription on Latin- "Marcus Agrippa, son of Lucius, elected consul for the third time, erected this." The second inscription, made in smaller letters, mentions the restoration carried out under Septimius Severus and Caracalla in 202 AD, which did not affect the appearance of the temple at all.

The perfection of the structure suggests that the greatest architect of that time, Apollodorus of Damascus, the creator of the Forum of Trajan in Rome, took part in its restoration, by the way, later executed by the same Adrian for his critical remarks about the architectural projects of Hadrian himself. A fan of Greek culture, the emperor himself actively worked as an architect, not forgetting to glorify himself with triumphal arches and statues in the temples he built. Not distinguished by particular modesty, he installed his statue in the temple of Zeus he completed in Athens, a gilded statue in Epidaurus, and in Rome erected a giant equestrian monument (according to Dion Cassius, a person could pass through the eye of a horse in it). Adrian also built for himself extensive villas around Rome and a huge tomb on the banks of the Tiber, which has survived to this day as the famous castle of St. Angel.

But let's get back to the Pantheon and, before continuing its history, briefly about the building itself. The cylindrical building with walls six meters thick, cast in concrete, is crowned with a huge dome with a diameter of 43 meters - the pinnacle of engineering and unsurpassed in size until the 19th century. Only the dome of St. Peter's Cathedral has an almost equal diameter - 42.6 meters, and the famous dome of the Florentine Cathedral is only 42 meters, and even then, it was built with great problems for 16 years! The inner surface of the dome is decorated with 140 caissons. These decorative recesses are designed to reduce the weight of the vault and protect the dome from collapsing. Scientists have calculated that the approximate weight of the dome is about five thousand tons. With an increase in the height of the vault, the thickness of its walls decreases and at the base of the window, located in the center of the dome, it is only 1.5 meters.

A hole with a diameter of 9 meters represents an eye to the sky. This is the only source of light and air in the building. Sunlight penetrating from above creates a smoky pillar, standing under which you can feel like a divine creation, ready to ascend to heaven. By the way, it turned out that exactly at noon on the March equinox, the sun illuminates the entrance to the Roman Pantheon. A similar effect is also observed on April 21, when the ancient Romans celebrated the anniversary of the founding of the city. At this time, the sun falls on the metal grill above the doorway, filling the courtyard with the colonnade with light. Built on the orders of Adrian, a great lover of lighting effects, the sun seemed to invite the emperor to enter the Pantheon, confirming his divine status. The rays of the sun, penetrating the temple through a hole in the dome, also marked the days and hours.

The outer wall of the temple was originally covered with marble, which, alas, has not been preserved. Some fragments of marble decor can be seen in the British Museum.

The entrance to the Pantheon is adorned with a majestic portico with a triangular pediment, once crowned with a bronze quadriga, later lost forever.

The three-row colonnade consists of sixteen Corinthian columns of pink and gray granite with a span of one and a half meters, a height of 12 meters and a weight of 60 tons. They were carved in the eastern mountains of Egypt, then rolled along the logs for 100 km to the Nile, and already through Alexandria they were delivered to Ostia, the seaport of Rome. Initially, all the front eight columns of the porch were of gray marble, and only the inner four of pink. In the 17th century, three corner columns collapsed, replaced by two columns taken from the baths of Nero and a column from the villa of Domitian. In those ancient times, a short staircase led to the portico, which eventually went deep underground.

With the fall of the Roman Empire, the fate of the Pantheon was not the easiest. At the very beginning of the 5th century, the Pantheon was closed, abandoned, and then completely plundered by the Visigoths.

In 608, the Byzantine emperor Phocas transferred the building to Pope Boniface IV, and on May 13, 609, the Pantheon was consecrated as a Christian church of the Holy Virgin Mary and the Martyrs. The same pope ordered that Christian martyrs be collected from Roman cemeteries and their remains placed in the church, which is why it got such a name. Until that time, all Christian churches were located on the outskirts of the city, and the fact that the main pagan temple, located in the very center of the city, became Christian, meant the dominant importance of the Christian religion in Rome.

Subsequent years and centuries sometimes made negative adjustments to the appearance of the Pantheon. During the period from the 7th to the 14th century, the Pantheon suffered many times and much harm was done to it by the efforts of those in power. The gilded bronze sheets covering the dome were removed by order of the Byzantine emperor Constans II during his visit to Rome in 655, and the ships on which they were transported to Constantinople were plundered by Saracen pirates off the coast of Sicily. In 733, by order of Pope Gregory III, the dome was covered with lead plates, and in 1270, a Romanesque bell tower was added above the portico of the Pantheon, giving the building an awkward look. Throughout the innovations, the sculptures that adorned the facade of the building were lost.

From 1378 to 1417, during the residence of the popes in Avignon, the Pantheon acted as a fortress in the struggle between the powerful Roman families Colonna and Orsini. With the return of the papacy to Rome under the pope Martin V the restoration of the temple and the cleansing of the shacks stuck to it began. In 1563, under Pope Pius IV, a bronze door was restored, stolen by an army of vandals during the attack and sack of Rome in 455.

In the 17th century, by decree of Pope Urban VIII, Barberini, the bell tower was demolished, and by his order, the bronze coverings of the portico were removed, which went to the ebb of cannons for the castle of Sant'Angelo and the manufacture of helical columns for the canopy in St. Peter's Cathedral. This act of vandalism was reflected in the proverb invented by the inhabitants of Rome, who beat the name of the pope: "Quod non Barbari Fecerunt Barberini" - "What the barbarians did not do, Barberini did." The failed architectural project of the same pope, in the form of two small bell towers along the edges of the pediment of the Pantheon, was commissioned to be carried out by Bernini, received the irreverent name "Bernini's donkey ears" and was eventually demolished in 1883.

Subsequently, the Roman Pantheon turned into the national mausoleum of Italy. His last resting place was prominent figures like the architect Baldasare Peruzzi, the painter Annibale Carracci, the kings Victor Emmanuel II and Umberto I, and the great Renaissance painter Rafael Santi.

Tomb of King Umbert I.

It is known that the outstanding artist was buried in the Pantheon. On September 14, 1833, with the permission of the Pope, the slab under the statue of the Madonna was opened to verify the fact of the burial. Within a month, the found remains of Raphael were put on display, then they were placed in an ancient Roman sarcophagus on the lid of which the inscription "Here lies Raphael, during whose life great Nature was afraid to be defeated, and at the time of his death - to die herself." Above the tomb is a statue of the Madonna on the Rock, commissioned during his lifetime by Raphael himself and made by Lorenzo Lotto in 1524.

Unlike other Christian churches in Rome with their sumptuous façades, the façade of the Pantheon does not prepare the visitor for the beauty of its interior. However, once you pass through the gigantic door, about 7.50 meters wide and 12.60 meters high, you are confronted with a truly impressive splendor.

Interior of the Pantheon in the 18th century, painted by Giovanni Paolo Panini.

The interior decoration has undergone more significant changes - the upper part of the walls was covered with marble inlay, and the floor was paved with multi-colored slabs of marble, porphyry and granite. During the 15th-17th centuries, false niches and altars were added, decorated with various relics and works of art, the most significant of which is the painting "Annunciation" by Melozzo da Forli.

And a few more photos from the interior of the Pantheon.

Despite the fact that the Pantheon has long ceased to be just a place to communicate with God, it is still used as a church, for example, masses are served in it during significant Christian holidays.

The doors of the Pantheon are open daily from 9.00 to 19.30, and on Sundays - until 19.00. But it is best to come in the morning, when the square is empty and you can safely take pictures. And from the beginning of the opening, get into the Pantheon and also walk through its hall without crowds.

For me personally, the common phrase “See ... .. and die” refers exclusively to Rome. Although, having seen at least once, I don’t want to die at all. I want to come back here again and again. fully justifies its nickname the Eternal City - each era has left its mark here. Walking in Rome, you feel as if you are taking a walk in time.

Among the countless attractions of the city (in fact, the entire historical center is one big attraction), one of the first on the list is always the Pantheon. After visiting the Colosseum and the Roman Forum, the path of a tourist, as a rule, lies to the ancient Pantheon.

In the center of the tiny Piazza Rotunda stands a fountain with an Egyptian obelisk. Before entering the Pantheon, be sure to sit on the steps of the fountain and feel the grandeur and scope of ancient Roman architecture. In general, the front side with a portico is the most beautiful.

Seen from the other side, the building of the cella (inner part) made of bricks is rather unsightly and looks like a cylinder with a “lid”. This is due to the design features, the dome is located in the thickness of the wall and inside has the correct hemisphere shape.

About the history of the Pantheon

The triangular quarter, now sandwiched between Via del Corso, Corso Vittorio Emmanuele and the Tiber, began to be built up during the time of Emperor Augustus (44 BC - 14 AD). Prior to that, there was the Champ de Mars - a section of the city, originally intended for military and civil meetings, along which the townspeople liked to stroll. After 14 years of civil wars, the appearance of Rome did not match the imperial ambitions of Augustus, and on his orders, the city began to be actively built up. The historian Suetonius knowingly said: "August took Rome brick, and leaves marble."

Actually, the round temple (or rotunda) was built by order of Augustus' associate Mark Agrippa (as evidenced by the inscription on the pediment) in 27-25 BC, when the emperor was on a military campaign. According to legend, the ancient Roman Pantheon stands on the site where the founder of Rome, Romulus, was deified.

The Greek word pantheon is translated as "the temple of all the gods", although in fact the temple is dedicated to only 12 Olympian gods, who were worshiped in Rome from the 3rd century BC. According to the historian Pliny, Agrippa wanted to dedicate the temple to Augustus and place a statue of the emperor inside. But the latter rejected this idea, which is why the temple was dedicated to 12 gods of the Roman pantheon, among which was the statue of the deified Julius Caesar. And the statues of Augustus and Agrippa himself were placed in the niches of the portico.

Although Augustus did not allow a temple to be dedicated to him, he unambiguously built his mausoleum exactly the same shape, and the entrance to it is opposite the entrance to the Pantheon, if you draw a straight line on the map.

Agrippa ordered the temple to be richly decorated: the floor was paved with marble, and the columns had bronze capitals. The decorations of the deities also did a great job: for example, the earrings at the statue of the goddess Venus were made of pearls that belonged to Cleopatra herself.

The building of the Pantheon was destroyed 2 times: the first time by a fire in 80 AD, and the second time by a lightning strike in 110 AD. During the restoration of 125, almost nothing remained of the original temple of Agrippa, but nevertheless, Emperor Hadrian ordered the name of the founder to be perpetuated on the pediment.

But the Roman Pantheon survived the crisis and fall of the Western Roman Empire and in 608 was donated by the Byzantine emperor Phoca to Pope Boniface IV, and in 609 it was consecrated as the Catholic Church of St. Mary and the Martyrs.

The gilded dome was removed in 663 and replaced with lead. In 1625, the bronze elements of the portico and, possibly, the sculpture from the pediment were given to the master Bernini to make the famous canopy in the Cathedral of St. Bernini also designed two bell towers for the Pantheon, which were criticized a lot, calling them “donkey ears”. And in 1883 they were dismantled.

Stendhal, in his Walks in Rome, wrote that the Pantheon is truly the most beautiful of all the heritage of Roman antiquity, it has suffered so little from time that the ancient Romans must have seen it exactly the same.

How to get there?

The entire city center is an area for walking. It is more convenient to move here on foot, at the same time you can take a good look at everything. But Rome was not lucky with the metro, it is one of the most inconvenient of those in which I have ever traveled. Yes, and there are only three branches, you won’t get anywhere. But as an excuse for the builders of the subway, we can say that with so many ancient monuments underground, building a convenient subway here is not an easy task.

So, it is best to stay in the center when visiting Rome. If you live outside the walls that encircle the city center, then taking the subway is unavoidable. Tickets are sold in special ticket machines that are at each station, the menu is there on different languages. Basically, it's pretty easy to use.

The closest stations to the Pantheon are Colosseo, Barberini or Spagna. True, from any of them to walk at least 15-20 minutes. For me personally, this has never been a problem, as a rule, it's still faster than waiting for a bus, and it's not so easy for a beginner to figure out buses in the city center.

Although the streets of Rome are confusing, finding the Pantheon is easy. Now most people have a navigator in their smartphone, or you can take a paper map from the tourist office. Or just follow the flow of people, it will lead you where you need to go. If you get lost, signs hang everywhere - after all, the tourist capital of Europe. But if someone is still too lazy to walk, from the Colosseo metro station by bus 87 you can get to the Via Torre Argentina stop, and then walk 3 minutes along Torre Argentina to the Pantheon.

Opening hours and visiting rules

The Pantheon is open to the public daily from 9.00 to 19.30, on Sundays until 18.00. On the days of public holidays on January 1, May 1 and December 25, it is impossible to visit the Pantheon. On other holidays from 9.00 to 13.00.

Entrance to the Pantheon is free, as in any functioning church. And the rules of visiting are like those of a regular church, that is, you will be asked to observe silence and a dress code. Shoulders and legs above the knee must be covered. Usually, at the entrance to any temple, there is a basket with scarves that you can put on or wrap around your waist, since in hot climates, most go in T-shirts and shorts. But since there are always a lot of tourists in the Pantheon, no one really follows this, and you can enter as is.

Every Saturday at 17.00, Catholic masses are held in the temple, which anyone can listen to. On church holidays, masses begin at 10.30, the schedule usually hangs inside at the entrance to the temple.

Why is it worth seeing the Pantheon in Rome?

The Pantheon is valuable, first of all, for its design features. Its dome was the largest concrete dome of this type for its time - its diameter is 43.44 m. The outer walls of the temple hide the dome by 2/3, corridors with windows are laid inside the walls. Walls of this thickness and height were built to support the dome's colossal weight of 5 tons. It remains to this day the largest concrete dome in the world. The inner surface is divided into 5 rows with 28 caissons each - this is a square recess in the dome, designed to reduce its weight. 28 was considered the ideal number by the ancients.

As I wrote above, from all sides, except for the main facade, the building is more than modest. The fact is that in ancient times these three sides were simply not visible due to neighboring buildings. Therefore, it is not something that was not decorated, but even built from different materials- tuff, travertine and brick.

But inside the Pantheon is truly magnificent. Although basically everything catholic churches richly decorated in Italy. When you enter inside, the first thing that strikes you is the size and magic pillar light entering through a round hole in the dome. On a sunny day, when it was shining at the zenith, the beam becomes practically "real". By the way, the hole in the dome is the only source natural light temple. Now, of course, there is electricity inside, and there is light at any time of the day.

The interior of the temple is made using multi-colored marble - Italians love to make everything luxurious. Along the entire perimeter, 6 trapezoidal niches were made in the thickness of the walls, separated from the main space by two columns. And opposite the entrance there is a semicircular niche, on the contrary, it is open, and serves as the main altar of the temple. Between the niches, the temple is decorated with 8 aedicules - these are also niches, but on a pedestal with a pediment and columns. In ancient Roman architecture, statues of the gods were placed in them. As in any Catholic church, there are benches for worshipers in the middle.

During the Renaissance, the Pantheon was used for the burial of famous people. Here you can find the graves of the famous artists Raphael and Annibale Caracci, and among the royals are buried Margherita of Savoy, King Umberto I and Victor Emmanuel II.

The floor of the Pantheon is not completely flat, but has a slight slope to rainwater flowed into 22 holes specially designed for this purpose. There is a legend that the rain does not get inside due to the special movement of the air, but this is just a legend that has nothing to do with reality. On rainy days, a hole in the dome is a source of not only light, but also water.

Leaving the crowded temple on the no less crowded Piazza Rotunda, be sure to look into the neighboring basilica Santa Maria Sopra Minerva. It is a gem full of Renaissance and Baroque masterpieces.

Address: Italy Rome
Date of construction: 126 year
Coordinates: 41°53"54.8"N 12°28"36.8"E

Short description

The desire to embody the greatness of ancient Rome in architectural forms manifested itself in the Pantheon. The very first building of the ancient Roman temple of the Pantheon was built by Agrippa, the son-in-law of Emperor Octavian Augustus, in honor of the victory over Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Cape Actions.

Roman Pantheon from a bird's eye view

Around 110 AD the temple burned down from a lightning strike, and on the old foundation the emperor Hadrian in 126 AD. erected a new building, grander than the former. From the original construction of Agrippa (27 BC), only the front portico with 16 columns and the inscription made on the pediment survived: "Mark Agrippa built this for his third consulship."

High technical performance and harmony artistic image The Pantheon leads many scholars to assume that the temple was designed by Apollodorus of Damascus, the great Roman architect and favorite of Emperor Trajan.

General view of the Pantheon

The Roman Pantheon is rightfully considered an outstanding engineering achievement of antiquity. It is a massive round building covered with a grandiose hemispherical dome. The dome with a diameter of more than 43 meters does not suppress the visitor with its power, but solemnly rises above the head, like a vault of heaven.

Until the end of the 19th century, not a single domed temple could surpass the “hemisphere” of the Roman Pantheon in size. The architects of the Renaissance admired the dome. Michelangelo studied its design while working on the design of St. Peter's Basilica.

Roman Pantheon from the rear

All-seeing eye of the Pantheon

The Pantheon has no windows. The only source of light is a 9-meter round hole at the top of the dome, symbolizing the heavenly all-seeing eye. The hole is not glazed, and the light penetrating through it is not scattered in space, but is accumulated in the form of a huge light column. According to the Italian professor Giulio Magli, the Pantheon was used as a giant sundial. The direction and shape of the sun's rays change throughout the year, and on April 21, that is, the day of the founding of Rome, the sun illuminates the entrance. The emperor, who entered the temple on this solemn day, could bathe in the rays of the sun.

Roman Pantheon - temple of pagans and Catholics

The Pantheon has survived the best other religious buildings of antiquity because it has always been a functioning temple. Initially, the Romans performed rituals here in the name of the 7 most revered gods - Neptune, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, Pluto, Mercury and Saturn. On the altar, located exactly under the dome, sacrificial animals were burned. In 609, the emperor of Byzantium Foka gave the building to Pope Boniface IV, who converted the Pantheon into a Catholic church.

Since then, the Pantheon has become "the temple of St. Mary and the Martyrs", or "Santa Maria dela Rotunda". All items associated with the pagan cult were destroyed, and instead of them magnificent frescoes on biblical scenes and statues of Christian saints appeared in the temple. Legend has it that during the consecration of the temple, pagan spirits left the Pantheon and flew out through the dome, punching a hole in it. This is how the all-seeing eye appeared, the purpose of which scientists still argue about.

Interior of the Pantheon

Roman Pantheon - national mausoleum

Outstanding Italians such as the painters B. Peruzzi, Rafael Santi and others, as well as kings Victor Emmanuel II, Umberto I and Queen Margherita are buried in the Roman Pantheon. The first celebrity buried in the Pantheon was Raphael, who died in 1520. On the marble sarcophagus of the painter, his friend, Cardinal Pietro Bembo, wrote the following epitaph: “Here lies Raphael, during whose life Mother Nature feared to be defeated forever, and after his death she was afraid to die with him.”

The Roman Pantheon is without exaggeration one of the most recognizable symbols of the Eternal City. The geometric perfection of proportions and the amazing dome of this building, the very creation of which is covered with amazing legends, is a vivid reminder of the architecture of the great Roman Empire in the historical center of modern Rome. Most eloquent was the reaction of Michelangelo, who, seeing this miracle for the first time, compared the creation of the Pantheon with the work of angels, not people.

1. When and by whom was the Roman Pantheon built

Roman legend says that once on the site of the Pantheon there was a temple dedicated to Romulus, the legendary founder and first king of Rome, and it was from this place that he ascended to heaven. And there were three temples with the conditional name "Pantheon".

The construction of the first began in 27 BC. by order Mark of Agrippa- commander, son-in-law and associate of Emperor Octavian Augustus. Many mistakenly consider Agrippa the builder of the Pantheon because of the inscription preserved on the pediment: "M. AGRIPPA L F COS TERTIVM FECIT»(“Marcus Agrippa, son of Lucius, elected consul for the third time, erected this”), however, the building he built wasdestroyed in a great fire in 80 AD. The Pantheon was rebuiltunder the emperor Domitian, but this building did not serve for a long time.

And only for the third time under the emperor Hadrian in 118-126. AD, managed to build that grandiose temple that has been standing for 1900 years. The facade of the building, built under Marcus Agrippa, was preserved, as was the inscription with his name. A pThe project of the third version of the Pantheon is attributed to Apollodorus of Damascus, a famous Greek architect and engineer, the author of Trajan's column and forum.

2. Temple of all gods

Pantheon is a group of gods belonging to a particular religion or mythology (from the Greek πάντες - everything and θεός - god). According to one version, in pagan times, the Pantheon temple was represented all major deities of the ancient Romans. In it, the altars of Mars, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter and Juno were located in a circle. The Romans offered gifts and performed ritual sacrifices to the gods in order to enlist their support and gain favor.

3. The largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world

The uniqueness of the Pantheon is in its dome, which still amazes the imagination with its gigantic size.For its time, it was a great achievement of architectural thought, a real breakthrough in the field of construction and engineering.

Only more than 1300 years later, when Brunelleschi built the dome of the Duomo in Florence, was it possible to surpass the diameter of the dome of the Pantheon. I deven in the 21st century, with all its technologies, the dome of the Pantheon remains the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world!

Comparison of internal diameters of domes:

• St. Peter's Cathedral in the Vatican (XVI-XVII centuries) - 41.47 meters
• Pantheon in Rome (II century AD) - 43.3 meters
• Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence (XIII-XV centuries) - 44 meters

Once in the Pantheon, it is hard to imagine that such a huge dome rests only on the walls (although, for a moment, their thickness is under 6 meters). The fact is that ancient Roman engineers used concrete in combination with more lightweight materials - tuff and pumice, and gradually reduced the weight and thickness of the structure closer to the center. In addition, these materials prevent the formation of microcracks.

For the 2nd century AD the erection of the giant dome of the Pantheon was a real miracle! According to legend, the emperor ordered to fill the entire space of the temple from the inside with earth mixed with gold coins. When the construction was completed, the townspeople, in search of gold coins, cleared the Pantheon from the ground in a matter of hours. A similar legend is told about the dome Duomo in Florence, during the construction of which, as it is believed, Brunelleschi was inspired precisely by the dome of the ancient Roman Pantheon.

4. Oculus - a mysterious round hole in the dome of the Pantheon

Exactly in the center of the dome of the Pantheon is the oculus (Latin oculus - eye) - the only opening through which sunlight enters the Pantheon(there are no other windows in the building). Its diameter is 9 meters.

On April 21, the birthday of Rome, sunlight through the oculus strikes exactly at the doorway, which effectively presented the appearance of the emperor in front of the crowd.In the Middle Ages, there were legends that a strange round hole in the dome was pierced by an evil spirit. G The heroes of Dan Brown's book are precisely the oculus of the Pantheonconsidered the very "devil's hole", pointing to one of the altars of the insidious Illuminati.

The main question that arises when looking at the oculus is: what happens when it rains? Through the oculus, water flows into the building, but does not flood it - in this case, drains are provided in the floor.

And the most impressive "rain» - rose petal rain (“La pioggia di petali di rose”)- can be seen on the Day of the Descent of the Holy Spirit, which is celebrated on the 50th day after Easter (that is, this date is different every year, follow the Catholic calendar). Firefighters climb onto the dome of the Pantheon and throw out thousands of rose petals. from the oculus.

On this day c the vestments of the priests are red, like the color of the petals, which recalls the “fiery tongues” of the Holy Spirit that descended on the apostles.This is an ancient tradition dating back to the early Christians, when the red rose was one of the symbols of the Holy Spirit and the blood shed by the Savior to atone for the sins of mankind.

5. The best-preserved monument of ancient architecture

The Pantheon is considered one of the best preserved monuments of ancient architecture, which has hardly been rebuilt or changed since the time of the Roman Empire. In many ways, the safety of the Pantheon is explained by the simple fact that it was timely transferred to the disposal of the church, which adapted it to its needs.

In the interior from ancient times, such details as, for example, a magnificent marble floor have been preserved.. However, Pope Urban VIII Barberini, who used bronze decorations, caused great damage to the decoration of the temple. Pantheon for the cannons of the Castel Sant'Angelo. By his act, he deserved a caustic epigram:“Quod not fecerunt Barbari, fecerunt Barberini” (“What the barbarians did not do, Barberini did”).

6. Roman Pantheon - Christian Church

The Byzantine emperor Foka handed over the Pantheon to Pope Boniface IV, and on May 13, 609, the temple of all the gods ceased to be pagan. He was consecrated as a ChristianChurch of St Mary and the Martyrs (Basilica di Santa Maria ad Martyres).

Some time the day of the consecration of the PantheonMay 13 was even celebrated as All Saints' Day, until in the middle of the VIII century the holiday was moved to the day when one of the chapels of St. Peter's Cathedral was consecrated.

Today Pantheon - active Christian church with an altar, crosses, frescoes and icons, figures of angels and saints. Divine services are held here and silence is requested, as in any other sacred place. However, to most people, the Church of St. Mary and the Martyrs is known by its old name."Pantheon", and Christian attributes do not overshadow the ancient essence of this grandiose building.

7. Who is buried in the Roman Pantheon

The Pantheon is not only a temple, but also a mausoleum. It is in the Pantheon that the tomb of the famous artist is located. Rafael Santi which is known to many. But not everyone knows that Maria Bibbiena, his bride, is buried next to Raphael. It's actually a tragic story, because Rafael's heart was given to another woman (and he may even have secretly married her). The artist, as best he could, delayed his marriage to the unloved niece of his friend and patron, the powerful Cardinal Bibbiena, until she died, without waiting for the wedding. IronicallyRafael died shortly after her, at the age of only 37.

Among other famous people in the Pantheon are buried:

• painter Annibale Carracci
• composer Arcangelo Corelli,
• first king of united Italy Victor Emmanuel II
• his son Umberto I, together with his wife Margherita, who gave the name of the most popular in the world.

8. Fountain and Egyptian obelisk in front of the Pantheon

Opposite the Pantheon in Piazza della Rotonda is a beautiful fountain (La Fontana di piazza della Rotonda). It was designed in 1575 the famous architect Giacomo della Porta, who completed the construction of the dome of St. Peter, and the implementation of his plan was entrusted to Leonardo Sormani.

In 1711, at the initiative of Pope Clement XI, the fountain was restored and modified. A pedestal appeared, decorated with the figures of four dolphins and the heraldic shields of Clement XI. An Egyptian obelisk of Pharaoh Ramses II was installed on the pedestal, which, like other obelisks in Rome, served as a kind of GPS tag for pilgrims of that time. At the top of the obelisk you can see a cross and a bronze star - one of the symbols of the same Clement XI.

In the 19th century, the marble sculptures that adorned the fountain were replaced with copies (the originals can be seen in Museum of Rome in Piazza San Pantaleo).

9. Buildings inspired by the Pantheon

In subsequent centuries, builders focused on the architectural grandeur of the Pantheon, copied and repeated it in their works. W famous giant dome of the Pantheon served role model for architects of later times: Filippo Brunelleschi designed the dome of the church of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence, and Michelangelo designed the dome of St. Peter's Basilica.

The Paris Pantheon (today the tomb of the outstanding people of France) not only bears the same name as the original Pantheon, but was clearly inspired by the architecture of this outstanding monument of ancient Roman architecture. The same can be said about the numerous American Capitols, where state structures are located.

10. Rules for visiting and working hours of the Pantheon

Until recently, entry to the Roman Pantheon was free and open to all. From May 2018, the entrance to the Pantheon is planned to be paid, the cost will be 2 euros.

As with visiting any other temple, when visiting the Pantheon, you must adhere to the dress code (no open shoulders and knees, causing appearance) and keep quiet, do not talk loudly and do not laugh.

Working hours (Monday-Saturday):

• 9:00 - 19:15

Opening hours (Sunday):

• 9:00 - 17:45

Holidays:

• 9:00 - 12:45

Please note that the Pantheon is closed on the following days:

• 1st of January
• The 1 of May
• December 25

Tourists are not allowed during worship services (holidays: 10.30, Saturday: 17.00).