روما
The Pantheon is the best-preserved monument of ancient Rome. Its immense dome, open to the sky through the central oculus, is still, almost two thousand years on, the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world. Once a temple to all the gods, then a Christian church, today it holds the tombs of kings and artists, among them one of the greatest painters of the Renaissance.
The story of the Pantheon
The first Pantheon was raised between 27 and 25 BC at the wish of one of Augustus's closest collaborators, whose name can still be read today in the bronze-lettered inscription on the pediment. Damaged by the fires of AD 80 and 110, the building was rebuilt in its present form by an emperor between AD 118 and 125; out of respect, the name of the original builder was left on the pediment. In 609 Pope Boniface IV consecrated it as a Christian church, and it was this very transformation that saved it from the plundering that wiped out so many other temples.
The dome and the oculus
The engineering masterpiece is the dome, still the largest ever built in unreinforced concrete: its diameter is exactly equal to the building's internal height, so a perfect sphere would fit inside. It rests on the Rotonda, a cylindrical wall more than 6 metres thick. At its centre opens the oculus, about 9 metres across and the only source of natural light; the rain that comes in drains away through 22 holes in the middle of the floor. The Roman builders lightened the vault with coffers and with ever lighter materials towards the top, right up to pumice.
The illustrious tombs
From the Renaissance onwards the Pantheon became the resting place of famous people. Here lies one of the supreme painters of the Renaissance, beneath a celebrated Latin epitaph. Here too are the tombs of the Kings of Italy Victor Emmanuel II and Umberto I, and of Queen Margherita.
Visiting the Pantheon
The monument looks onto Piazza della Rotonda, buzzing with cafés and with the fountain topped by an Egyptian obelisk. Outside, the portico with its sixteen monolithic granite columns makes a striking first impression. Inside, the polychrome marble and the coffered dome will take your breath away. An essential stop on the map for understanding the genius of ancient Rome.
