Browse Items (122 total)
The Lex Vespasiana
The Lex Vespasiana is a bronze tablet made in 69 AD to commemorate the emperor Vespasian’s acceptance of various imperial privileges from the Senate and people of Rome. Today, the Lex Vespasiana is installed in the Capitoline Museum. In the 14th…
San Angelo in Pescheria
San Angelo in Pescheria is located just north of Tiber Island and the Theater of Marcellus and just east of the Jewish Ghetto. The church was constructed in the mid-eighth century by Pope Stephen II in one of the porches of what used to be the…
The Piazza Navona
The Piazza Navona is placed just west of the Pantheon. Today it is a bustling hub for both tourists and locals alike, with restaurants and bars lining the edges to provide a pleasant outdoor dining experience. However the piazza was not always the…
A French Gothic Ciborium in an Italian Medieval City
Upon entering Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, one’s eyes are attracted to the large carved stone structure that appears to compliment the apse’s mosaic. This structure is a ciborium and is one of the well-known creations of the sculptor Arnolfo di…
From Grills to Grievances: San Lorenzo in Panisperna
According to legend, San Lorenzo in Panisperna is located on the spot where the martyr St. Lawrence of Rome was grilled to death. It was likely constructed at the beginning of the fourth century Constantine’s reign, although records of the church are…
Farms, Families, and Open Space
As previously discussed, the disabitato had a bad reputation amongst Romans before the 12th century due to its uncultivated land, antique ruins, and lack of human settlement. However, starting in the 12th century, agriculture became more common in…
The Savelli Ruins on the Aventine Hill
During the Middle Ages there was a general movement towards habitation along the Tiber, partly because the climate allowed for less flooding of the river and partly because of a need for water due to the lack of working aqueducts. However, there is…
The Porte San Sebastiano
The Porta San Sebastiano is a gate in the Aurelian Walls. It was originally called the Porta Appia, named after the Appian Way, which the gate crosses. The gate was built as part of an extensive series of fortifications under Emperor Aurelian, in the…
Borgo prostitutes' races
A resident in the Borgo area in 1503 would have witnessed prostitute races ending in St.Peter’s square. The participants were not limited to this certain group: interestingly, children, youth and the elderly would run nude while prostitutes would…
San Crisogono
The church of San Crisogono, located near the Tiber River on the Via della Lungaretta, was constructed in 1123 by Cardinal John of Crema. This 12th century church rests, however, on the structure of a 4th century Christian church, the original San…
The Scourge of Father Tiber: Flood Markers in Rome
Walking along the bank, the Tiber looks like a formidable river. During the flood season the current is swift — carrying branches and other debris down the river— and the water level can rise above the bike paths that are now populated by bicyclists,…
Capo di Bove
Built upon the ancient tomb of Cecilia Metella, this massive fortress derives its name from the ox-head images that decorate its walls. In the 11th century the fortress was incorporated into a larger walled complex. Later on, in the 14th century,…
San Giorgio in Velabro
Built in the 7th century upon a 5th century deaconry, which in turn was built over a complex from the 3rd century, the Chiesa di San Giorgio in Velabro has an irregular layout. The church was completed under Pope Leo II (611-683 C.E.), who dedicated…
The Tomb of Alfanus at Santa Maria in Cosmedin
The Tomb of Alfanus is located on the porch of Santa Maria in Cosmedin. Attributed to a wealthy, twelfth-century noble, this tomb is one of the best examples of twelfth-century tombs in Rome. Although perhaps unremarkable to the untrained eye, John…
The Persistence of The Statue of Marcus Aurelius
The statue of Marcus Aurelius now rests on the hilltop of Piazza Campidoglio. While the original statue is inside of the Capitoline museum, a replica of the statue stands at the center of Piazza Campidoglio. The statue is the only surviving statue of…
The Column of Flagellation at the Basilica di Santa Prassede
Upon entering the San Zeno Chapel, located in the Basilica di Santa Prassede, a dark marble object, spotted with white, lies in a niche to the right (Figure 1). The object appears to be an oddly large chess piece, but is allegedly the column upon…
The Heart of Medieval Rome
As the city of Rome regained both population and prominence in the late middle ages, built up areas that had retained population slowly linked together to form a single coherent inhabited area that became known as the abitato, or inhabited area. The…
A Medieval House from Street Level
The beautiful late medieval house at this site retains features that demonstrate the fundamental style of medieval architecture, although later construction has decreased their prominence. The dual arches, filled by a later added material, are…
Columns and Colonnades as Spolia
The house at this site presents an intersection of medieval and ancient Rome. The colonnaded portico, clearly distinct from the otherwise modern appearance of the house's exterior, is an excellent example showing the practice of using ancient marble…
13th-Century Flood Marker
Walking along the bank, the Tiber gives the impression of a formidable river. During the flood season the current is swift — carrying branches and other debris down the river— and the water level can rise above the bike paths that are now populated…
Porta San Paolo
Just northeast to the Pyramid of Gaius Cestuis, Porta San Paolo now serves as the entrance into the Museo della Via Ostiense. However, entry through the Porta San Paolo brings one to a very different setting--back in the Middle Ages. As an important…
The Monte Mario as a Portal to the City
"Monte Mario was the first overlook of the city for all travellers and pilgrims coming south along the old Via Cassia and then the Via Francigena into Rome. It was the first chance for those who had survived long and arduous journeys to finally look…
Bramante's Tempietto
On top of the Gianicolo Hill (also known as the Janiculum) in Trastevere sits San Pietro in Monotorio, built most likely by Baccio Pontelli. Inside a small courtyard Bramante’s high renaissance architectural masterpiece, The Tempietto (1502-1510),…
Landscape Imaginaries at the Villa Farnesina
Today, the Villa Farnesina is known for its impressive set of frescoes. These frescoes feature imagery of astrological time-telling symbolism, ancient mythology, precious materials, and pastoral landscapes. Diane Spencer suggests that some of the…
Villa Farnesina
The Villa Farnesina is a beautiful Renaissance building near the entrance to Trastevere. Across the river from central Rome and its namesake family's main residence: The Palazzo Farnese, the contemporary museum and gallery provide an excellent…
The Hospital-cum-Monastery at San Tommaso in Formis
Perched about halfway up the Caelian Hill is San Tommaso in Formis, built into the side of the Aqua Claudia. The history of the complex begins with John of Matha, a Provencal priest. Shortly after his ordination, he was inspired to found a religious…
Medieval Gardens: Cloister of SS. Quattro Coronati
The restored garden in the cloister at SS. Quattro Coronati is a beautiful, private, natural space tucked within the walls of a monastery. This type of garden was often very common in the Middle Ages in a variety of settings. In the late 13th and…
The Acqua Paola: Roman Remains in a Baroque Landscape
Overlooking a beautiful view of Rome, the Acqua Paola is an imposing structure that dominates the hillside between San Pietro in Montorio and the Piazza Garibaldi. But this fountain sits on top of the remnants of a long history of Roman waterways.…
Santa Maria in Porta Paradisi
The Chiesa di Santa Maria in Porta Paradisi, located in the Campo Marzio district and in existence since the 9th century, was rebuilt and given its name in 1523 as part of the extension of an adjoining hospital, which in turn was part of the…
San Biagio: Benedictine Rule to Franciscan Control
Founded in the 10th century by the Benedictines, the San Biagio Hospice was built near the edge of the Roman city wall. It was a part of the San Cosimato Monastery complex during the Benedictine rule (the two are separated by only 250 meters). San…