Marvels of Rome: Colosseum
Title
Marvels of Rome: Colosseum
Description
Benedict’s Colosseum is not the site of gory battles, martyred Christians, or blood games played for the amusement of the Roman people and the glorification of the fighters. Instead, he speaks of a grand temple to the Sun, “of marvelous beauty and greatness… covered with a heaven of gilded brass, where thunder and lightning and glittering fire were made, and where rain was shed through slender tubes.” (28). Within the Colosseum are supercelestial signs with “the planets Sol and Luna, which were drawn along in there proper chariots” (28). He also speaks of Phoebus, the sun god, whose feet were firmly rooted in the earth while his head reached into the heavenly heights and he held in one celestial hand an orb meant to signify Rome’s rule over the world.
Unfortunately, this miraculous temple was destroyed by the blessed Sylvester who feared that orators who came to Rome would wander through it and other profane buildings instead of churches- furthering paganism rather than celebrating Christianity. He kept the head and hands of Phoebus in the Lateran to remember the temple, but they are now known falsely and vargarly as Samson’s Ball.
Unfortunately, this miraculous temple was destroyed by the blessed Sylvester who feared that orators who came to Rome would wander through it and other profane buildings instead of churches- furthering paganism rather than celebrating Christianity. He kept the head and hands of Phoebus in the Lateran to remember the temple, but they are now known falsely and vargarly as Samson’s Ball.
Creator
Abbie Smith (2020)
Source
Benedict. The Marvels of Rome. Edited by Francis Morgan Nichols. Second. New York, New York: Italica Press, 1986.
Date
1450
Identifier
marvelscolosseum_2019
Coverage
Spatial Coverage
Piazza del Colosseo, 1, 00184 Roma RM
Description
Benedict’s Colosseum is not the site of gory battles, martyred Christians, or blood games played for the amusement of the Roman people and the glorification of the fighters. Instead, he speaks of a grand temple to the Sun, “of marvelous beauty and greatness… covered with a heaven of gilded brass, where thunder and lightning and glittering fire were made, and where rain was shed through slender tubes.” (28). Within the Colosseum are supercelestial signs with “the planets Sol and Luna, which were drawn along in there proper chariots” (28). He also speaks of Phoebus, the sun god, whose feet were firmly rooted in the earth while his head reached into the heavenly heights and he held in one celestial hand an orb meant to signify Rome’s rule over the world.Unfortunately, this miraculous temple was destroyed by the blessed Sylvester who feared that orators who came to Rome would wander through it and other profane buildings instead of churches- furthering paganism rather than celebrating Christianity. He kept the head and hands of Phoebus in the Lateran to remember the temple, but they are now known falsely and vargarly as Samson’s Ball.