The Pantheon in Rome
In the Middle Ages the Pantheon, the Roman temple of “all the gods”, became a church; in time this magnificent building with its awe-inspiring domed interior became a symbol of Rome itself. The rectangular portico screens the vast hemispherical dome: only from inside can its true scale and beauty be appreciated.
The rotunda’s height and diameter are equal: 43,3 m (142 ft). The hole at the top of the dome, the oculus, provides the only light. We owe this marvel of Roman engineering to the emperor Hadrian, who designed it (AD 118-125) to replace an earlier temple built by Marcus Agrippa, son-in-law of Augustus. The shrines that now line the wall of the Pantheon range from the Tomb of Raphael to those of the kings of modern italy.
