Tom and Lauren Take Europe: Rome

ROME! What an amazing city! When we arrived in Rome we went straight to the Roman Forum and Colosseum. We only had enough time to do one that day so we picked the Roman Forum. This was interesting because not even a week ago we were in Athens learning about ancient Greek history and Roman and Greek history are very closely related so it was fun to hear both sides! The Roman Forum was once the heart of the city. People from all social statuses could come here to talk, shop, do business, and enjoy each others company. This area was also where citizens would get their news, soldiers would talk about the military, they would chat about the latest gladiator games, and politicians would explain the latest laws that were being passed. In this area is where the Romans created the first thoughts of a "sewer system". They did a lot of there trading in this area and decided they wanted to "clean it up" and that is how the idea began. Here are some pictures of the Roman Forum!

Arch of Titus

The arch was built by Emperor Domitian in A.D 82 to commemorate his brother Titus and his victories in battle.

Basilica of Maxentius

This was the largest building in the forum. When Tom and I saw this building for the first time we were completely blown away. In 312 AD how could they possibly create something this large with the tools they had? It truly is amazing!

Temple of Romulus

This temple was dedicated to the son of Emperor Maxentius after he passed away. This was thought to be the library of the forum. In 525 it became the church of the forum. The bronze doors on this temple are the originals and the locks still work!

Temple of Antoninus and Faustina

This temple was created in 141 AD by Emperor Antoninus Pius and was dedicated to his wife Faustina. When Antoninus passed away in 161 AD the temple was dedicated to the both of them by Marcus Aurelius.

This is where Julius Caesars body was burned. If you look close enough you can see a few flowers on this rock.

Temple of Saturn

Temple of Castor and Pollux

View from Palatine Hill

House of Augustus

Stadium and Severan Complex

Venue for foot races, was too small for chariots.

The next day we headed to the Colosseum. We arrived bright and early so when we got inside it felt like we had the whole place to ourselves for the first half hour, it was incredible! The Colosseum is in the center of Rome and was created by concrete and sand and is the largest amphitheater ever built. This building was started in 72 AD under the rule of Emperor Vespasian. The Colosseum could hold 50,000 to 80,000 people. Early in its history they used this building for mock naval battles but later was just used for gladiator contests. (man vs man or man vs beast). The colosseum was eventually majorly destroyed during an earthquake and what is standing now is just the frame. The original Colosseum had statues surrounding the entire theater and was decorated with marble and beautiful paintings.

Anyone was allowed to go to the events, they had different levels of seating for the different social classes. Today they have stone work with the names of many 5th century senators carved into the stone as a way of "reserving" their seat for the games. Many spectators would carve scenes from the gladiator events into the marble seating. They would carves names, pictures of the beast, or the gladiator. This was known as a form of "graffiti".

What you see in this picture is underneath the floor of the Colosseum. In these little rooms is where they kept the beasts, gladiators, and props used for the show. They would use a pulley system to raise and lower the beasts to the arena. The original floor was actually wooden planks with sand over them.

The "50 Yard" mark. This is a box were the emperor would have sat.

Victor Emmanuel II Monument

The Pantheon! (temple of every god) This project was finished by Emperor Hadrian in 126 AD but was started by Marcus Agrippa. This building has large granite corinthian columns. This is one the best preserved ancient roman buildings mainly because it was in continuous use throughout history. Since the 7th century the church is dedicated to St. Mary and the Martyrs. The bronze doors on this building are also the original and still work today!

The tomb of the famous artist Raphael

Trevi Fountain

Famous tapestries created by Raphael

"The School of Athens" by Raphael

The Last Judgement in the Sistine Chapel painted by Michelangelo

When God created Man

The Sistine Chapel completely blew our minds. It was crazy to see all of the famous paintings in this small room. The ceiling was created by Michelangelo and he painted it while standing with his arm above his head. I couldn't imagine how difficult that must have been!