A SUGGESTIVE TOUR BRINGS US FROM THE PALACE OF NERONE, THE MOST CRAZY AND WICKED EMPEROR KNOWN, TO THE DISCOVERY OF HOW ROMANS SPENT THEIR LEISURE TIME.
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A SUGGESTIVE TOUR BRINGS US FROM THE PALACE OF NERONE, THE MOST CRAZY AND WICKED EMPEROR KNOWN, TO THE DISCOVERY OF HOW ROMANS SPENT THEIR LEISURE TIME. |
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30' |
The Tour begins with a visit to the small
church of San Pietro in Vincoli, built by the Empress Eudossia in
422 a.C., which contains two treasures of incomparable importance, one
religious and the other artistic: the chains that kept Saint Peter prisoner
in the Mamertino Jail and the very famous statue of Moses sculptured
by Michelangelo (dated 1512) that adorns the Mausoleum of Giulio
II. We climb along the slopes of the Colle Esquilino.
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30' |
On the Esquilino, the highest of the roman hills, we
find the villas of the richest and most powerful roman citizens. The Auditorium
of Mecenate, where the rich counsellor of Emperor Augusto dedicated
time to reading and to shows, is what remains of his splendid villa. On
Colle Oppio we find the remains of the Baths of Tito and Traiano
and those of the most extraordinary palace of antiquity, the Domus
Aurea.
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Nerone, after the burning of Rome, built himself
a new palace: the Domus Aurea. The building extended on an area
of approximately 800.000 square meters, more than the forbidden city of
Beijing considered the largest of the world. On the area where today we
find the Colloseum he had created an artificial lake on whose shores
wild beasts lived freely and a 35 meter high statue of him stood at the
entrance of his palace city.
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1 h |
Today, of the 127 rooms remaining after 20 years of restorations, only a limited number (along a corridor about 200 meters long) can be visited, which is still an extraordinary and unforgettable experience. We enter the palace from the top of which used to fall a rain of petals on the guests and that, according to the historian Svetonio, had walls of gold and nacre. From the Corridor of the Eagles we reach the Ninfeo of Polifemo, where Nerone had created the atmosphere of a cave with a small waterfall and hundreds of stalactites. Through many other rooms we reach the Octagonal Room, a dining room that turned around on itself. |
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1 h |
We move on to one of the most frequented places
by the Romans, nobles and plebes, in their free time: the Baths of Caracalla.
Completed by the Emperor Caracalla in 217 a.C. they worked for more
than 300 years, up until when the Goti to conquer Rome ruined the aqueduct
that furnished the baths with water. They were a real beauty farm of ancient
times with pools of hot and cold water, Turkish baths, massage parlours,
art galleries and splendid gardens for healthy walks. Today the extraordinary
suggestiveness of the ruins is the frame for grand operas put in scene
during the summer period.
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ROMAInsieme - La Domus Aurea e Le Terme The largest regal palace of the world and the Beauty Farm of ancient times |
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