The Pantheon

1. The Pantheon • The Pantheon is perhaps Rome’s second most famous building after the Colosseum • The word Pantheon comes from the Greek words “pan” and “theion” meaning “all the gods” • It was literally a place for Romans to worship all the gods in their religion

2. THE PANTHEON

3. The Pantheon Cont’d • The Pantheon is the largest unreinforced solid concrete dome in the world • It was built around 126 AD by the emperor Hadrian

4. Pantheon Cont’d • The Oculus (8 metres wide) is the only source of light into the temple • The inside of the dome is covered with coffers, which are decorative inset squares • The coffers were meant to lessen the weight of the ceiling (a heavy dome would have collapsed)

5. Pantheon Cont’d • The Pantheon feature many elements borrows from the Greeks • Greek style pediments were placed over the interior columns • Corinthian capitals were also placed on the columns, which were originally designed by Greek artists and architects

6. Pantheon Cont’d • The front of the Pantheon was inspired by Greek architecture and featured a portico in the post and lintel style found in many Greek and early Roman temples • The floor on the inside of the Pantheon featured a floor that was slightly slopped to allow draining (water made its way in from the oculus)

7. The Roman Empire:Sculpture

8. Roman Sculpture • The Romans preferred sculptures that were more realistic than the idealized sculptures of the Greeks • Human sculptures were often busts of important people (like emperors)

9. Emperor Augustus • One of the most famous sculptures of a Roman emperor • Augustus was the first Roman emperor, and took Rome from a republic to an empire • This sculpture is from the 1st c. AD

10. Roman Sculpture Cont’d • Roman sculpture borrowed a lot from the Greeks • More often than not, Greek artists either worked in Rome or were hired to copy Greek works of art • Most of today’s surviving examples of Greek art are actually Roman copies made by Greek and Roman artists

11. Some Examples

12. Examples • If you look closely you can notice one major similarity in all the sculptures • All of these examples are made of marble • The original Greek works were likely made of bronze • In order for the marble copies to stand upright and not break they needed something to lean against, which is why most of the figures are standing next to a tree stump (or something similar)

13. Roman Sculpture Cont’d • In summary, Roman sculpture was very similar to that of the Greeks • Greek artists continued to thrive in Roman society, as the Romans were very impressed with the Greeks • Roman sculpture tended to be more realistic rather than ideal, which is why figures are seen with wrinkles and appear aged

14. Roman Sculpture Cont’d

15. Compare GREEK ROMAN • Roman sculptures tended to show age, whereas Greek sculptures idealized the human body and made figures appear muscular and youthful

16. The End • The Romans borrowed a lot from the Greeks, especially their art and architecture • They did however innovate and invent many of their own things (the arch, concrete, etc.) • The Roman empire was at one point the largest empire in the world and spanned from Great Britain to the Middle East and North Africa • Their language, Latin (which again was influenced by Greek) became the basis for many European languages (French, Italian, Spanish)