OUR TRIP TO ITALY WITH RICK STEVES
26
The Pantheon was the next stop.
The Pantheon (Greek for all the gods) is a 2,000-year-old former Roman temple, renowned for its massive, unreinforced concrete dome and central open oculus. Built around 125 AD by Emperor Hadrian, it is one of the best-preserved ancient monuments and has served as a Catholic church, the Basilica of St. Mary and the Martyrs, since 609 AD.
The oculus in the Pantheon is significant for its engineering genius, providing a crucial structural relief for the massive dome while also serving profound symbolic roles as a direct, unglazed "eye" connecting the earthly temple to the heavens and the gods and casting dynamic light.