Ara Pacis and the Pantheon

Wednesday June 23, 2010

Although we only had an afternoon class, for some students the day started early at Joel Nafuma Refugee Center. Several students bussed to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church to volunteer and teach English to refugees living in Rome.

The rest of our class was able to explore until 3 pm when our art history class was scheduled to convene. However, it turned out we were able to start an hour early so that we could return in time to watch the US play against Algeria in the World Cup. A perfect example of how we’ve adapted to the Italian culture, where time is flexible and life works at a slower pace. After all, who wouldn’t like a mid day 2-hour siesta break before heading back to work?

Our first historical piece of art we visited was the Ara Pacis, an alter to Peace. In 2006 there was a new museum built to surround the Ara Pacis, designed by an American architect Richard Meier.

My first impression was, “Wow, it actually looks modern.” Since we have arrived to Rome, we’ve all noticed that there is a lack of large corporations and companies, and a lack of new modern buildings. This pristine white, angular and edgy building seemed so futuristic juxtaposed to the colorfully painted, quaint Italian buildings nearby with their decorative moldings and potted flowers hanging over the many balconies.

Apparently this is the only new building built within Rome in the last 50 years, and highly controversial because it did not fit in with the rest of Roman buildings. Although I didn’t like the outside very much because of the sharp edges and its very rectangular shape, the inside was beautiful; clean, spacious, and had plenty of sunlight. It made me a little nostalgic of Seattle, with their comparatively newer buildings.

Along the outside of the actual Ara Pacis there were friezes which depicted a procession where even children were included; a rare sight in a processional frieze. The idea behind this is that in times of peace their society would be prosperous and fertile; hence the children.

The Ara Pacis was interesting because it was found broken in pieces. The alter has since been restored, and I thought it was cool to see where the authentic ancient marble, with the beautiful swirls of color, was differentiated from the pieces of marble used to restore the alter. There were large panels of the friezes missing, so it was cool how people were able restore it based on other paintings and artwork that documented this alter.

Also interesting were the openings along the base of the Ara Pacis. For every procession there would have been an animal sacrifice. These holes were designed so that the blood would be able to drain out. Those Romans really planned ahead.

After the Ara Pacis we trekked to the Pantheon. It was gigantic, with plenty of tourists around. Kristin delivered an excellent presentation on the Pantheon, and how no one really knows to this day how the massive dome was built, or how it is able to stay standing. There were many theories, including one where the Pantheon had been filled with dirt mixed with gold. This way the builders could more easily finish the domed high ceiling. Once it was completed, all the people quickly excavated the dirt in hopes of hitting it rich. Although this story is completely false, it’s still a fun story that tries to explain the construction of the Pantheon

The inside of the Pantheon was gorgeous with colorful paintings and marble. The first thing I looked to was the oculus though, the only light source inside the Pantheon. It was definitely bigger than I thought it is, almost 9 meters in diameter. The second thing that I noticed was that the sunlight was so intense at that moment that it created a spotlight onto the side of the building. I could imagine how the Pantheon would have been placed astrologically aligned in its specific location, with certain paintings placed so that throughout the day the sunlight would illuminate them.

Once we finished our tour of the Pantheon, we rushed back to Campo de Fiori, to head to our usual tables at Magnolia to watch the World Cup game. Amazingly the US scored a goal in the 90^th minute of the game! Go USA!

Overall, this was pretty much an awesome day. The end.