Ancient Buildings.—Ancient Rome was adorned with a vast number of splendid buildings, including temples, palaces, public halls, theaters, amphitheaters, baths, porticoes, monuments, etc., of many of which we can now form only a very imperfect idea. The oldest and most sacred temple was that of Jupiter Capitolinus, on the Capitoline Hill. The Pantheon, a temple of various gods (now Church of S. Maria Rotonda), is still in excellent preservation. It is a great circular building with a dome roof of stone 140 feet wide and 140 feet high. Other temples were the Temple of Apollo, which Augustus built of white marble, on the Palatine, containing a splendid library, which served as a place of re sort to the poets; the Temple of Min erva, which Pompey built in the Campus Martius, and which Augustus covered with bronze; the Temple of Peace, once the richest and most beautiful temple in Rome, built by Vespasian, in the Via Sacra, which contained the treasures of the temple of Jerusalem, a splendid li brary, and other curiosities, but was burned during the reign of Commodus; the temple of the Sun, which Aurelian erected to the E. of the Quirinal; and the magnificent temple of Venus, which Ceesar caused to be built to her as the origin of his family. The principal pal ace of ancient Rome was the Palatium or imperial palace, on the Palatine Hill, a private dwelling-house enlarged and adopted as the imperial residence by Au gustus. Succeeding emperors extended and beautified it.
Nero built an immense palace which was burned in the great fire. He began to replace it by another of similar ex tent, which was not completed till the reign of Domitian. Among the theaters, those of Pompey, Cornelius Balbus, and Marcellus were the most celebrated. That of Pompey, in the Campus Mar tius, was capable of containing 40,000 persons. Of the Theater of Marcellus, completed 13 B. c., a portion still re mains. The most magnificent of the amphitheaters was that of Titus, com pleted A. D. 80, now known as the Coli seum or Colosseum. Though only one third of the gigantic structure remains, the ruins are still stupendous. The prin cipal of the circuses was the Circus Maximus, between the Palatine and Aventine, which was capable of con taining 260,000 spectators. With slight exception its walls have entirely disap peared, but its form is still distinctly traceable. The porticoes or colonnades, which were public places used for recrea tion or for the transaction of business, were numerous in the ancient city, as were also the basilicas or public halls. Among them may be noticed the splendid Basil ica Julia, commenced by and com pleted by Augustus; and the Basilica Porcia, which was built by Cato the censor.
The public baths or therms: in Rome were also very numerous. The largest were the Therm of Titus, part of the substructure of which may still be seen on the Esquiline Hill; the Therms? of Caracalla, even larger, extensive remains of which still exist in the S. E. of the city; and the Therm of Diocletian, the largest and most magnificent of all, part of which is converted into a church. Of the triumphal arches the most celebrated are those of Titus (A. D. 81), Severus (A. D. 203), and that of Constantine (A. D. 311), all in or near the Forum and
all well preserved structures; that of Drusus (B. C. 8), in the Appian Way, much mutilated; that of Gallienus (A. D. 262) on the Esquiline Hill, in a de graded style of architecture. Among the columns the most beautiful was Tra jan's Pillar in the Forum of Trajan, 147 feet in height, still standing. The bas reliefs with which it is enriched, ex tending in spiral fashion from base to summit, represent the exploits of Trajan, and contain about 2,500 half and whole human figures. A flight of stairs with in the pillar leads to the top. The most celebrated of ancient sewers is the Clo aca Maxima, ascribed to Tarquinius Priscus, a most substantial structure, the outlet of which is still to be seen.
The Roman aqueducts were formed by erecting one or several rows of arches superimposed on each other across a valley, and making the structure sup port a waterway or canal, and by pierc ing through hills which interrupted the watercourse. Some of them brought water from a distance of upward of 60 miles. Among others, the Aqua Paola, or Aqua Trajana, and the Aqua Mar zia, still remain, and contribute to the supply of the city, and also its numer ous important ornamental fountains. Among the magnificent sepulchral mon uments, the chief were the mausoleum of Augustus in Campus Martius; and that of Hadrian, on the W. bank of the Tiber, now the fortress of modern Rome, and known as the Castle of St. Angelo. The catacombs of Rome are subterra nean galleries which were used as burial places and meeting places, chiefly by the early Christians, and which extend under the city itself as well as the neighboring country. The chief are the catacombs of Calixtus, St. Prtextatus on the Via Appia ; of St. Priscilla, 2 miles beyond the Porta Salora ; of St. Agnese, outside the Porta Pia; of S. Sebastiano, beneath the church of that name, etc. See CAT ACOMBS.
Modern Rome.—It was not till the 17th century that the modern city was extended to its present limits on the right bank, by a wall built under the pontificates of Urban VIII. (1623-1644) and Innocent X. (1644-1655), and in closing both the Janiculum and the Vat ican hills. The boundary wall on the left or E. bank of the river follows the same line as that traced by Aurelian in the 3d and must in many parts be identical with the original structure. The walls on both banks are built of brick, with occasional portions of stone work, and on the outside are about 55 feet high. The greater part dates from A. D. 271 to 276. The city is entered by 12 gates (several of those of earlier date being now walled up) and several railway accesses. Since Rome became the capital of united Italy it has lost much of its ancient picturesque appear ance, and has acquired the look of a great modern city with wide, straight streets of uniform-looking tenements hav ing little distinctive character. The ex tensive excavations carried out have laid completely bare the remains of many of the grandest monuments of ancient Rome, notably the whole of Forum Ro manum and the Via Sacra, the remains of the Temples of Saturn and of Castor and Pollux, the Temples of Vespasian, of Antoninus and Faustina, the Temple of Vesta, etc.