The Vatican Rotunda: A Severan Monument and its Early History, c. 200 to 500

Author: Gem, Richard

Source: Journal of the British Archaeological Association, Volume 158, 2005 , pp. 1-45(45)

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Abstract:

The rotunda that stood on the site of the former Circus of Gaius and Nero beside old St Peter's in Rome was first constructed at the beginning of the 3rd century, as demonstrated by archaeological evidence. It was finally demolished only in 1777, and a clear picture of the building prior to this is established from early graphic sources. The rotunda stood over a podium-crypt; it had eight radiating exedrae at the main floor level; and it was surmounted by a clerestory and a ribbed dome. Scholarly discussion has disagreed on how much of the building belonged to the original structure, and how much may have been rebuilt at some date in the late Roman period. This paper reexamines the evidence for the form of the building and then seeks to place it within its architectural-historical context. It argues that a 3rd-century date for the whole structure is plausible, but this raises further questions about its function, context and patron. A funerary or commemorative function is probable, and this could find its context in the reigns of Caracalla and Elagabalus. The subsequent history of the rotunda up to the end of the 5th century is reviewed, including the impact of the construction of St Peter's basilica, and the burials of members of Honorius' family in an adjacent rotunda mausoleum.

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1179/006812805x73271

Publication date: 2005-10-01

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