Domus Aurea, Golden House Of N Essay Example

Palace is spreading and swallowing Rome! Let us all flee to Veii and make it our home. Yet the palace is growing so damnably fast, That it threatens to gobble up Veii at last." The construction of this grand edifice also dispelled rumors blaming Christians for the burning of Rome.

Serving as both an imposing structure and an entrance into Nero's house, prominently positioned was the Domus Transitoria. Adjacent to the main residential building, this structure seamlessly blended into the hillside with its tall hallways featuring barrel ceilings. Despite its shallow design consisting of two or three stories with east and west wings, it could easily be overlooked without careful observation.The west wing likely contained Nero and Poppaea's bedrooms, but confirming their exact location is difficult as they were probably on the second floor. This section of the building included two personal apartments with a bedroom, two additional rooms, and a chapel (Grant 172). These suites offered a clear view of the courtyard garden, which featured a central fountain that was made possible by cutting or sloping down the hill behind them (Rossiter 141).

In contrast, the east wing was smaller and less deep than the west wing. Its rooms directly faced the courtyard. The wing also housed the Hall of the Golden Vault, which led to a back corridor without any facade. Since this part of the building was built into the hillside, there were no open sides facing outward, resulting in a dark and damp hallway that extended along its length.

Atop this east wing stood an impressive octagonal hall measuring forty-two feet wide with a remarkable domed ceiling—an innovative feature for such an important structure

(Maso 52). The cupola at its peak allowed filtered light to enter similar to how it works in Pantheon. This architectural accomplishment became possible due to concrete technology. The octagonal atrium represented progress in large-scale architectural practices. Each side of its octagon shape had an opening—three leading to the courtyard suggesting it served as a welcoming area—and four more openings leading to vaulted rooms—two cross-shaped and two square—on each side.The house also had innovative gadgets and inventions like saltwater and sulphurous water baths, a hydraulic organ in the music room, and dining room ceilings with panels that showered guests with flowers and sprayed perfume through hidden pipes. These ceiling panels could be moved to reveal different designs during different parts of a meal. Suetonius claims that the banquet hall continuously rotated, resembling the movement of heavens; however, there is debate whether only the ceiling or the entire room revolved, requiring advanced technology and a significant power source (Grant 175). During this time period, artificially stained marble became fashionable. Additionally, a recent discovery in Asia Minor allowed light to enter even with closed doors, bringing innovation to architectural design (Grant 176). Art played a significant role in Nero's Golden House. The person responsible for overseeing the artwork was either named Famulus or Fabullus; however, there is uncertainty surrounding this individual. They managed a team of other artists who handled smaller tasks. Artists were not highly appreciated during this period, so Famulus would wear a full toga while painting on scaffolding as a way to demonstrate the respect painters deserved. There were two distinct types of art within Nero's house: the hallways and the rooms.The hallways in

Nero's palace were characterized by corridors with barrel-vaulted ceilings and trompe l'oeil paintings that resembled picturesque landscapes viewed through windows (Grant 164). These hallway paintings mainly depicted landscapes or impressionistic mosaics. In contrast, the rooms showcased architectural paintings of continuous colonnades, along with gilded semi-precious stones on the walls and ivory sheets on the ceilings (Maso 52).

One expensive aspect of Nero's palace decoration was sculptures. To acquire valuable sculptures without great cost, Nero sent two groups to various parts of the Roman Empire to acquire already valuable sculptures paid for from temples. This act angered many due to its sacrilegious nature as it involved stealing sculptures from these sacred places that often housed the best ones.

Nevertheless, Nero commissioned a sculpture by Zenodorus that portrayed himself. As part of the reconstruction of Domus Transitoria, a 120-foot high sculpture was placed in the center of the main colonnaded atrium. Thousands of sculptures were added by Nero to his palace known as Domus Aurea, and many can now be found in the Vatican Museum.

Despite committing suicide before his home was fully completed, Nero expressed satisfaction at being able to finally live as intended during its dedication ceremony. Unfortunately, he did not have much time to enjoy it.The Domus Aurea's grandeur displeased many and eventually led to its demolition by Vespasian. Later, Trajan built baths over the remaining parts of the structure. Today, the Colosseum stands on the site where a large lake used to be at the park's center. In celebration of the year 2000, thirty new rooms are being opened as a completely new wing of the Domus Aurea (Nero: Emperor in revolt.New York: American Heritage Press,

1970.Maso, Leonardo B.Dal..Rome of the Caesars.Firenze: Bonechi, 1974.Picard, Gilbert.Living Architecture: Roman.New York: Grosset and Dunlap Inc., 1965.Slayman, Andrew L.Rome 2000;the Eternal City Celebrates Jubilee in grand Imperial Fashion.Archeology.Jan.-Feb.2000:28 Rossiter Stuart.The Blue Guides: Rome and Environs.London: Ernest Benn Limited.).Martimer Wheeler's "Roman Art and Architecture" book was published by Oxford University Press in 1964.