Ancient monuments Italy

Symbol of the city, it was erected in 27 B.C. in honour of the Emperor Augustus who had just connected the via Flaminia to the via Emilia. The construction has the peculiarity of being the oldest Roman arch to have come down to us. Built in white Istrian stone, it has a large opening framed by Corinthian columns. The battlements are much later: they were added in the Middle Ages. The arch was indeed the main gate of the city until the 1930s when the ramparts were demolished.

Large and imposing patrician remains (90 pieces) built in the iie century B.C., where the farm held a primordial place. Many dependencies and easements. Note also the superb decoration (i. e., I.C. 62. ) and the famous fresco on the red background which runs along the walls of triclinium (dining room), illustrative of the initiatic rite Dionysiac, designed for a young wife. This huge fresco is seen from left to right and represents one of the greatest antique paintings in the world.

It is the largest and most sumptuous of the forums. The Trajan Forum is a 300 m x 190 m quadrilateral, built in 112 AD. It is best known for housing the famous column that bears his name. Bounded by the basilica Ulpia, the forums of Caesar and Augustus and the markets of Trajan, this forum was designed by the great architect Apollodore of Damascus. For its construction, an entire hill was razed to the ground between the Quirinal and the Capitol, to give the necessary scale to the complex.

Trajane column. At a height of 10 Roman feet, corresponding to 30 m, it tells in 17 marble rings and 155 paintings the story of Trajan's victorious campaigns against Dacia, today's Romania. It is the main monument of the forum. The column is inflated to half height, to avoid the impression of concavity that its height would cause; the relative size of the figures in its bas-reliefs in relation to the whole increases as the viewer moves away from it. Try it, it's obvious! The 2,500 scenes that adorn the column provide very valuable insights into the military techniques and equipment of the time. To find out more, casts displayed at the EUR-Museum of Roman Civilization make it possible to analyse the smallest details. The base of the column housed the emperor Trajan's gold funeral urn, unfortunately it was stolen in the Middle Ages. The statue of Saint Peter, at the top of the column, has replaced the statue of the emperor since the 17th century, which is now lost

Herculaneum was an ancient Roman town in the Italian region of Campania, destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD and preserved for centuries in a volcanic matrix. It was brought back to life in the 18th century by the Bourbon-Deux-Siciles family, who ruled Naples. Today, the Herculaneum Archaeological Park allows visitors to discover the remains of this ancient Roman city. It's advisable to buy tickets online to avoid waiting times, especially during peak periods. Visitors under 12 years of age must be accompanied. The park also offers discounts for young people aged 18 to 25.