Temple of Saturn

There was an abundance of temple ruins in the Roman Forum, but I chose to highlight the Temple of Saturn ruins for two different reasons. Firstly, the Temple of Saturn is one of the best preserved temples in the forum, although unfortunately there is so little left of the temples in the forum that even this temple is not well preserved. The second reason is that the festival of Saturn, occurring during December, heavily influenced the celebration of Christmas once Rome converted to Christianity. The temple itself is located on a high podium, closer to the sun, continuing the pattern seen in other pagan ruins. The temple once contained a statue of Saturn, connected to agriculture, which was the original source of Rome's wealth. As a result, the temple was chosen to house the State Treasury. The temple has been rebuilt several times throughout Rome's history.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Christian History of the Colosseum

Image
The Colosseum was unfortunately not particularly well-preserved after the fall of the Roman Empire, as valuable materials were stolen. However, Christians eventually took an interest in the Flavian Amphitheater. Use of the Colosseum by religious bodies began in 1309, during the Popes' period of residence at Avignon. The use of the space by Christians continued in 1490 under Pope Innocent VIII, who authorized the Passion of the Christ to be performed on Good Friday. In 1519, at the area where these performances occurred, a chapel was built dedicated to S. Maria della Pieta, which is still in use today. The idea of consecrating the Colosseum spread during the second half of the 16th Century, influenced by the Counter-Reformation. During the 17th Century, the Colosseum was believed to be a place of martyrdom, although little evidence supports that belief. Nevertheless, Clement X dedicated the monument to the Passion of the Christ and the Martyrs. Today, the Pope still stops in front o...
Read more