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Divo Adriano
Pantheon
Pantheon architecture
Pantheon: (Italian) bibliography
Pantheon: the dome
Pantheon, restaurations
Poseidonion
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Address: via della Palombella
Leaning against the posterior walls of the "Rotonda", are the conspicuous remains of the Neptunus Basilica, also called porch or temple, built by Agrippa to worthily celebrate his naval victories in 25 a.c. together with the Pantheon and the Thermae.
The remains which are in the posterior part of the Pantheon entrance, are of a large rectangular hall, of which the northern half remains visible, with a large niche in the middle and two smaller ones on the sides.
It is 45 m. long and 19 m. large : it is built in brick work, formely covered with marble slabs ; in every side there were four columns, two of "pavonazzetto" and two of red granite which supported the pendentives of the vault in triple transepts.
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Above the corinthian capitals and of the architraves thre was a graceful frieze with tridents, dolphins, shells, of which there still remain some fragments put back in place.
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The entrance was in the opposite half which is still partly buried under the street and the houses on the south. As far as there were no direct connection with the Pantheon the hall is one with the "Rotonda", but it seems that it has been put up some time after, may be in relation with all the exterior counterfort of the monument.
Up to the recent studies on this zona of the Campus Martius, it was believed part of the therms of Agrippa; now it has been proved that it was the Neptune basilica renewed by Adrian and identical to the Poseidonion that Dione Cassio mentions among the edifices which were damaged by the ruinous fire of the 19 d.c. under Titus.
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