Pantheon! Not Parthenon

Photo credit: www.aviewoncities.com

           The seminar on Saturday was a very interesting one. The subject of the seminar was Art History. My fellow applicants and I learned many things in those 3 hours, such as architecture, Baroque, the High Renaissance period and much more. There was so much material that Ms. Everett  didn’t have time to cover. This encouraged me to do further research on the history of art in Rome. One topic that definitely caught my attention during the seminar was the Pantheon.

Photo credit: Wikipedia

          The Pantheon is a huge temple originally built in honor of all the Roman gods but was turned into a church around 609 AD. The Pantheon has a more than 43 meter high dome and on the top of the dome is a large opening known as the oculus. The oculus is the only source of light in the church. Grates were installed in the center of the Pantheon to allow water to drain when it rained. The dome is considered the most remarkable feature of the Pantheon. What interests me most about the Pantheon is that it contains the tombs of several kings and of the famous artist Raphael. I wonder exactly where Raphael is buried within the Pantheon and if other tombs inside the church have been discovered. Wouldn’t it be fascinating if the Pantheon was haunted due to these tombs? Believe it or not, multiple pictures have been taken in the Pantheon of apparitions and ghostly silhouettes, it is yet to be determined if the Pantheon is in fact haunted. The Pantheon is still used and visited even today and is considered the best preserved Roman monument.      
         The Pantheon is a magnificent building that impacts all who have the wonderful opportunity to see it with their own eyes. It is a legendary place in Rome’s history and the 1800 year old building still stands tall in all its fame and beauty and immortalizes the ingenious Romans who built it long ago. Photographs simply don’t do it justice; the more I research about the Pantheon the more I yearn to go to Rome and experience this extraordinary building for myself. I hope I have the opportunity to visit the Pantheon because it is truly a sight to see.

-DeRael