Villa Adriana - Tivoli, Rome
The enormous complex of buildings of Villa Adriana in Tivoli, near Rome, was built (probably between the 118 and 134 d.C.) for will of Emperor Hadrian: a restless and intellectual personality, incostant and adventurous, found of travels and Greek culture, beyond that he had a passion for architecture and took part personally to the project, conceaving many of the buildings. That’s the original idea from which araised, spreaded in an immense area (at least 120 hectares), numerous groups of buildings, apparently arranged at random but in reality they were carefully studied and separated by large and luxuriant gardens.

Index
Hadrian
Hadrian – as his biographer Helium Sparziano tells, – ideally wished to recreate in his Imperial residence the main monuments of the Empire, in particular those of his beloved Greece: sites of the villa, buildings, baths, nimphea, gardens and fountain complexes, valleys often carried the name of one of those monuments he had seen during his long journeys through the Roman Empire, and like miniatures reproduce the features of the originals. He gave birth to the Valley of Tempae, the Egyptian city of Canopo; besides the Lyceum, the Academy and the Stoà Poikile, all famous buildings he had seen in Athen and Egypt dating back to V and IV cent. B.C.
Villa Adriana
Extraordinarly rich the architectural and sculptural decoration of the villa: although the villa had been spoiled through the centuries of its most precious pieces, we still are impressed by the refinement of the multicoloured marble inlaid floors (opus sectile) in the villa and by the splendid fragments of mosaics housed today in the most important historical Museums all around the world (among its finest pieces more than 500 high-quality statues in coloured marbles and numerous finest fragments of mosaics such as the one of the doves, today housed in the Capitolini Museums of Rome).
Architectural aspect of Villa Adriana
No less interesting is the architectural aspect: many buildings of the Villa Adriana presents in fact audacious and original innovations, maybe conceived by the same Hadrian, among which single and volted domes and very complex planimetry, in a continuous alternation of straight and curved lines, concave and convex, which was a new element in the Roman architecture, and that surprisingly reminds the buildings of Baroque Rome. Among the most interesting complexes the “Pecile” (perhaps inspired to the “Stoà Poikile”, famous portico of Atene), monumental inner courtyard that contains a garden with a big central pool. At East we find the “Baths with Heliocaminus”, a particular building heated by stoves and sun rays, used for summer and winter baths. Not to miss the “Canopo”, long basin of water surrounded by “porticos”and flower-beds, and at its edge a great nimpheum in the shape of exedra, probably used for open air banquets; the monument reminds the Egyptian city of Canopo and the long channel that connected it to Alexandria, famous for night parties which took place there.
The “Maritime Theatre” of Villa Adriana
But the most singular and fascinating building of Villa Adriana is perhaps the “Maritime Theatre”: circular, it includes a channel, at the center of which raised a little round island, connected to the mainland by two revolving little bridges (now replaced by one in miniature). The island is structured as a secondary and private residence with different rooms and a small thermal system: a very private residence furnished with all comforts, designed by the same emperor for its moments of quiet. For the originality of its conception, beyond that for the dared architecture that characterizes the rooms on the island – with a complex alternatation of concave and convex walls and with great windows opened on the water, the Maritime Theatre can be considered symbol of the entire villa and of the geniality of its originator.
Day Trips from Rome
-
Rome to Amalfi Coast Day Trip
City Tours 237,00€Visit Positano and Amalfi Coast from Rome! One day trip travel accompanied by an English speaking Assistant from Rome
Positano | Group Tour | High-Speed | 1 day
-
Day Trip to Florence
City Tours 135,00€Florence in one day from Rome, travelling by high-speed train
Florence | Shared Tour | High-speed | 1 day
-
Tour to Assisi and Orvieto
Day Trips 149,00€Tour from Rome visiting Assisi St. Francis city, and the medieval town of Orvieto, the real Italy, far away from large cities
Assisi Orvieto | Guided Tour | By Bus | 11 hours
-
Florence and Pisa Day Trip from Rome
City Tours 232,00€Day trip from Rome to see Art city of Florence and Pisa Leaning Tower
Florence and Pisa | Group Tour | High-Speed | 1 day
-
Visit Venice from Rome – by high-speed train
Day Trips 257,00€Visit Venice from Rome, day trip by high-speed train meeting the guide at the station in Venice
Venice | Small Group Tour | High speed | 1 day
-
Day Trip from Rome to Pompeii by Train
Day Trips 197,00€Day Trip to Pompeii by train from Rome small groups
Pompeii | Guided Tour | High speed | 1 day
travel magazine

My Daily Excursions from Rome
“The testimony of a true lover of Italy.” My Daily Excursions from Rome “I am always looking for unforgettable experiences,

Impossible Rome
a gallery of images to you, created using artificial intelligence on the theme of “Impossible Rome”

The Pantheon, great masterpiece of Roman architecture
Pantheon Contents The Pantheon Great masterpiece of Roman architecture. It is one of the ancient monuments best preserved in the

Villa Adriana in Tivoli, Rome
Villa Adriana – Tivoli, Rome The enormous complex of buildings of Villa Adriana in Tivoli, near Rome, was built (probably

St Peter’s Basilica in Vatican State, Rome
The Basilica of St. Peter in the Vatican City The Basilica of St. Peter is in the heart of the

Rione Monti – the first quarter of Rome
Rione Monti Rome Index Monti, the first quarter of Rome The first quarter of Rome is “Monti” (mounts), so called as

Places Contemporary Rome
The places of contemporary Rome Rome has never stopped adding new architectural layers to its topographic fabric, with works often

Eating in Rome
Eating in Rome! Eating like a God in Rome, Roman food’s survival guide! Index Eating in Rome “Please, recommend us

Unusual places to visit in Rome
Unusual places to visit in Rome … there are some places hidden outside the mass of tourist circuits… Rightly considered