Exploring the City of Rome and Rome Architecture

The city of Rome was famously built on seven hills -- Capitolino (commonly known as Campidoglio), Palatino, Esquilino, Viminale, Celio, Quirinale, and Aventino. Two of these historic hills, the Campidoglio and the Palatine, formed the hub of ancient Rome, the center of the civilized world. The Campidoglio has always been the seat of Rome's government; its Latin name is echoed in the designation of national and state capitol buildings.

On the Palatine the earliest recorded inhabitants of the city of Rome lived in modest mud huts; later, its position made it Rome 's most exclusive residential zone, site of the emperors' vast and luxurious palaces. Between the hills, in the Forum, the Romans worshipped, discussed politics, and carried on commerce. Between the Palatine and the Tiber were the markets where livestock and produce arrived by boat. Though it remained the heart of monumental and religious Rome, the Forum was later dwarfed by the Imperial Fora, built by a succession of emperors to augment the original overcrowded Forum and to make sure that the people would have tangible evidence of their generosity.

More than any other, this part of the city of Rome is a perfect example of that layering of historic eras, the overlapping of ages, of religions, of a past that is very much a part of the present. Christian churches rise on the foundations of ancient pagan temples. An immense marble monument to a 19th-century king of a newly united Italy shares a square with a medieval palace built by a future pope. Still, the history and memory of the ancient city of Rome dominate the area. After a more than 27-centuries-long parade of pageantry, it is not surprising that Shelley and Gibbon reflected on the sense of sic transit gloria mundi (thus pass the glories of the world) they felt here. The ruins and monuments, the Colosseo and the triumphal arches have stood through the centuries as emphatic reminders of the genius and power that made Rome the center of the Western world.

You can save some money by purchasing an all-in-one ticket for EUR15.50. It lasts five days and gives you access to many of the major sights, including the Colosseo, Colle Palatino, Terme di Caracalla, Palazzo Massimo, Palazzo Altemps, and the Cripta Balbi. You can buy such a ticket at any of the sights to which it provides access.

Travel to Rome 's architectural and sightseeing destinations:

Explore Rome Architecture on the Capitoline Hill

The Capitoline Hill, now the seat of the city's municipal authorities, was the centre of government of the ancient city of Rome , and is the geographical centre of the modern city. It is especially beautiful at night, when it is usually deserted.

The piazza were designed by Michelangelo in 1538. It is bordered by three buildings (also by Michelangelo): the Palazzo Nuovo and the Palazzo dei Conservatori, which together house the Capitoline Museums, and the Palazzo Senatorio at the rear.

The bronze equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius in the centre of the piazza is a copy made from a mould created through computer-generated photographs. The original, which dates from the 2nd century AD, was badly damaged by pollution and pigeon dung and was removed in 1981. It has been restored and is now housed behind glass inside the Palazzo Nuovo.

For the greatest visual impact, approach the Capitoline Hill from Piazza d'Aracoeli and ascend the cordonata, a stepped ramp also designed by Michelangelo. It is guarded at the bottom by two ancient Egyptian granite lions and at the top by two mammoth statues of Castor and Pollux, which were excavated from the nearby ghetto area in the 16th century.

Explore Rome Architecture at Castel Sant' Angelo

Reached by one of the world's most beautiful bridges - Bernini's billowing, angel-clad Pont Sant' Angelo - this strange, circular tank of a building was originally constructed as the mausoleum of Emperor Hadrian.

It was converted into a papal fortress in the 6th century, and is linked by underground passages to the Vatican palaces. Several popes have felt the need to take advantage of the secret routes in times of threat.

The mausoleum is now an interesting museum, and its evocative atmosphere is heightened by the knowledge that it was from here that Puccini's Tosca plunged to her death.

Explore Rome Architecture at the Forum

Built over 900 years, the Roman Forum (Foro Romano) was the commercial, political and religious centre of ancient Rome from the Republican era until the 4th century AD.

The importance of the Forum declined along with the Roman Empire. During medieval times the area was used to graze cattle and extensively plundered for its precious marbles. During the Renaissance, with the renewed appreciation of all things classical, the Forum provided inspiration for artists and architects.

The area was systematically excavated in the 18th and 19th centuries, and you can see archaeological teams at work in ongoing digs.

The Forum is entered from the piazza leading from the Colosseum. You immediately travel to another world: the past. Columns rise from grassy hillocks, and repositioned pediments and columns aid the work of the imagination.

Explore Rome Architecture at The Vatican

Not many religions actually own a country, but Catholicism isn't just any religion. The Vatican is probably per square foot the richest country in the world, making up for its total lack of natural resources with an astonishing collection of priceless art treasures.

No-one passed on that stuff about the camel and the needle's eye to the Vatican: it's probably the most hysterically, hyperbolically lavish display of wealth you'll ever see. For art lovers it's the mecca of meccas, with iconic treasures ranging from the Sistine Chapel to Bernini's imposing piazza.

Explore Rome Architecture at Via Appia Antica

Known to ancient Romans as the 'regina viarum' (queen of roads), the Via Appia Antica extends from the Porta di San Sebastiano to Brindisi on the coast of Puglia. It was started around 312BC by the censor Appius Claudius Caecus, but didn't connect with Brindisi until around 190BC.

The first section of the road, which extended 90km (56mi) to Terracina, was considered revolutionary in its day because it was almost perfectly straight - perhaps the world's first autostrada. Every Sunday, a long section of the Via Appia Antica becomes a no-car zone. You can walk or ride a bike from the Porta di San Sebastiano for several kilometres.