Let’s forget about ice storms and head to the Roman Campagna, the hills to the northeast of Rome, where at the base of the mountains that rise up to Tivoli lies the ancient ruins of Hadrian’s Villa. I also realized it had been a long time since I had added to the Architectural History category,…
Tag: Rome
Spolia from the Imperial Fora
Acanthus leaves, rosettes, volutes, ogees, egg and darts, dentilated cornices: they all started back in the ancient world. This chunk of marble from the imperial Roman fora has been copied directly and indirectly thousands of times around St. Louis.
Basilica of Constantine and Maxentius
The Saint Louis Art Museum’s Sculpture Hall is influenced by the Baths of Caracalla, but it’s also inspired by the Basilica of Constantine and Maxentius, which is one of my favorite buildings in the Roman Forum. It is mostly collapsed from earthquakes, but still never fails to impress me when I see it.
Sant’Andrea Delle Fratte, Rome
One of my favorite architects is Francesco Borromini, and when I was in Rome, I sought out the church of Sant’Andrea delle Fratte, famous for the architect’s designs for the campanile and tambour over the crossing. Try as I might, I realized that the urban fabric of the city around the church was far too…
Baths of Caracalla
Read enough about St. Louis or American architecture in general, and eventually someone will make an offhand reference to a building being based off of the Baths of Caracalla in Rome. But what were the actual Baths, or Thermae, of Caracalla? They were begun by the Emperor Septimius Severus (thus some old maps called the…
Rusticated Stone
The former Temple of Antoninus and Faustina, built and dedicated between 141-161 AD provides an excellent example of how Western Civilization has responded to its ancient past. After falling into disrepair, it was converted into the church of San Lorenzo in Miranda, strangely occupying the center cella of the old temple. But at one time,…
New Architectural History Category
Starting tomorrow, I’m introducing a new type of post where I focus on the history of architecture, in particular focusing on monuments that influence the built environment of St. Louis. I’ll go back and add a couple of older posts into the new architectural history category, but for the most part, these will be new…
Raphael and St. Louis: St. John the Apostle and Evangelist Roman Catholic Church
The Church of St. John the Evangelist and Apostle sits in the midst of the Plaza Square development, and is an interesting church in its own right, dating back to the years before the Civil War. It is one of the oldest churches in St. Louis. It was renovated, not always successfully, in the Twentieth…
Neo-Classicism and Greek Revival: What is Really the Difference?
What is the difference between Neo-Classical architecture and the Greek Revival style? The key is in the proportions of the building; while the Romans certainly copied their architectural style from the ancient Greeks, they were also influenced by their northern neighbors, the Etruscans. Here is a primer on how to tell the difference. First, let’s…