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Tivoli itrace3/30/2023 ![]() When the site was no longer used as a sanctuary, its riverside location attracted various industries: woolen mills, an arms factory, hydro-electric plant, and paper mill.Īfter extensive excavation and restoration, the Sanctuary was opened to the public in 2015, with an Antiquarium established at the former paper mill. The sanctuary, which housed the statue of Hercules, was designed to impress visitors arriving from Rome, with its foundations rising 50 meters above the river. The complex was built over an ancient road, which later became the via Tiburtina that was carried beneath the buildings through a tunnel, called the Via Tecta (covered street). ![]() A theater was built into the naturally sloping ground aligned with it was the temple, around which was a large plaza surrounded by porticoes. ![]() Begun in the second century BC beside the Aniene River, the sanctuary was in three parts, covering about 3,000 square meters. You'll find mosaics, baths, a nymphaeum, fountains, colonnades, statues, and the Maritime Theater-a pool with an island where Hadrian escaped the pressures of government.Ī three-minute walk from the Villa d'Este, the imposing Sanctuary of Hercules Victor is an outstanding example of Roman cult buildings from the era of the Republic. In inscribing it as a World Heritage Site, UNESCO described it as combining "the best elements of the architectural heritage of Egypt, Greece, and Rome in the form of an "ideal city." Today, most of this open-air museum of the finest second-century architecture lies in ruin, but in such a scenic, green setting that it seems more like a romantic garden than an archaeological site.Ī few buildings have been repaired or reconstructed, but to appreciate what the complex looked like, begin by seeing the model near the entrance, then explore the grounds and the remains of the imperial palace. He had some of the finest Greek sculptures reproduced, and many of these are in Rome today, long after the Greek originals have disappeared. Hadrian tried to reproduce here in full size some of the places and great buildings he had seen in his travels, especially those of Greece and Egypt. The magnificent complex of buildings and gardens, built in the second century AD by the widely traveled Roman Emperor Hadrian, covers an area of 120 hectares. Villa Adriana (Hadrian's Villa) Villa Adriana (Hadrian's Villa) Among the garden's highlights are the elaborate Fontana dell'Organo, with its water-powered organ the Cento Fountain, a long row of fountains in a stone wall Fontana dell'Ovato, with its cool walkway behind a waterfall Fontana del Nettuno and the Gran Loggia, where the cardinal and his guests dined overlooking the gardens.Ģ. The layout was unusual for its time, a long central alley intersecting with paths to the major fountains, each set against the surrounding landscape to seem like its own garden. ![]() Don't expect to run quickly through, as this is not just one garden, but a whole series of them, highlighted by statuary, elaborate fountains, water play, pools, cascades, grottos, and terraces with spectacular views across the Roman Campagna.įrom the time he arrived as Governor of Tivoli, Cardinal Ippolito d'Este, a member of Ferarra's most prominent Renaissance family, set to work planning the grounds to surround the governor's villa. Often cited as the definitive example of Italianate gardens, the vast Villa d'Este estate has been the model for gardens all over Europe. Villa d'Este Gardens Villa d'Este Gardens ![]()
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