Temple of the Divine Romulus - Roma, Italy - Ancient Roman Civilization on Waymarking.com

The building was the entrance to the imperial complex of the Temple of Peace from the Via Sacra, between the Arch of Titus and the square of the Roman Forum: the different orientation of the imperial complex with respect to the street was solved by means of its circular plan.

At the beginning of the 4th century the Temple of Peace complex was already abandoned and the vestibule was reused by Massenzio, who dedicated it perhaps in 309 AD as a temple in honor of his son Valerio Romolo, who died at a young age and was later deified. The richly decorated portal dates back to that time, framed by two wings of the wall that formed an exedra facing the street, decorated with architectural elements of reuse. After the defeat of Maxentius in the battle of Ponte Milvio in 312, by Constantin , he had to change his function, as some inscriptions seem to show, visible up to XVI century inside the building.

Theodoric the Great , king of the Ostrogoths, and his daughter Amalasunta donated a hall of the Temple of Peace (probably the library) to Pope Felix IV in 527, which was transformed into the basilica dedicated to Saints Cosmas and Damian. On that occasion it was united with the temple of Romulus and a door was opened between the two complexes. The temple then became the vestibule of the church.

In 1632 the floor of the church was rebuilt and raised several meters due to water infiltration from the Campo Vaccino, but not that of the temple, which remained at the level of the ancient Roman road. The bronze door and porphyry columns were then reused in a new north door, which replaced the old one. It was not until the end of the 19th century that the original door was rebuilt, as it is visible today; and the lock still works.

In the past the building had been identified in a rather imaginative way by the early scholars and antiquarians as the Penati temple or the temple of Jupiter Statore founded by Romulus (or the first citizens of Rome) in the 8th century BC.

Today, some later period frescos & mosaics can be seen inside the temple. Marble statues from several different Roman periods are also on display in the small temple.

Source: Wikipedia (visit link)

Most Relevant Historical Period: Roman Empire > 27 B.C. Admission Fee: €12 Opening days/times: Every day: 8:30am until one hour before sunset; 25 December and 1 January: closed Web Site: [Web Link] Condition: Partly intact or reconstructed

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