Hadrian’s Villa in Tivoli – history, photo, description, opening hours, map
Beautiful Italy, romantic, sonorous, passionate and hospitable, has long attracted people from all over the world. Great artists, singers, composers have come and come here to be inspired by the beauty of nature and learn the art from colleagues generously endowed with talent. The cradle of the great Roman emperors, the birthplace of the famous masters of painting, singing, cinema, has preserved unique monuments of the past. One of such cultural and historical attractions is Hadrian's Villa in Tivoli, a unique architectural and landscape masterpiece of the 2nd century. n. e., listed as a World Heritage Site.
Construction history
Even from the remaining 5th part of the buildings, one can judge the scale of the construction of the residence for the most progressive of the Roman emperors, Hadrian. He loved to travel, accompanied by artists who made sketches of structures that the emperor liked. As a result, he had the idea to perpetuate his name in an unusual architectural complex – this is how Hadrian's Villa appeared on an area of 300 hectares.
The quiet secluded place of Tivoli was chosen on the slopes of the Tiburtine Mountains (30 km from Rome). The Emperor himself designed the plan and details of the future residence – a haven for philosophical reflection and immersion in oneself. The project took 20 years (117-138 g) almost until the death of Hadrian.
Architecture
Various buildings were built from limestone mined in the Tiburtine Mountains. Luxurious gardens were laid out on a vast territory, picturesque ponds were arranged, a temple, a theater, an academy, a museum, service premises, and baths were built. Many artistic elements decorated the buildings outside and inside. Equestrian competitions were held at the hippodrome. The whole complex was surrounded by high fortress walls, the power of which can be felt even today. On an area of 1 sq. km erected 30 objects representing Greece, Egypt, Asia based on the impressions of Hadrian.
A mixture of architectural styles and trends has revealed to the world real architectural masterpieces. Ancient statues of famous masters were delivered from Greece, some of which have survived to this day. The territory of the residence was divided into several zones: the personal space of the emperor (Large Peristyles), houses for the retinue, guest rooms, service and administrative buildings. The location on the slope made it possible to build many fountains and pools, using the natural slope for water flow.
What to see
Today, only the 5th part of its former splendor remains from the former “Roman Versailles”. Merciless time, centuries-old excavations have disfigured the architectural and landscape masterpiece. For several centuries it was in complete oblivion, turning into silent ruins. In 1400 (the Renaissance), Pope Pius II paid a visit here, who saw, in his words, a lair of snakes. After that, excavations and subsequent research began. Unique finds are now kept in various museums around the world.
But even today there is something to see here in order to feel the grandiose scale and artistic value of the once beautiful object. Visiting a thematic museum is a matter of honor for every tourist. You can admire reservoirs, colonnades, intricate architectural details while walking along the ruins of ancient temples, libraries, baths. Climbing up to the panoramic terrace, you can see amazing landscapes. Poikile, Cento Camerelle, Big and Small Baths, Pretoria, the Maritime Theater and other ruined objects are amazing.
Poikile
One of the most grandiose structures in the villa reproduces the famous Athenian monument “Poikile”. It was a rectangular peristyle with rounded corners (a platform 232 m long and 97 m wide, surrounded by walls and a colonnade). Fragments of walls 9 m high with mesh brickwork have survived to this day. In the middle was a rectangular pool (now cleaned and filled with water).
Around the pool was probably a hippodrome. The Poikile complex included premises for slaves serving the villa – “one hundred rooms”. They were beautifully decorated, with mosaic floors embellished with geometric patterns. In the northeast corner of Poikile, the Hall of Philosophers (temple of the Stoics) was built, where 4 side entrances led. On its central wall, 7 niches are carved, apparently intended for statues of 7 ancient sages.
Adjacent to the Hall of Philosophers was a round-shaped building – the Maritime Theatre, built in 117, as evidenced by the brand on the brick. An elliptical peristyle with Ionic marble columns was built nearby, inside of which a 5-meter-wide canal lined with marble was dug. In the middle of the channel there was an island in the form of an ellipse, where a bridge led, turning on an axis. Adrian liked to relax here, spending time reading scrolls.
Small terms
Excavations carried out in the 20s of the 20th century revealed several buildings, united in style and architecture into a complex. An underground road led to them, going from the Cento Camerelle (one hundred rooms for slaves). Archaeologists concluded that these were Roman baths. Upon careful examination, they were conditionally designated as Small and Large baths, separated by a courtyard.
Small terms were intended for bathing women. In the vaulted room, decorated with columns, the remains of a heating system of 2 types are still preserved: with dry hot air and moist steam. In the walls, recesses are visible, in which bathtubs with water of different temperatures were installed. In some places, fragments of the tiled floor have been preserved.
Along the walls of the bathing hall there were stone seats-boxes, where the bathers rested after the steam room. Fragments of such lodges remain today. The remains of partitions testify to the presence of rooms for various procedures: massages, rubdowns, masks.
Large terms
More spacious buildings with large halls were intended for men. In fact, it was a whole complex where swimming was combined with sports, philosophical conversations, reading, etc. The round hall, illuminated by windows, probably served as a steam room. Sunlight coming through the windows warmed the sand on the floor, raising the temperature in the room.
Judging by the ruins, there was a sports hall (palestra), in which men competed in speed, wrestling, and performed various exercises, as was the case in traditional Roman baths. After the process of cleansing the body with a scraper, water procedures began. Where the wall niches, which have survived to this day, served as wardrobes, there was a dressing room.
The process of bathing began with a steam room (sweating room), followed by relaxation and immersion in hot baths (capidarium). In the tepidarium, which served as a transition to cold baths, the men prepared to take cold baths. We can conclude about the magnificence of the design of the Great Baths from the remains of painting on plaster.
Canopy
No less famous building of the villa is Canopa. This is a rectangular pool (119×18 m), located between 2 hills in a narrow hollow. From all sides it was surrounded by an elegant colonnade with graceful sculptures installed between the columns. The beautiful ensemble is dedicated to the memory of Antinous, Adrian's handsome favorite. In 130, he drowned while swimming in the Nile in the vicinity of the city of Kanop.
At one end of the basin, a structure has been preserved – the apse (Serapium), which probably served as a temple dedicated to the god Serapis. In the center of the apse one can see the depression where the statue of Serapis was placed. In the niches of the side walls, presumably, there were statues of other gods of Egypt. Antinous, after his death, was also deified as a resurrecting god.
According to the description of Paul Guiraud, the author of books about ancient Rome, water flowed out of the apse temple along the marble steps, descending in cascades through a series of pools located alternately at different levels, and flowed into an oval-shaped reservoir. Through it one could walk along a beautiful bridge to the other end of the main pool.
Canopa Museum
Next to the olive grove, in the buildings of ancient taverns that border the valley, there is a thematic Canopa Museum. It contains exhibits that remained here after the looting of an abandoned villa. The famous statues of Discobolus, Diana of Versailles and 300 other masterpieces are dispersed in different museums around the world. The sculptures of Greek, Roman, Egyptian masters found during excavations have found their place in this museum to become a visual illustration of the art of sculpture of antiquity.
Among the unique rarities there are Doric and Ionic columns, various pillars and supports. Of great interest are 4 caryatids, striking with their virtuosity of performance. It is impossible not to admire the majesty of the statues of Venus, Mercury and Mars. The expressive figure of a marble crocodile is impressive. There are many copies made by Roman masters from Greek sculptures: the Nile, the Tiber, Venus of Cnidus, the Amazons, etc.
Golden Square
Not far from the Museum of Canopa lie the ruins of an observation tower, from where the emperor watched the stars. It was built next to Adrian's personal apartments, the center of which is the Golden Square. It was an atrium 61 m long, 51 m wide, surrounded by two rows of Ionic columns. At the southern end of the square, the Audience Hall was equipped – a luxuriously decorated room of an octagonal shape.
The preserved part of the columns and fragments of wall decorations testify to the rich picturesque interiors of the hall where important meetings took place. For greater convenience, the hall was connected to the chambers of the emperor by a covered gallery. How luxurious was the decoration of the Golden Square can be judged by the remains of the floor, trimmed with colored marble in the form of expressive ornaments.
On the square in a separate modest building there were Vigilian barracks (vigils – night guards). As an object of leisure, a fish pool was equipped, from which fragments of dilapidated columns, a rectangular bowl and traces of a fence remained. From the Hall of Doric pilasters, where the court sat, 6 square columns with relief plaster remained. The building of the library, divided into Roman and Greek, was surrounded by a large garden with interesting fountains.
Interesting Facts
One of the unique ancient buildings – the Maritime Theater was partially restored at the expense of a wealthy Italian. An enterprising businessman uses a photo of an amazing villa on the island for promotional purposes, attracting the attention of tourists. The skeleton of a round building, in the center of which one can see the remains of the foundations of small rooms and columns, washed by the waters of the canal, looks very romantic.
In order for the greatest monument of the Roman era to prolong its life, architects, engineers and sculptors created a reconstruction of the villa in the form of a three-dimensional model, reproducing all the objects of the masterpiece as accurately as possible. Today you can see a mini-copy of Hadrian's Villa, the layout of which is installed in a small house next to the parking lot. In 2010, the documentary “Dig News” was filmed here. But there are still many secrets hidden by the land overgrown with olives of oblivion.
Opening hours and ticket prices
The stunning open-air museum welcomes visitors from 9 am and closes 1.5 hours before dark. The exact closing time depends on the season. January 1, May 1, December 25 – days off.
Ticket prices vary as follows:
Excursions
If you want to make your visit to Hadrian's Villa an exciting journey into the legendary past, it is worth doing it with an experienced guide. An independent inspection of the majestic ruins will not give a vivid idea of the grandeur and grandeur of the monument. Accompanied by a guide who has studied in detail all the intricacies of objects, you will get real pleasure, plunging into a distant history.
With its help, you can appreciate the scale and level of architecture of the Roman era, admire the power of artistic art of the creators of an architectural masterpiece. You can choose an excursion in advance, get acquainted with the summary of the guide, with the reviews of other tourists about him and coordinate with him all the details of the upcoming excursion.
Where is it located and how to get there
The villa is located 4 km from Tivoli, 30 km from Rome. Given the huge tourist interest, public transport departs from Rome frequently. The most common way to arrive in Tivoli (Tibur) is by train, departing hourly from the Tiburtin station. Several times a day there is a train from Termini Station. You can get from the station to the station by metro. From the station in Tivoli, comfortable buses N 4 run to the villa every 15-20 minutes. If you are not constrained in finances, the most convenient way is when the guide picks you up from the hotel, takes you and brings you back.