31: The Mausoleum of Hadrian

If you’re looking on a map for Hadrian’s Mausoleum then you may well not locate it as its name, purpose, shape and context has changed radically over the past 1900 years.  Today it is more commonly known as the Castel Sant’Angelo however the core of this building was originally constructed as a mausoleum for the Roman Emperor Hadrian and his family. The building was later used by popes as a fortress and castle, and is now a museum with pleasant cafés and impressive panoramic views of Rome that take in the Tiber river and the Vatican. It was common for mausoleums to be home for the ashes of many family members and Hadrian needed to build his own in part because the nearby mausoleum of Augustus was already full. In a show of feigned modesty, Hadrian was careful to commission a building that did not exceed the diameter of Augustus’ however it was quite significantly taller. Looking today at the Castle Sant’Angelo we see a structure dominated by defensive walls, corner tower fortifications and religious statues that were all built and repeatedly updated over the past 600 years.  That said, there are echoes of the original mausoleum design in what we see. This episode explains the history and original design of Hadrian's Mausoleum.

Om Podcasten

A free audio guide that helps you discover the history and context of Rome's ancient sites. Go to http://www.rome-podcast.com for an interactive map of the locations covered and full transcripts of the episodes. Each episode focuses on a specific historical site and guides you through a short tour with the goal of providing a concise but insightful summary of the history and context. Hope you find this informative and useful. Enjoy your time in Rome! Daron Disclaimer: I have endeavored to check all the information presented against the latest known interpretations of the archaeological evidence. Please feel free to provide feedback or corrections if you note something is wrong or has changed since the time of recording. Acknowledgement: This podcast builds on the extensive notes, information and pictures recorded by Jeff Bondono (see www.JeffBondono.com (http://www.jeffbondono.com/) ). Jeff kindly gave permission for me to use his site for reference materials. I encourage you to explore the comprehensive pictures he has created to record all the sites covered in this series (and many more). You will also see that Jeff's work (and therefore this podcast) builds on the prior notes and walking tours created by Walter Muzzy.