The first large villa built by
Emperor Nero on the Palatine Hill in Rome is opening to the
public.
The 'Domus Transitoria' (Transitory House) was opulent and
refined.
It was built with the grandeur of Ptolemaic palaces as
inspiration.
The villa was closed down and buried at the emperor's order
after the great fire of Rome in 64 AD and replaced with the
larger and more sumptuous Domus Aurea (Golden House).
However, the first villa sums up and is "almost a technical
trial run for what would become the Domus Aurea", said the
director of the Archaeological Park of the Colosseum, Alfonsina
Russo.
After a 10-year-long restoration, the villa's 800 square
meters will open to the public as part of a new guided tour on
Nero from Monday to Friday.
The tour is reserved to small groups of visitors who will be
able to admire the colored marbles, fountains and red porphyry
columns thanks to the new lighting and 3D visors.
The tour starts in a large room with a nymphaeum.
Water is a central theme of the villa, one of the reasons why
it has been confused for a long time with the thermal baths of
Livia, archaeologists say.
Columns and niches decorate this opulent space.
Historians and archaeologists say Nero loved to spend the
hottest hours of summer days in this room, under a large patio,
which was probably covered with a wooden decorated ceiling or
perhaps only protected by opulent curtains.
Bright and precious marbles decorate this space, which
represented for the emperor a symbol of his extensive power
worldwide, historians say.
The villa's majestic rooms are also decorated with marble and
references to water, which is a central theme of the villa's
decor, said director Russo.
Walls are painted with flowers and plants to look like a
luxuriant garden.
Part of the original décor of the villa was obtained some
three centuries ago from the Farnese family.
However, many original decorations were lost or are now part
of private collections or exhibited at museums.
Parts of the decorated ceiling are on display at the Museo
Palatino, right next to the entrance of the Domus, along with
golden friezes and other treasures.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
