The Pantheon: The Roman Colosseum

Roman architecture has long been a defining model for some of the greatest works during Renaissance and Neoclassical revival eras. The Pantheon, Maison Carrée, and other such temples and buildings of the late BCE-early CE period have their clear influence on works like Jefferson’s Virginia State Capitol. However, not all Ancient Roman designs saw their full potential of influence on future works, leaving only the ancient architecture as just a ruin to be preserved through the ages. One such work, the Flavian Amphitheater, or Roman Colosseum as it is more commonly known, can be considered the greatest amphitheater ever designed. Not only based on its size, but also the intricacy of its hypogeum and importance in Roman culture support this, …show more content…
One example is the use of quadrarcs in the Piazza San Pietro, designed for St. Peter’s Basilica. As written by Gridgeman, “Bernini was not trying to imitate an ellipse when he laid out the Piazza San Pietro. But he must at least have thought about the possibility of an ellipse, for he was consciously planning a great religious oval that would match, in size and sweep, the huge secular oval less than two miles away” (Gridgmeman pp. 213). This quote details how Bernini used the general quadrarc design of the Colosseum, the huge secular oval less than two miles away, as a form giver for his plaza. The harmony of a quadrarc due to the diagonal ratio is the perfect fit for a plaza that is attempting to draw attention to the power of St. Peter’s Basilica, just as the quadrarc for the Colosseum was the perfect design for the masses to watch their entertainment. Another feature of the Colosseum that reappears in later designs is the three-tiered half columns that advance in order as they rise. The Palazzo Rucellai, in Florence, uses Doric order pilasters for the first tier, Ionic for the second, and Corinthian for the top tier (Figure 3). The key difference between the two designs is that the Palazzo Rucellai uses pilasters rather than columns and has a cornice to top the final tier, rather than a fourth level of Corinthian pilasters. A third example of the Colosseum’s influence is the Vancouver Public Library. With four tiers of solid concrete columns, a circular facade, and arcades of rectangular windows (Figure 4), the library resembles a renovated Colosseum with a garden and trees on the roof. One side of the library is lacking the fourth tier of windows, providing the image of the ruined Colosseum where only one side is built