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WALKING TOURS OF ROME

The Theatre of Marcellus

21/7/2019

 
Map
Theatre of Marcellus, Rome
Theatre of Marcellus

The Theatre of Marcellus was first planned by Julius Caesar, in response to the building, in 55 BCE, of Rome's first stone theatre by his great rival Pompey.

Caesar, however, died before the work was finished and it 
was completed circa 13 BCE by the emperor Augustus, who named it after his nephew Marcellus, who had died in 23 BCE, not yet twenty years old. Marcellus had been married to Augustus' daughter Julia. In the absence of any male children of his own, Augustus had probably intended him to be his heir.

Situated between the Circus Flaminius and the Temple of Apollo, the theatre held in the region of 20,000 spectators. What we see today represents about a third of the original structure, which was made up of two superimposed arcades, Doric on the ground floor and Ionic on the first floor. There was also an attic storey, which was probably just a plain wall with flat pilasters. 

In the 11th and 12th centuries, what was left of the theatre was fortified by the Pierleone family before passing to the Savelli family, who employed the Renaissance architect Baldassare Peruzzi to transform it into a residence. In time the palazzo passed to the Orsini family, whose emblematic bears, entangled in ivy, can still be seen. 

Theatre of Marcellus, Rome

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    My name is David Lown and I am an art historian from Cambridge, England. Since 2001 I have lived in Italy, where I run private and
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  • Home
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  • St Peter's Basilica
    • Altars >
      • Altar of St Joseph
      • Altar of St Gregory the Great
      • Altar of the Madonna of Succour
      • Altar of St Sebastian
      • Altar of the Lie
      • Altar of the Presentation of the Virgin
      • Altar of St Jerome
      • Altar of the Transfiguration
      • Altar of Pope Leo the Great
    • Monuments >
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      • Pope Innocent XII
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      • The Stuarts
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      • Door of Death
      • Door of Good and Evil
      • Central Door
      • Door of the Sacraments
      • Holy Door
    • Pieta
    • Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament
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    • Crossing >
      • Baldacchino
      • Confessio
      • Dome
      • St Longinus
      • St Helena
      • St Veronica
      • St Andrew
    • St Peter
    • Chapel of the Choir
    • Chapel of the Baptistery
    • Nave
  • Sistine Chapel
    • North Wall
    • South Wall
    • East Wall
    • Ceiling: Part One >
      • Ceiling: Part Two
      • Ceiling: Part Three
    • The Last Judgement
  • Fountains
    • Trevi Fountain
    • Fontana della Barcaccia
    • Fountain of the Triton
    • Fountain of the Bees
    • Fountain of Moses
    • Fountain of the Four Rivers
    • Fountain of the Acqua Paola
    • Fountain of the Turtles
    • Fountain of the Naiads
    • Fountain of the Cannonball
    • Piazza del Popolo
    • Fountain of the Pantheon
    • Fountains of Piazza Farnese
    • Fountain of Goddess Roma
    • Rioni Fountains
    • Street Fountains
    • Venice Marries the Sea
    • St Peter's Square
    • Fountain of the Moor
    • Fountain of Neptune
    • Fountain of the Porter
    • Fountain of the Seahorses
  • Gallery
    • Piazzas >
      • Piazza del Campidglio
      • Piazza del Quirinale
      • Piazza del Popolo
      • Piazza di Spagna
      • Piazza Navona
      • Piazza S. M. in Trastevere
      • Piazza San Pietro
    • Mosaics
    • Fountains
    • Churches
    • Ancient Rome
    • Palaces
    • Domes
    • Papal Coats of Arms
    • Street Shrines
    • Old Photographs
    • Borromini & the Baroque