Золотой дом Нерона: история и возрождение фресок.

Roman Palace
the Roman Palace

The Domus Aurea (Latin, "Golden House") was a vast landscaped complex built by the Emperor Nero largely on the Oppian Hill in the heart of ancient Rome after the great fire in 64 AD had destroyed a large part of the city. It replaced and extended his Domus Transitoria that he had built as his first palace complex on the site.

Construction began after the great fire of 64 and was nearly completed before Nero's death in 68, a remarkably short time for such an enormous project. Nero took great interest in every detail of the project, according to Tacitus, and oversaw the engineer architects, Celer and Severus, who were also responsible for the attempted navigable canal with which Nero hoped to link Misenum with Lake Avernus. Emperor Otho and possibly Titus allotted money to finish at least the structure on the Oppian Hill; this continued to be inhabited, notably by emperor Vitellius in 69 but only after falling ill, until it was destroyed in a fire under Trajan in 104. A symbol of decadence that caused severe embarrassment to Nero's successors, the Domus Aurea was stripped of its marble, jewels, and ivory within a decade. Although the Oppian villa continued to be inhabited for some years, soon after Nero's death other parts of the palace and grounds, encompassing 2.6 km2 (c. 1 mi2), were filled with earth and built over: the Baths of Titus were already being built on part of the site, probably the private baths, in 79 AD. On the site of the lake, in the middle of the palace grounds, Vespasian built the Flavian Amphitheatre, which could be flooded at will, with the Colossus of Nero beside it. and the Temple of Venus and Roma were also built on the site. Within 40 years, the palace was obliterated. Paradoxically, this ensured the wall paintings' survival by protecting them from moisture.

When a young Roman inadvertently fell through a cleft in the Esquiline hillside at the end of the 15th century, he found himself in a strange cave or grotto filled with painted figures. The Fourth Style frescoes that were uncovered then have faded now, but the effect of these freshly rediscovered grotesque decorations was electrifying in the early Renaissance, which was just arriving in Rome. When Raphael and Michelangelo crawled underground and were let down shafts to study them, the paintings were a revelation of the true world of antiquity. are the autographs of Domenico Ghirlandaio, Martin van Heemskerck, and Filippino Lippi. The frescoes' effect on Renaissance artists was instant and profound (it can be seen most obviously in Raphael's decoration for the loggias in the Vatican), and the white walls, delicate swags, and bands of frieze—framed reserves containing figures or landscapes—have returned at intervals ever since, notably in late 18th century Neoclassicism, making Famulus one of the most influential painters in the history of art.

Discovery of the pavilion led to the arrival of moisture starting the slow, inevitable process of decay; humidity sometimes reaches 90% inside the Domus. Heavy rain was blamed for the collapse of a chunk of ceiling. The presence of trees in the park above was causing further damage. Increasing concerns about the condition of the building resulted in its closing at the end of 2005 for further restoration work. The complex was partially reopened in 2007, but closed in 2008 because of safety concerns.

[[Image:Domusaurea. jpg|thumb|300px|right|The style of wall paintings in Domus Aurea inspired both Raphael's Vatican Stanze and 18th century Neoclassicism. There were pools in the floors and fountains splashing in the corridors. The building plan is divided into two parts: the western one is simple and classic in design, characterised by perpendicular axes and built around a large rectangular courtyard, which opened towards the valley and the lake. The eastern part is of a much richer design with two of the principal dining rooms flanking an octagonal court, surmounted by a dome with a giant central oculus to let in light. The surviving parts of this floor are preserved only to a height of 30/60 cm, and the thickness of the walls was also reduced to 40/50 cm so that it was a much less monumental body than the lower floor. During renovation works at the end of 2018, experts discovered a barrel vaulted room (room 72) richly decorated with panthers, centaurs, the god Pan, and a sphinx, believed to have been built between 65 and 68 AD. The frescoes were of similar style to those in the cryptoporticus (room 92) which allows attribution to the so called "A" workshop.

The octagonal room was a masterpiece of Roman architecture and overlooked a xystus a track to watch gymnastic competitions, and the immense park. The lower part of the dome follows a pattern of octagonal segments (like Brunelleschi 's dome of S. Maria del Fiore in Florence), while the upper part assumes a circular shape. This domed room was a triclinium, where the emperor manifested himself as divine, through the effects of light that the dome filtered, assimilating himself to the god Apollo. It was built on the model of the cenatio praecipua rotunda (dining room whose ceiling constantly revolved like the heavens) which Carandini and Fraioli position in the pavilion. The ceiling of the octagonal hall could probably rotate by means of a mechanism created by Celer and Severus and similar to a millstone which, hooked to the uncovered tracks along the edge of the central opening, was moved by slaves. Perfume was sprayed and rose petals were dropped on the assembled diners. According to some accounts, perhaps embellished by Nero's political enemies, on one occasion such quantities of rose petals were dropped that one unlucky guest was asphyxiated (a similar story is told of the emperor Elagabalus). Pliny the Elder watched it being built and mentions it in his Naturalis Historia. One innovation was destined to have an enormous influence on the art of the future: Nero placed mosaics, previously restricted to floors, in the vaulted ceilings. Only fragments have survived, but that technique was to be copied extensively, eventually ending up as a fundamental feature of Christian art: the apse mosaics that decorate so many churches in Rome, Ravenna, Sicily, and Constantinople. Frescoes covered every surface that was not more richly finished. The main artist was Famulus (or Fabulus, or Amulius according to some sources).</blockquote>