Why does the Pantheon have an oculus?

Why does the Pantheon have an oculus?

A circular opening known as the oculus lets the only light in to the Pantheon. The purpose of the oculus was not only to illuminate the interior but it was also built to let those in the temple contemplate the heavens. The floor of the Pantheon is slanted to let rainwater drain from the building.

Why does the Pantheon have a hole in the ceiling?

At the highest point, the oculus – the nine-metre-wide circular hole in the roof – actually saves crucial weight at the dome’s most vulnerable point. It’s also exactly as high as it is wide, meaning that the interior of the Pantheon perfectly fits a 43.3m-diameter sphere.

How was the Pantheon dome constructed?

It was made of concrete mixed with volcanic tuff (tufo) and pumice stone. Externally the bottom part of the hemispherical dome (corresponding to the first two rings of coffering) is encased by a thick upper section of the wall which contains the outward thrust of the dome.

How big is the Roman pantheon?

142 feet
for larger image. The Pantheon is remarkable for its size, its construction, and its design. The enormous dome stretches 142 feet in diameter; that’s the same as the distance from the Statue of Liberty’s sandals to her torch!

Is the Pantheon Greek or Roman?

The Pantheon is one of the most famous temples ever built in ancient Rome. The name is derived from the Greek word “parthenos”, which is an epithet of the Greek goddess Athena, meaning “virgin”. It is one of today’s best-preserved ruins from ancient Rome.

What is the true content of the Pantheon?

Made primarily from bricks and concrete, the Pantheon consists of three sections: a portico with granite columns, a massive domed rotunda and a rectangular area connecting the other two sections. Measuring 142 feet in diameter, the domed ceiling was the largest of its kind when it was built.

What are the holes at the top of the Pantheon?

4. The most fascinating part of the Pantheon is its giant dome, with its famous hole in the top (The eye of the Pantheon, or oculus). The dome was the largest in the world for 1300 years and to present remains the largest unsupported dome in the world.

Who is buried at the Pantheon?

Josephine Baker Is The First Black Woman Who Will Be Buried At Paris’ Pantheon The monument houses the remains of scientist Marie Curie, philosopher Voltaire, writer Victor Hugo and other luminaries.

What makes building a dome so complicated?

Domes are curved structures — they have no angles and no corners — and they enclose an enormous amount of space without the help of a single column.

How does the dome of the Pantheon stay erect?

This wall can be thought of structurally as a series of concrete piers separated at floor level by 8 very large niches equally spaced along the inner perimeter. The thick wall acts much like a buttress in supporting a thrust from the dome.

Who ordered to build the Pantheon?

Emperor Hadrian
The Pantheon as we know it today was built in 120 AD by Emperor Hadrian who was passionate with architecture and designed it together with Apollodorus of Damascus, a famous Greek architect of the time who unfortunately was executed by order of the Emperor, because of an argument regarding the design of the temple. 4.

Why was there an oculus in the dome of the Pantheon?

Since the columns and the dome’s coffering don’t line up, many architectural historians have speculated this to symbolise the difference between the terrestrial and non-terrestrial. We can only speculate as to the original purpose of the oculus in the dome of the Pantheon in Rome. This is what it looks like from the entrance: Photo via Unsplash.

How did they build the Pantheon in Rome?

With massive single stone columns holding up the portico at the entrance, the immense open interior space created by the cylindrical rotunda, and of course, the characteristic concrete dome and open oculus to top it off, the Pantheon is quite the engineering wonder to behold.

Why was the pantheon called the rotunda in Rome?

The “rotunda” (Italian for “round”) is the name for the main central structure of the Pantheon and it refers to the Pantheon’s distinctive cylindrical shape. This was the first element of the building to be constructed, using the Roman concrete ( opus caementicium) technique.

How many coffers are there in the Pantheon?

The interior of the dome On the internal surface of the dome there are five rows of 28 square sunken panels, technically known as coffers, but also called caissons (‘boxes”), or lacunaria (“spaces”). This is a very unusual way to divide a circle, and it would have been difficult to calculate the correct spacing between the coffers.