Tivoli Villa Adriana opening hours: closed. Villa Adriana is the country residence of the Roman emperors. Villa Adriana - the centuries-old history of the imperial residence

Villa Adriana (at Tivoli near Rome) is an outstanding complex of classical buildings created in the 2nd century. under this ancient Roman emperor. The villa combines the best elements of the architectural heritage of Egypt, Greece and Rome, giving them the form of an ideal city;.

Adriana's Villa was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1999.

This is how she looked in ancient times.

The villa consisted of about thirty buildings scattered over an area of one square kilometer. It is known that the emperor gave them names in honor of those cities of the empire that he visited. Systematic excavations at the villa were never really carried out, but it is from here that some of the most famous ancient statues originate: the Discobolus, Diana of Versailles, Capitoline Antinous, Capitoline Centaurs, etc. Many marble columns were removed from the villa by order of Ippolito d'Este for construction his own villa in Tivoli. The villa was built between 118 and 134. on the edge of a calcareous terrace stretching from the Tiburtine Mountains to the Roman plain. Today, only a fifth of the 300 hectares of the original area of the villa has been preserved. The construction and subsequent maintenance were so extensive that nearby Tibur experienced a great demographic and economic boom. Hadrian's family and his successors continued to use the villa as a summer residence, but subsequently virtually forgot about it. At the end of the 3rd century, Diocletian restored the villa, and later, according to some sources, Constantine I the Great took from there many works of art to decorate Constantinople. A period of neglect followed. In the 6th century, the armies of the Goths and Byzantines set up camps here. Destruction and plunder continued until the first archaeological excavations in the 16th century, when about 300 masterpieces were found, now in museums around the world.
Pechile is a huge rectangular area measuring 232x97 m with a lake in the center, limited by a 9-meter fortification, ending with two-sided porticoes. Currently, only the remains of the walls remain. The porticoes themselves are destroyed. There is an assumption that there could have been a hippodrome on the site of the lake.

Cento camerelle (“one hundred little rooms”) are small quarters for slaves adjacent to the Pechila.

Large thermal baths for men. A vast rectangular area in the background was occupied by a palaestra for outdoor exercises, and nearby there was a spheristerium - an enclosed room for playing ball. In the center of the adjacent rectangular room was a dressing room with access to the calidarium. Closer to the small thermal baths were the tepidarium and laconicum (hot air sauna) in the form of a round hall with an apse. Behind was the frigidarium. In various parts of the thermal baths traces of a double-type heating network are visible: wet based on hot water and steam produced by large boilers, and dry based on hot air from wood-burning stoves. Both steam and heated air circulated in special rooms with a double bottom and through thin channels inside the walls.

Canopy is a reservoir measuring 119x18 m in a valley between hills, reinforced by supporting structures. This structure is reminiscent of an Egyptian settlement near modern Abukir, famous in ancient times for its luxury. Hadrian's favorite Antinous drowned there. Along the long side of the reservoir are casts of four caryatids (copies of statues from Erechtheion) and two sileni.

Along the long side of the reservoir are casts of four caryatids (copies of statues from Erechtheion) and two sileni.

The Golden Square is a large atrium in the north-eastern part of the villa, almost square in shape measuring 51x61 m with a double portico consisting in the open part of 60 granite and veined marble columns.

On the back side of the portico they were complemented by brick half-columns covered with stucco. On the southwest side there was an octagonal imperial hall with alternating concave-convex walls. On the northwest side there is an octagonal vestibule with semicircular and rectangular niches in the walls. The sailing dome on eight columns with a central window is quite well preserved. In a small side room of the vestibule, floor mosaics have been preserved.

Four-sided portico with a fish pond on the hillside. Niches for fishermen were carved into the back wall of the pond. On the front wall there were large panoramic terraces overlooking the vast plain.

Mosaic on the floor of the Imperial Palace.

Greek library.

The island villa was a ring canal surrounding a circular island containing a small villa, which consisted of rooms around a courtyard with a colonnade and a relief fountain. Around the canal there is a ring-shaped arched gallery, bounded by a cylindrical wall, along which there are 40 Ionic columns. Initially, two wooden drawbridges, controlled only from the inside, led to the island. They have now been replaced by brick bridges. Previously, the Island Villa was called the Sea Theater.

Hall of Philosophers.

Wall of Hadrian's Villa.

The round temple was partially recreated in 1958 from rubble. In the center is a cast of the Roman copy of the Venus of Cnidus, kept in the Canopic Museum.

Greek amphitheater.

The city of Tivoli is a city in the province of Lazio, on the Teverone (Anio) river, 24 km northeast of Rome. About 66 thousand inhabitants.

Main attractions: the Drener Roman Villa of Hadrian, the medieval castle of Rocca Pia,

the famous Villa d'Este (XVI century) and Gregorian Villa (XIX century).

In ancient times, Tivoli was called Tibur and was connected to Rome by the Via Tiburtina road. According to legend, Tibur was founded in the 13th century BC. e. one generation before the Trojan War, two sons or grandsons of Amphiaraus, Catillus and Coras, and in honor of their brother Tiburt received its name. According to another legend, it was founded by the Siculi or Sicanians, then came under the rule of the Pelasgians and finally submitted to the Latins. Under the dominance of the latter, Tibur achieved a significant degree of power as one of the major cities of the Latin Union and later, thanks to its picturesque position, became one of the favorite and fashionable places in Italy. Tibur was famous, among other things, for its pottery, fruits, olive oil, figs, quarries (in which the travertine with which the Colosseum was lined was mined); there was a cult of Hercules here.

From Villa d'Este (Tivoli) to Villa Adriana you can drive only by local bus. Rome travel cards, as well as the ticket you bought in Rome for the Cotral bus, are not valid here. There are no vending machines near the stop, so you will have to buy a ticket for the local bus at one of the newsstands(purple flag on the map). One way ticket per person costs 1.3 euro(2017). If you plan to return to Tivoli, then buy two tickets at once, and if, after visiting Villa Adriana, you want to return directly to Rome, then buy one (“One ticket to villa Adriana please”).

Bus stop from which you can go to Rome by Cotral bus or to Villa Adriana by buses 4 and 4x

After purchasing a ticket, go to stop, which is on the opposite side of the street where you were dropped off when you arrived from Rome (see yellow mark on the map and photo).

Here you need to sit on bus 4 and go to the stop L.go M. Yourcenar (Villa Adriana) - it is located right next to the ticket office of Villa Adriana (pink mark on the map). The bus line number (Linea 4 or Linea 4x) is written on the sign at the bottom left behind the glass (see photo). Don't accidentally take the familiar blue Cotral bus! N.B. Bus drivers don't sell tickets! When you get on the bus, just give the ticket to the driver - he will tear it slightly and then you don’t need to punch it (and there’s nowhere).

Bus 4x

Stops are not announced(navigator to help). Buses run every 25 - 50 minutes (see schedule for 2017). You can also take the same stop at 4x bus(schedule); it runs much less frequently, but will take you to the same stop L.go M. Yourcenar (Villa Adriana).

Bus schedule 4

Bus schedule and stops 4x

Back From Villa Adriana in Tivoli you can leave from the same stop where you got off. It is located next to the ticket office (there is a sign with the schedule of buses 4 and 4x, and a rectangle with the inscription BUS is painted on the asphalt).

Ticket office of Villa Adriana and bus stop 4 and 4x

If you need to go to Rome, and not in Tivoli, then you can go to the nearest stop on Via Nazionale Tiburtina, where Cotral buses stop (see map - orange mark Tiburtina/via della Serena). The distance from Villa Adriana to the nearest stop is about a kilometer. Here you will need to wave to a passing dark blue bus with the Cotral sign on it. Come in, validate your ticket, which you wisely bought back in Rome at Ponte Mammolo, and go to the final stop.

20 kilometers northeast of Rome, on the very bank of the Anio River and right on the picturesque slopes of the Sabine Mountains, covered with green olive groves and vineyards, is the ancient Italian city of Tivoli. Historians suggest that it was founded back in the 13th century BC, as a large junction and outpost connecting all the roads leading to Rome from the eastern part of the empire.
A little later, attracted by the picturesque views of the Campania from these places, as well as the amazingly beautiful waterfalls that the Anio River is so rich in, representatives of the Roman nobility tried to build at least one of their many villas in these places. Since then, the city itself, as well as its surroundings, have become a real treasury of examples of ancient Roman architecture. True, during the last world war, Allied aircraft with their carpet bombing caused irreparable harm to the region, changing its historical appearance beyond recognition

Tivoli is home to two famous villas: Villa Andriana and Villa d'Este.

Villa Adriana

One of the most famous Roman emperors was Hadrian. He gained his popularity as an architect, artist and philosopher. Many famous buildings of that time were built thanks to him. The emperor also loved to travel, where he was always accompanied by a retinue of artists sketching the sights they saw. It is not surprising that a person with such interests in his declining years decided to build for himself something amazing and at the same time calm, conducive to solitude and self-immersion. The villa of Emperor Hadrian in Tivoli became such a structure.

The site chosen for construction was a plot that belonged to Adrian's wife. It was located on the slope of the Tiburtine Mountains, 30 kilometers from Rome. It was here that the construction of Hadrian's Villa at Tivoli began in 125 AD. Construction continued until Adrian's death. They say that the emperor personally developed the design for his creation.

On a huge territory of 120 hectares there are picturesque ponds and parks. There are also various buildings located here - libraries, a theater, gardens, the emperor's chambers, baths, a museum, a tower, a temple, an academy, buildings for guards, slaves, and service personnel. All the travels of Emperor Hadrian were reflected here; the villa of Emperor Hadrian united Egyptian, Greek, and oriental cultures. The local porticoes are also interesting; they were deliberately lowered so that the emperor could feel taller.

To decorate the villa of Emperor Hadrian in Tivoli, copies and originals of works of art known at that time - frescoes, caryatids, sculptures - were delivered here. The general thoughtfulness of the structure also stands out; everything here is intended specifically for the quiet life of the emperor. Even in order to get rid of unnecessary noise and annoying staff, underground roads were equipped for carts and people

Despite the deteriorating condition of the ruins every year, UNESCO considered it possible to include Hadrian's Villa among the World Heritage Sites as the best preserved example of an imperial villa and the Alexandrian garden, typical of Rome during the empire.

The Golden Square is a large atrium in the north-eastern part of the villa, almost square in shape, measuring 51x61 m with a double portico, consisting in the open part of 60 granite and veined marble columns.

Main structures

Poikile (pechile) - a huge rectangular area measuring 232x97 m with a lake in the center, limited by a 9-meter fortification, ending with double-sided porticoes. Currently, only the remains of the walls remain; the porticos themselves are destroyed. There is an assumption that there could have been a hippodrome on the site of the lake.

Cento Camerelle (“one hundred little rooms”) - small quarters for slaves adjacent to Pechila.

Building with three exedra- a trefoil-shaped building adjacent to Poikile, whose original purpose remains unknown.

Small Baths

- baths, apparently intended for women. They contain a frigidarium for cold baths, a calidarium for hot baths and a tepidarium for warm baths, typical of Roman baths. The latter was located in an octagonal room, once covered with a dome with a diameter of 10.5 m. The small baths had a pool with marble steps and small rooms for sweating, massages, gymnastics and relaxation.

Great Baths

— baths for men, separated from the small ones by a service courtyard. A vast rectangular area in the background was occupied by a palaestra for outdoor exercises, and nearby there was a spheristerium - an indoor room for playing ball. In the center of the adjacent rectangular room was a dressing room with access to the calidarium.

Closer to the small thermal baths were the tepidarium and laconicum (hot air sauna) in the form of a round hall with an apse. Behind was the frigidarium. In various parts of the thermal baths traces of a double-type heating network are visible: wet based on hot water and steam produced by large boilers, and dry based on hot air from wood-burning stoves.

Both steam and heated air circulated in special rooms with a double bottom and through thin channels inside the walls.

Canopus

The Canopic Museum is located in the ancient buildings of tabernae (shops, taverns), which bordered the Canopic valley on the right. The museum exhibits 4 caryatids, 2 basket bearers, statues of Mars, Mercury and Venus, as well as Roman copies from Greek originals: Amazon Phidias, Amazon Polykleitos, Nile and Tiber, a marble crocodile, male marble busts, columns and pillars, a copy of the Venus of Cnidus .

Pretoria

- a huge complex of several floors, intended for maintenance. It is located to the left of the Canopy and is one of the best preserved buildings of Hadrian's Villa.

Four-sided portico with a fish pond on the hillside. Niches for fishermen were carved into the back wall of the pond. On the front wall there were large panoramic terraces overlooking the vast plain.

Nymphaeum- a rectangular space between the portico and the stove, previously considered a stadium.

Solar thermal baths — a bathhouse in the form of a large corner round room with a wide bathtub and five windows on the southwestern wall

Library yard size 65x52 m.

Hospitable courtyard consisting of a dozen bedrooms for receiving praetorians

Tempe Pavilion - large panoramic terrace.

Greek library

Island Villa

- a ring canal surrounding a round island with a small villa, which consisted of rooms around a courtyard with a colonnade and a relief fountain. Around the canal there is a ring-shaped arched gallery, bounded by a cylindrical wall, along which there are 40 Ionic columns. Initially, two wooden drawbridges, controlled only from the inside, led to the island. They have now been replaced by brick bridges. Previously, the Island Villa was called the Sea Theater.

Hall of Philosophers

Roccabruna Tower(brown fortress tower)

Round temple partially rebuilt in 1958 from the wreckage. In the center is a cast of the Roman copy of the Venus of Cnidus, kept in the Canopic Museum.

Marine Theater

The villa was built between 118 and 134. on the edge of a calcareous terrace stretching from the Tiburtine Mountains to the Roman plain. Today, only a fifth of the 300 hectares of the original area of the villa has been preserved. Construction and subsequent maintenance were so extensive that nearby Tibur experienced a major population and economic boom.

Mosaic from Hadrian's Villa

The villa was built in accordance with the Roman architectural tradition, when the artistic subtlety of execution is harmoniously combined with the surrounding landscape.

The names of many parts of the villa were given by Emperor Hadrian in honor of the most memorable places of the Roman Empire. Their list was placed in the book “Augustan History” by Elio Spartiano. However, only Canopus can be reliably identified, and all other correspondences were invented at a later time.

Mosaic with doves. Roman copy

Hadrian's family and his successors continued to use the villa as a summer residence, but subsequently practically forgot about it. At the end of the 3rd century, Diocletian restored the villa, and later, according to some sources, Constantine I the Great took from there many works of art to decorate Constantinople.

A period of neglect followed. In the 6th century, the armies of the Goths and Byzantines set up camps here. Destruction and plunder continued until the first archaeological excavations in the 16th century, when about 300 masterpieces were found, now in museums around the world.

Emperor's Palace

Systematic excavations at the villa were never really carried out, but it is from here that some of the most famous ancient statues originate: the Discobolus, Diana of Versailles, Capitoline Antinous, Capitoline Centaurs, etc. Many marble columns were removed from the villa by order of Ippolito d'Este for construction his own villa in Tivoli.

Among other things, the villa has a whole network of underground tunnels that were used by servants to move from one building to another. In 1998, the ruins of a temple were discovered at the villa, which archaeologists believe to be the temple of Antinous, a favorite of Hadrian. Excavations on the territory of the villa continue to this day. Among the works of art already found are a marble statue of Antinous, antique mosaics, copies of ancient Greek statues, etc. You can see these artifacts in the Vatican and Capitoline Museums.

Urania and Hermes

Adrian had many hobbies: public speaking, drawing, poetry, hunting and of course architecture! A self-taught architect, Adrian personally designed his villa. According to his idea, the villa was to become the very place where one could hide from the chaos of Rome.
Hadrian traveled extensively across the vast territories of the Roman Empire (during his 21-year reign, in total, he spent only 12 years in Rome). But since he clearly had a penchant for beauty and art, in his villa he recreated the most interesting architectural solutions that he encountered along the way. There is a corner of Egypt, Greece, Asia, buried in a huge park

Vibia Sabina

Flora and Paris

It is said that Hadrian did not like his palace on the Palatine Hill in Rome, so he spent the last years of his reign in the villa. His huge court was permanent at the villa, and postal communication allowed him to maintain regular contact with Rome, which is located 29 km from Tivoli. After Hadrian, the villa served as a country residence for several emperors, but during the fall of the Roman Empire it was abandoned and fell into disrepair. And in the 16th century, Cardinal Ippolito II d'Este moved most of the marble statues of the villa to his property nearby - to Villa d'Este.

Bibliography:

A. Betori, Z. Mari, "Villa Adriana, edificio circolare noto come Sepolcro o Tomba: campagna di scavo 2004: breve sintesi dei resultati", in Journal of Fasti Online,

www.fastionline.org

E. Salza Prina Ricotti, Villa Adriana il sogno di un imperatore (2001) Hadrien: tresor d'une villa imperiale, ed. J. Charles-Gaffiot, H. Lavagne (1999. Milan)

W. L. MacDonald and J. A. Pinto, Hadrian's Villa and its legacy (1995)

A. Giubilei, "Il Conte Fede e la Villa Adriana: storia di una collezione d"arte", in Atti e Memorie della Società Tiburtina di Storia e d"arte; 68 (1995), p. 81-121

J. Raeder, Die Statuarische Ausstattung Der Villa Hadriana Bei Tivoli (1983) R. Lanciani, La Villa Adriana (1906)

Not far from the Italian city of Tivoli, which is located a few kilometers from Rome, there is an ancient villa - Villa Adriana (Adriana's Villa). The Roman Emperor Hadrian reigned in the 2nd century AD, from 117 to 138. He was known as a wise politician, a supporter of economic and cultural changes. During his reign, many amazing, interesting buildings were built throughout the country, which became architectural masterpieces of their time, many of them have survived to this day.

On an imperial scale

It was designed on a grand scale - in the spirit of the Roman emperors, who even through architecture sought to emphasize their superiority over the rest of the world. The villa was located on a vast territory of one square kilometer and consisted of a whole complex of buildings. It was erected on the site of an ancient republican estate (2nd-1st century AD), the ruins of which were only partially preserved. Yes, myself Emperor Hadrian's villa with all its buildings was mercilessly destroyed by time and today represents only a small part of its former splendor. But even despite this, exploring the entire complex can take a whole day.

The city of Tivoli was previously called Tibur, and the local limestone from which the villa was built was Tiburtine. And the whole complex, in fact, is located on a large limestone terrace that gently descends into the valley.

On the territory of the villa, libraries, a Maritime Theater, temples, thermal baths, the Palazzo - the emperor's palace, and artificial ponds were built. A wide canal stretches along the entire territory leading to the Temple of Serapeo. In the wide valley there is a picturesque green park, which even today amazes with its splendor. In sunny, good weather, tourists especially like to walk here, enjoying the natural scenery and taking photographs against the backdrop of ancient monuments.

The architectural style of the ensemble is a mixture of different directions. Ancient masters used new, previously unused techniques and combinations in architecture. Here you can see Greek and Egyptian motifs, elements of oriental style. The model of the villa gives an idea of how grandiose the construction was.

The asphalt road leading to Villa Adriana passes next to the oldest olive garden. If you wish, you can walk along the alley of huge cypress trees that were planted in the 8th century. Immediately at the entrance to the villa you will see a powerful nine-meter wall, and behind it is Pecile Square with a rectangular pond in the center. Once upon a time, thick walls surrounded the entire perimeter of the square, high porticoes made it possible to climb up and stroll around, surveying the surroundings.

The Emperor's Whims

The great reformer Hadrian traveled a lot and in memory of the places he visited, he named individual objects of the villa (Serapeo, Canopo, Pecile). Numerous monuments and sculptures of Greek masters (originals and copies) were also brought here. All buildings villas Emperor Hadrian carefully thought out and designed in such a way as to provide peace and privacy for the emperor, who did not want to constantly see many servants. And since the villa required constant care and attention, so as not to disturb the emperor with the sight of servants constantly scurrying around the territory, an underground network of roads was developed.

The enormous length of the park and the ensemble of buildings, the complexity and originality of architectural forms, the abundance of sculptural compositions make Villa Adriana in Tivoli a unique monument of ancient culture.

The legacy of ancient Tivoli

There is another ancient villa - Villa d’Este, which is located near Villa Adriana, directly in the city Tivoli. Villa d'Este was built much later - in the 16th century. Both villas are the main historical attractions of the ancient Tivoli.Villa d'Este, with its luxurious park, tourists especially like to visit in summer , admiring ancient statues, lush greenery and magnificent fountains.

Villa Adriana in Tivoli

To decorate the villa of Emperor Hadrian in Tivoli, copies and originals of works of art known at that time - frescoes, caryatids, sculptures - were delivered here. The general thoughtfulness of the structure also stands out; everything here is intended specifically for the quiet life of the emperor. Even in order to get rid of unnecessary noise and annoying personnel, underground roads were equipped for carts and people.

Hall of Philosophers

Canopy

Villa Adriana in Tivoli, in terms of its size and number of buildings, is truly a unique structure and a treasure of human culture.