 House of the Vestals | |
   Vestal Virgins Shown within Augustan Rome | |
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| Coordinates | 41°53′29″N12°29′12″E / 41.89139°N 12.48667°E /41.89139; 12.48667 |
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TheHouse of the Vestal Virgins (Latin:Atrium Vestae;Italian:Casa delle Vestali) was the residence ofVestal Virgins,[1] located behind the circularTemple of Vesta at the eastern edge of theRoman Forum, between theRegia and thePalatine Hill. Thedomus publica, where thePontifex Maximus dwelled, was located near the Atrium until that role was assumed by the emperors.[2]
TheAtrium Vestae was a three-story 50-room palace in the ancient Roman Forum built around an elegant elongatedatrium or court with a double pool. To the very east is an open vaulted hall with a statue ofNuma Pompilius, the mythological founder of the cult.[3]
The complex lay at the foot of the Palatine Hill, where asacred grove that was slowly encroached upon lingered into Imperial times, when all was swept away by theFire of Rome in 64. The House of the Vestals was rebuilt several times in the course of the Empire. After the dissolution of the College of the Vestals in the late 4th century AD, the House of the Vestals continued to serve as a residence building. It now housed officials of the imperial court, and subsequently the papal court. Archaeological finds from this period include ahoard of 397 gold coins from the 5th century and another 830 Anglo-Saxon coins dating from the 9th and 10th centuries. The site was abandoned in the 11th/12th century.[3]
Today, remains of the statues of the Vestals can be seen in theAtrium Vestae.[3]
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Media related toHouse of the Vestals at Wikimedia Commons
| Preceded by Temple of Vesta | Landmarks of Rome House of the Vestals | Succeeded by Largo di Torre Argentina |
