TheTemple of Vesta, or the aedes (LatinAedes Vestae;Italian:Tempio di Vesta), is an ancient edifice inRome,Italy. It is located in theRoman Forum near theRegia and theHouse of the Vestal Virgins. The Temple of Vesta housed Vesta's holy fire, which was a symbol of Rome's safety and prosperity.^[1] The temple has a circular footprint, making it atholos.

Temple of Vesta

Reconstructed remains of the Temple of Vesta
Temple of Vesta Shown within Augustan Rome
Click on the map for a fullscreen view
Location	Regio VIII Forum Romanum
Coordinates	41°53′30″N12°29′10″E / 41.8917°N 12.4862°E /41.8917; 12.4862
Type	Roman Old kingdom
History
Builder	Unknown builder
Founded	unknown old Kingdom era

Since the worship ofVesta began in private homes, the architecture seems to pay homage to the architecture of early Roman homes. The temple's current, ruinous form employs elements ofGreek architecture withCorinthian columns andmarble. The sacred hearth was housed in a centralcella. The surviving structure indicates that there were twenty Corinthian columns built on apodium fifteen meters in diameter. The roof probably had a vent at the apex to allow smoke to escape.^[2]

The first Temple of Vesta was built byNuma Pompilius, the secondking of theRoman Kingdom. He also built the originalRegia ("king's house") and theHouse of the Vestal Virgins, and founded the priestly order ofVestal Virgins. At first there were just two Vestals, but by the end of the Republic, there were six.^[3] Vesta was the goddess of Rome's hearths. The Romans believed that hersacred fire was closely tied to the fortunes of the city, and that its extinction signified imminent disaster for Rome.^[4] Although it is known as a temple in modern times, its site, orientation and floor plan were not determined throughaugury. It was therefore known as a shrine (in Latin,aedes).

The Temple of Vesta was tended by the six Vestal Virgins, drawn between the ages of 6 and 10 from freeborn, or traditionally, aristocratic families.^[5] They surrendered all legal connections with their birth family, and came under the authority of thepontifex maximus, Rome's chief priest. The Vestal oath ofvirginity during their 30-year tenure set them apart from other Roman women. Whilechastity until marriage was considered proper in Rome, long-term celibacy was not, as women were generally expected to marry, and give birth to heirs for their husbands.^[6] A Vestal who broke her vow of chastity during her priestly tenure disrupted the relationship between Rome and its gods. The Romans believed that this would lead to disaster, such as pestilence, social breakdown or military defeats.^[6]

For minor failures of duty, Vestals could be whipped. For breaking their vow of chastity, a Vestal could be condemned to aliving burial in a subterranean cell within the city boundary, with a little food and water, and left to die.^[5] If disasters struck, in any form, Vestals who seemed less than perfect in attitude, morals or behaviour might be accused of secretly breaking their vows and thus causing the disaster. For example, in 114 BC, a virgin girl of equestrian family, named Helvia, was killed by lightning while on horseback. Her death was interpreted as aprodigy, proof of potentially disastrous oath-breaking by one or more Vestals; after investigations three Vestal Virgins were sentenced to death forinchastity, on the flimsiest of evidence.^[6][7] Vestals were required to show a near supernatural level of moral superiority. Failures, and their punishment, were extremely rare. The respect and social privileges that came from their position, a generous pension, and a complete lack of personal experience of the duties attached to Roman marriage, seems to have encouraged many to remain in the priesthood after their term of service had officially ended.^[8][9]

The temple of Vesta was unique in its design, as it was round as opposed to rectangular like many other temples. The circular shape of the Vesta temples were based on theprimitive round hut.^[3] Some researchers argue that the circular footprint of the Temple of Vesta was meant to symbolize the earth and the domed roof symbolized the heavens.^[10] All temples to Vesta were round, and had entrances facing east to enhance the connection between Vesta's fire and the sun as sources of life. The Temple of Vesta represents the site of ancient religious activity as far back as the 7th century BCE.^[3]

Archaeologists have found that the Temple of Vesta was built on a circular foundation. Circling the exterior of the temple were twentyfluted columns. Each column was 0.52 meters in diameter, with a base 1.6 meters in circumference. The columns were topped with aCorinthian capital. The radius of the temple was about 6.19 meters. This measured from the outer line of thearchitrave to the middle of the temple. The interior wall is 0.60 meters thick and the diameter of the inside of the temple is 8.6 meters. The Temple was on a high platform and wide steps lead up to the entrance.^[2]

It was one of the earliest structures in the Roman Forum, although its final form was the result of subsequent rebuilding. While most Roman temples held acult statue, Vesta's had a hearth and flame that burned continuously, day and night.^[10] The temple was the storehouse for the legal wills and documents of Roman Senators and cult objects such as thePalladium, a statue ofAthena (RomanMinerva) believed to have been brought byAeneas fromTroy; the statue was felt to be one of thePignora Imperii, or pledges of imperium, of ancient Rome. The temple was closed during thepersecution of pagans in the late Roman Empire in the 4th-century.^[10] The Temple of Vesta, the Atrium of the Vestal Virgins (House of the Vestal Virgins), and theRegia are the earliest evidence of the Cult of Vesta. The original Temple of Vesta stood on the east end of the forum near the house of the Vestal Virgins and theRegia. Beyond that cluster of buildings is theVia Sacra (Sacred Way) which ran uphill.^[11] This cluster of buildings was destroyed in the great fire of 64 AD; the temple was rebuilt by Trajan over several years. Another rebuilding was sponsored byJulia Domna, wife ofSeptimius Severus.^[2]

The temple was destroyed and rebuilt many times. The first destruction of the temple was by theGauls in 390 BC.Livy records that after the Gauls burned down the temple, they soon returned to find that the Vestals had rekindled their sacred fire among the ruins of the temple. According toOvid, the second destruction in 241 BC may have started because of the fire in the temple itself. During the fire, the Vestals were unable to collect the cult objects, and they were destroyed along with the Temple of Vesta.^[10]Lucius Caecilius Metellus, thePontifex Maximus at the time, went into the burning temple to save thepalladium. Lucius Caecilius was blinded by the flames, and it was believed that this was the result of him breaking the tradition of the temple which barres men from entering.^[3] Fires also occurred again in 210 BC and again in the early first century BC. The temple was rebuilt again during the reigns of Augustus andNero. Finally, it burned down in 191 AD and was rebuilt for the last time during the reign ofSeptimius Severus by his wife,Julia Domna.^[3]

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  1805 Illustration of the Temple of Vesta.
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  The most prominent feature of the ruins that were once the Temple of Vesta is the hearth.

The sacred flame was finally extinguished in 394 AD byTheodosius I, during thepersecution of pagans in the late Roman Empire on account of the rise of Christianity in the empire.^[12]

The Temple of Vesta remained reasonably intact until theRenaissance. However, in 1549 AD, the temple was demolished, and its marble was repurposed to build churches and papal palaces.^[3] Most of our knowledge about what the original Temple of Vesta looked like come from its depictions on coins and art. One piece of art that depicts the Temple of Vesta is a marble relief in theUffizi inFlorence,Italy.^[10] These depictions and others like it allow us to understand what the temple looked like in antiquity.

Modern archaeological investigation began on the site of the Temple of Vesta in the late nineteenth century. The exploration began in 1877 with archaeologistR. Lanciani's excavation of the Temple of Vesta and the publishing of his findings. During his exploration he was able to uncover many parts of the Temple of Vesta, including parts of theentablature and ceiling.^[3] Exploration continued from 1898 to 1900 whenGiaccomo Boni, director of the Roman Forum, embarked on a new round of excavations. His works were published in 1900 and included measurements and sections of the temple's foundation, photos and drawings of the principal architectural elements, and a restored plan of the building.^[3] Finally, in 1930-1931 Alfonso Bartoli reconstructed two and a half of the Temple of Vesta's bays, which can still be seen in the forum today.^[3]

• Largo di Torre Argentina – Ancient religious monument in Rome, Italy
• List of ancient Roman temples
• The roundTemple of Hercules Victor in theForum Boarium was initially thought to be a temple of Vesta.
• TheTemple of Vesta, Tivoli
• History of early modern period domes

• Brockman, Norbert (2011),Encyclopedia of Sacred Places, vol. 1, ABC-CLIO,ISBN 978-1-59884-654-6
• Howatson, M. C. (2011),The Oxford Companion to Classical Literature (Third ed.), Oxford University Press,ISBN 978-0-19-954855-2
• Middleton, John Henry (1892),The Remains of Ancient Rome, vol. 1
• Stamper, John W. (2005),The Architecture of Roman Temples: The Republic to the Middle Empire, Cambridge University Press,ISBN 0-521-81068-X

• Aedes Vestae - Temple of Vesta - Tempio di Vesta, Reconstructed
• Lucentini, M. (31 December 2012).The Rome Guide: Step by Step through History's Greatest City. Interlink.ISBN 9781623710088.

  Media related toTemple of Vesta (Rome) at Wikimedia Commons

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