Could this unassuming brick building really have witnessed the twilight of the Roman Republic? This, my friends, is the Curia Julia, the enduring symbol of Roman political life. Right here, within these very walls, senators once debated the fate of empires. Julius Caesar himself commissioned this structure in 44 BC, intending it to be a grand new home for the Roman Senate. However, fate, it seems, had other plans. Before its completion, Caesar was assassinated, leaving the unfinished Curia Julia to his successor, Augustus. Augustus completed the Curia in 29 BC, dedicating it to his adoptive father’s memory. Imagine the scene – senators clad in togas, their voices echoing through this very hall, deciding the course of history. This Curia Julia has borne witness to it all. Fires, renovations, even the fall of an empire haven’t erased its significance. Though the original bronze doors now grace the Basilica of St. John Lateran, the Curia Julia still stands, a testament to the enduring power of Roman architecture and a silent echo of the voices that once shaped a civilization.
Chiesa di Santa Maria in Monticelli
Is this heaven? Because standing before the Chiesa di Santa Maria in Monticelli, one might feel a touch of the