While legend has it that the Emperor Nero fiddled while his capital of Rome burned down before him, we do have more tangible evidence of his extravagant behaviors left behind and open to public view again in present-day Rome. The Domus Aurea, or "Golden House", was Nero’s personal response to the great fire of 64 A.D. which destroyed about two-thirds of the city, including many large Roman dwellings. The Emperor ordered the construction of what was the largest imperial residence yet on land covering four districts of the city and designed in the most opulent of fashions. The most important section was a large rectangle at the Oppius hill where the four corner parts covered the four districts. The rooms, halls and corridors of the sprawling villa were lavishly decorated with gold, silver and precious stones. The east wing was intended for public receptions and events, while the west wing served as the personal residence of the Emperor. One of the most notable rooms as you tour Domus Aurea is a circular space which is said to have been a round dining-room, with the floor constructed on a revolving structure designed to imitate the revolutions of the earth itself.
The exterior setting of the Domus Aurea also reflected Nero’s particular mania for all things rural, incorporating such countryside elements as vineyards, orchards, vegetable gardens and parks, pastures and forests with grazing herds and animals wandering in the grounds, at the Caelius, near the Fagutal - the altar in the holy forest at the Esquiline, and at the Oppius. Near the entrance of the Domus Aurea stood a gigantic tribute to Nero, the "Colossus Neronis", a bronze statue of a man of some 37,2 meters, in style like the Colossus of Rhodes. Several emperors’ heads would replace that of Nero’s on the statue before Hadrian had it removed to the Amphitheatrum Flavium. This building in turn took the name Colosseum during the middle ages, thanks to the statue deposited outside it, and the name has remained to the present although the statue has not. The Domus Aurea has undergone a renovation that took some 10 years and is now open to the public, so if you’re in the area of the Colosseum, it is certainly worth the visit. Many of the rooms retain still colorful sections of murals that give a sense of the grandiose style of this early period of the Empire. Guided tours are available in both English and Italian, booking ahead is essential and the premises are closed on Tuesday. There seemed to be a permanent crowd of both Italian and foreign tourists waiting to get in even at 9 o’clock on a chilly February morning when I visited. Domus Aurea is a wonderful addition to have back on the list of ancient sites to reacquaint yourself with when next in Rome.