{"id":529,"date":"2018-03-04T14:53:19","date_gmt":"2018-03-04T13:53:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/love-adventure.com\/?p=529"},"modified":"2021-05-27T15:41:45","modified_gmt":"2021-05-27T13:41:45","slug":"hadrians-villa-tivoli","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wanderinghelene.com\/hadrians-villa-tivoli\/","title":{"rendered":"A Retreat from Rome: Hadrian’s Villa in Tivoli"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

About a half hour drive east of Rome is where you will find Hadrian’s Villa in Tivoli. Hadrian’s Villa, or Villa Adriana<\/em> in Italian was the Roman Emperor Hadrian’s retreat from Rome until he moved there permanently in AD 128.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The UNESCO World Heritage Site is an excellent example of the sheer wealth and size of the Roman Empire. The villa was built between 118 and 138 AD on 300 acres of land. It is almost difficult to understand the size without visiting, but believe me it feels more like a town. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hadrian’s Villa was occupied by a few successors after Hadrian, but fell into a state of disrepair during the 4th century (the decline of the Roman Empire). The site was used for building materials, and valuables were taken. Cardinal Ippolito II d’Este (remember him from Villa d’Este<\/a>) had many of the remaining statues and marble\u00a0taken for his villa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read | The Magical Fountains in Villa d’Este<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Some parts of Hadrian’s Villa still stand allowing us to see the size of structures while at the same time, the attention to detail. The property contains over 30 buildings, some of which is yet to be excavated. The size of the property is similar to that of Pompeii to give some context (if you have never been to Pompeii it takes a full day to maybe<\/em> see all of it). The buildings were influenced by Roman, Greek, and Egyptian architecture and inspired by Hadrian’s travels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Here is a model in the visitors center, it shows what pictures cannot. It looks like an entire town, and that was the idea. Hadrian wanted to create an ideal city combining the styles of Roman, Greek, and Egyptian, and the result? This monumental villa that is comparable to none.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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