Quezi

Temple of Vesta - courtesy Patrick Denker - CC-BY

The Temple of Vesta was considered the ancestral hearth of the Roman Nation  It was the place where the objects that Aeneas theoretically had bought from Troy were kept, and it was the temple that was guarded by the Vestal Virgins, the only female priesthood in Rome.

In exchange for the rigid rules that governed their lives, the Vestal Virgins had a semi-divine status and many privileges.

The temple had several unique architectural features. It was modeled after the earliest Roman houses which were round huts. Since the worship of Vesta began on the hearths of private homes, the temple is a reminder of that history. The temple used Greek architecture with Corinthian columns, marble, and a central cella. The internal cella was surrounded by twenty columns built on a podium fifteen meters in diameter.

The Temple was destroyed by fire twice, and restored by Nero and Trajan.

In 191AD, it was again burned to the foundations. It was rebuilt by the Empress Julia Domna, the wife of Septimus Severus.

The late imperial temple was made of white marble with a base of three steps that led up to the podium and twenty fluted Corinthian columns, standing on plinths that jutted out from the podium.

This temple was closed by the Edict of Theodosius in 394.

After centuries of life as a Christian church, the marble and contents were stripped by the 16th century.  The ruins are closed to the public.

For more information about ancient Rome