Between the Pantheon and
a fountain topped by an
ancient Egyptian obelisk...

...a horse waits to ferry
its next paying passengers
around by carriage.

The obelisk and its base were
erected by Pope Clement XI.
(Er, or more likely by a crew of laborers
His Holiness bossed around.)

The Pantheon was built
by Marcus Agrippa in
27 BC, then rebuilt by
Emperor Hadrian in 125 AD.

 the entrance to the Pantheon

The only light inside the Pantheon comes from this oculus at the
exact center of the domed roof.

 a nativity scene
inside the Pantheon

Dana with the nativity scene

the tomb of Raphael, the painter

The Pantheon was converted to
a Christian church in 608 AD.

When it rains, water naturally cascades into the Pantheon through the oculus...

 ...and then flows down the
slightly slanted floor into drains on
the outsides of the circular floor.

The Pantheon was stripped for bronze in 667 and 1628.

Still an active church, the Pantheon continues to host weddings and masses.

Pantheon history states that the interior of the roof is intended to symbolize the heavens, and the giant hole above is supposedly the eyes of the gods.

The dimensions of the Pantheon follow the rules set down by top Roman architect Vitruvius.

The diameter of the dome
is exactly equal to the height
of the whole building.

Michelangelo came to the Pantheon
to study its dome before he began
work on the dome of St. Peter's.

There are seven alcoves around the walls, which originally held statues of the Roman gods.

Matt mugs with Dana beneath
the dome and its oculus.

Spanning 42.3 meters, this
was the largest dome in the world
until Brunelleschi's in Florence
in the 1430s.

The portico (porch) features 16 monolithic Corinthian columns topped by a pediment.

The huge bronze doors on the
portico, which until the 18th century
was used as a market site.

Outside, the dome is covered
in almost weightless
cantilevered brick.

Dana on a narrow street
very close to the Pantheon

There's always a crowd
at the Trevi Fountain.

Marble statues depict the sea
god Neptune riding in a chariot
pulled by two sea horses.

In the 1700s and 1800s
tourists would drink water
from the fountain to
ensure a return to Rome.

Now you just toss a coin in the
basin to achieve the same luck.

The fountain emerges from the facade of the Palazzo Poli.

Roughly 3,000 Euros are thrown into the fountain daily.

The female statue is Salubrity, who holds a cup from
which a snake drinks.

Is this lady pointing out the
exact nuts she wants to buy
from this street vendor? 

the Church of Santi Vincenzo
e Anastasio, right across
from the Trevi Fountain

Birds are big fans of
the fountain, as well.

Once a week the basin is cleaned and the coins collected and donated to the Italian Red Cross.

A 1998 refurbishment saw recirculating pumps installed in the fountain.

Dana consults the street map as we pass again by Il Vittoriano.