Roman Basilicas:

Back Home Up Next

ROMAN BASILICAS: Among the adjuncts of the market-place none was more important than the basilica, which served as a meeting place for the citizens, an exchange for merchants, and a court of justice. Basilicas employed interior-facing colonnades aligned as a peristyle to create a raised second-story aisle or "clerestory" and a sense of interior monumental space (see Basilica Plans). The design was possibly imported from Hellenistic Greek buildings ("Stoa Basileios") that formerly stood in capitals such as Alexandria. The BASILICA JULIA in the Roman Forum was begun by Julius Caesar as Dictator and completed by Augustus (first century BC). The BASILICA of CONSTANTINE, constructed of concrete and high ceilinged vaulted brick arches in the early fourth century AD at the south end of the Roman Forum, served as the architectural model for Grand Central Station in New York. The BASILICA OF ST. PAUL BEYOND THE WALLS (of the city of Rome) and the interior of the BASILICA SANTA MARIA MAGGIORE in Rome, both fifth century AD, mark the transition from the traditional Roman function of a basilica as a civic center for commerce, finance and legal tribunals to the primary locus of the Catholic Church ritual.

BASILICA JULIA

 BASILICA of CONSTANTINE

BASILICA OF ST. PAUL BEYOND THE WALLS

Plans of BASILICA OF ST. PAUL

BASILICA SANTA MARIA MAGGIORE

Back Home Up Next

For Questions or Comments contact:  rauhn@purdue.edu 

Web Site Created By C.B.Rowan Using:

Last Updated: 02/17/2000