Latin Everyday: Hadrian's Mausoleum

The Mausoleum of Hadrian, also known as the Sepulcrum Antoninorum to the Romans and Sant’Angelo di Castro Sant’Angelo now, is an important part of Ancient Roman and current history.

After the death of his son, Hadrian began building his Mausoleum in 123 C.E. out of brick, marble, and travertine. It was built on the banks of the Tiber River and remains there today, just a small distance away from the Vatican. Its cylindrical shape makes it stand out against the skyline of Rome, and evidence shows that it used to have a prosperous garden surrounding the structure that was lined with multiple marble statues. The inside was adorned with epitaphs, friezes, and podiums, some of which, still remain. When Hadrian died in 138, the tomb was still unfinished. But his remains were moved there when it was finished in 140. Though it was originally meant for him, many of Hadrian's relatives like his wife and sons are buried in the Mausoleum as well.

Many years after his death, the Mausoleum was used as a stronghold, and it is rumored that when they were attacked by the Goths in 537, the Romans used the statues on top of the structure to hurdle them onto the army. The Romans built a church on the summit in 560, it since then, the Mausoleum has been known as the Sant’Angelo di Castro Sant’Angelo. According to legend, Pope Boniface saw the archangel Michael sheathing it’s sword above the tomb to symbolize the end of the Plague, which is why the trademark statue of Michael still remains on top of the Mausoleum today. During the early middle ages, the church was replaced, and the Crescenzi refortified it. Seeing the great use that a big heavy building had, the Mausoleum was refurbished to function as a papal stronghold in 1277.