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     For my last wildcard post I chose to write about the Cologne Cathedral. Our day in Cologne was one of my favorite day trips and I was so impressed by the intricacy of this Cathedral; it looked like something out of a movie. Similarly to my last post though, I did not know a lot about this architectural style until after we returned home. So, after watching the lectures and learning more, I thought this would make for a good blog post.

     A church had previously been at the site of this cathedral but was destroyed by a fire in 1248. After it was destroyed, they began construction of the cathedral that is currently located there. This cathedral is restored multiple times much later, but it is originally built during the high middle ages when Gothic architecture was becoming very popular. This cathedral very obviously represents Gothic architecture; it includes the pointy arches, big windows, many statues and just the overall intricate, busy look which is how it gained the name “Gothic” meaning Germanic because the people of the late Renaissance looked back and thought it was too gaudy or showy. This style of architecture gained popularity because of the shift away from the Romanesque architecture of the dark ages before it. Previously, buildings were created primarily for protection therefore they had thick walls and small windows. As we come out of the dark ages though, there is not a need as much for this protection and instead people are more focused on creating something beautiful. They wanted bigger windows, which created the need for these pointy arches to bear the weight more efficiently. 

     Not only is this building important to the people of the time because of this newer style of architecture, but it is still important to us today. It is the largest Gothic church in all of Northern Europe which makes it such a popular tourist attraction. In addition, it shows historians the shift in what people valued from the dark ages to the middle ages; through this architectural style, we are also able to learn about the people that built it, their needs and their culture. This cathedral is a beautiful example of this Gothic architecture and medieval times which people marvel at now despite the fact that it has not always been loved or appreciated.

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     For this wildcard post I chose to talk about the Florence Cathedral also known as the Duomo. When we were in Florence and got to see this building, obviously I was impressed by its beauty and intricacy, but after learning about this building in our course, there is so much more I can appreciate about this building’s history and architecture and what it meant for its time. 

     This building was started in 1296, but the dome on top was not finished until much later in 1436. It will be built by the people in Florence with the plans to include a dome even though no one at the time knew how to build a dome. The architectural knowledge which the ancient Romans had of how to do that had been lost through the middle ages, but with the Renaissance period which encouraged exploration and experimentation as well as the want to bring beauty back to Florence, the Florentines had the confidence to believe that they could do anything. So, construction began under the assumption that by the time they finished most of the building, someone would know how to build a dome. Turns out they weren’t exactly right and it would be about 100 years until someone comes along to build the dome. 

     The man that eventually comes along is Filippo Brunelleschi. He was a goldsmith from Florence, but during his travels to Rome he was able to observe the Pantheon and figure out the mathematics of how this dome was built. He was able to use that knowledge to successfully build the dome in Florence which several others had attempted and failed to do before. He is able to not only design and execute the construction of this dome, but also build the materials he needs to construct it such as the crane and hoist. This is so impressive for the time because Brunelleschi showed amazing ingenuity and he is able to do all of this which hasn’t been done in over 1000 years. In addition, this new addition of a dome that hasn’t been done in centuries is yet another beautiful, impressive thing from the Renaissance that brings so many more people and artists to Florence during that time.

     This building continues to be important to the world today and one reason for that is because it is still the largest brick dome constructed. Its size as well as beauty is something appreciated by many people around the world. In addition, it is able to teach us so much about this time period of the Renaissance. The fact that these people were so confident about the dome really embodies the attitude that the people of the Renaissance had; the idea that “we can do anything.” In addition this dome marks such an important point in the Renaissance where we start to see some of that ancient Roman architecture and knowledge of the mathematics used return to Italy and that will only snowball as the Renaissance continues. This dome overall shows us how knowledge and beauty was so valued by the people of the Renaissance.

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(not my image)

     The Roman Forum is one of the biggest, grandest forums sitting between the Palatine and Capitoline hills. A forum is the main center of the city; it holds commercial, political, religious and social buildings and meeting places. Basically, it is where everything happens and everyone goes. People from all professions and all walks of life would gather here regardless of social class. Many buildings are no longer standing, but some of the remaining buildings include many temples such as the Temple of Saturn, the god of agriculture. Another building was the Regia which was the King’s house, but later was given to the pontifex maximus. As we get closer to the middle ages, things gradually begin to decay (including the population), and things are stolen to use for building materials. In addition, Theodosius I wanted to get rid of all “pagan” religions and forced all the temples to be shut down in 394 AD. So, the Roman forum is not what it once was and never will be used in the same way.

     In this course we have been learning all about Roman culture and what that would have physically looked like; the beautiful architecture, the forums, temples, via sacra, etc. and this forum gives us a perfect example of this. I feel as though being at the ruins of the forum allows you to picture life at the time and really imagine what that might have looked like. I believe this is why historians today value it so much; you can really picture the culture and people of the time. We have also been learning about religion in the Roman world since that plays such a huge part in almost all cultures. The forum containing temples to various gods allows us to learn more about how they viewed deity and their ideas of a gods. My favorite part about history is ancient ruins/artifacts because of the story they have to tell, and this forum is no exception to that.

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     For this wildcard post I chose to write about the Colosseum in Rome, Italy. This amphitheater was built from 72-80AD, started by the emperor Vespasian and finished by Titus. This structure was right near the Roman Forum, and it was the largest amphitheater in the Roman world of its time; it was able to seat over 50,000 people. The name “Colosseum,” implying something colossal in size is a testament to that. Toward the beginning of its existence, the Colosseum was used for entertainment purposes. Titus had a “grand opening” of sorts consisting of 100 days of games. The Colosseum would hold things like gladiatorial contests, battle reenactments, wild animal fights, and dramas. In the early Medieval era, the Colosseum was no longer used for entertainment and instead was used for building materials as well as being vandalized. Based on its location and size it is safe to say this structure was a huge part of Roman culture and life at the time. 

     In addition, there are many things about this structure that reflect its history and something about the world of the past, which is what makes it valuable to us today. As touched on above, it gives us insight into the culture and entertainment of the Roman empire (very violent and brutal), something valuable and interesting. But even after it was used for these purposes, it still teaches us history. The abandonment and damage done to the structure reflects the medieval period. We are able to see how a structure once so lively, grand and important, now is just used for its building materials. It is this idea that we can see so much history just through one structure is what makes it so important to us today. 

There are so many connections to our course; The emperors involved, the impressive Roman architecture, the medieval time period, the fact that this was in the Western Roman Empire, etc. So, while visiting the Colosseum, I got to learn about and reflect on those ideas. More than that, I found myself reflecting on some of the people that once stood in this stadium - Christians. It is believed by many that Christian martyrs were executed here. We were able to worship one Sunday in a park not far from the Colosseum, and I was thinking about the fact that we are able to freely worship without fear, yet centuries ago in this very place, Christians were being killed because of their worship for the entertainment of others. This thought is very humbling, and the reason I chose to write about the Colosseum.

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   About a week ago, we got to go to Italy! While we were there, we were able to go somewhere I have always wanted to visit since learning about it in school as a little kid. I don’t know exactly why, but the ancient city of Pompeii and the story associated with how that community came to an end always fascinated me. I think I was amazed by the fact that because of this tragic event, the city was so well preserved - it was almost as if these people’s way of life was frozen in time, allowing us to go back and accurately observe just that. In addition, because of learning more about ancient civilizations in this course, I was able see some of the things we have learned about, like Roman art and architecture, and recognize some things we have seen in class. So, it was a very surreal experience getting to actually go there! It is for these same reasons that archaeologists and people of today are fascinated by these ruins. They are able to learn so much about not just Pompeii, but surrounding Roman cities of the time. Not only can we hear about what Archaeologists have learned from this city, but as I mentioned above, average people like me can go visit it and truly see what ancient Roman civilizations looked like! 

          Pompeii was a Roman civilization in Naples, Italy, near the coast, that was destroyed in 79 A.D. by the eruption of the volcano Vesuvius. Many people were able to evacuate, but many were not, and everything that was left in the city was covered in volcanic ash and dust. It is believed that people settled in this city as early as the 8th century BC, and belonged to several different peoples throughout it’s existence, one group being the Etruscans, who settled there around 524 BC. The Etruscans still allowed Pompeii have some degree of control over their own city, which we have seen to be the case with the Etruscans through our course. Later on (around 89 BC), it became a Roman colony, and the people living there assimilated into that culture. Because Rome was such a powerful ancient civilization, this is the time period in Pompeii’s existence that matters most to our understanding of history. At this point in it’s history, the city of Pompeii was a wealthy Roman town, containing many private houses with beautiful art covering the walls, public buildings such as laundry houses, shops, vegetable gardens and other croplands, and even brothels for incoming sailors. Because the city was near the sea, it became a large port for trading goods, which brought economic and social development. It also contained aqueducts which indicate power and wealth in a culture. In addition, Pompeii was advanced in entertainment, as evidenced by their amphitheater, which would have also brought many people in. So, as you can see Pompeii was an important, fairly powerful and wealthy city of its time, and it would have been known by the cities surrounding it. 

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We went to a thrift store called Vintage Island, very cool!