Temple of Isis of the Champ de Mars

The Temple of Isis or Iséum (in Latin Iseum ) of the Champ de Mars was located between Saepta and the temple of Minerve in Rome.

Its entries or its interior court were decorated obelisks of small size, in red Granite or pink of Syène (Assouan), imported at the 1st century and joined together per pairs. A great number of them were found, broken and sometimes very incomplete, close to the church Santa Maria will sopra Minerva.

History

The influence of the worship of Isis is felt in the Roman Empire at the end of the II E.

In -43, the Triumvirat makes build a temple with Isis on the Champ de Mars in Rome. It was several times destroyed, by Tibère for example, which destroyed Iséum and made throw the statue of the goddess in the the Tiber.

In 38, Caligula authorizes the worship and makes build new Iséum at the Champ de Mars. This one is built on the model of a traditional temple: it comprises a sanctuary external in the south, then comes the temple itself, of rectangular form with a dromos in the center, which carries out towards Iséum, this one undoubtedly sheltering a statue of the divinity. It measured approximately 100 m length and 60 m of width.

Localization of the temple

Iséum and close Sérapéum appear very dependant. The building in hemicycle, under the apse of the church Santa Maria will sopra Minerva, offered a principal frontage turned towards north, on the level of current via del Seminario. It is possible to identify it like Iséum itself.

According to another assumption, the building in hemicycle could be Sérapéum. In this case, the rectangular building which prolongs it towards north can be identified in Iséum: Gilles Chaillet, in his great reconstitution in drawing obliques of imperial Rome, thus places a basin in the court of the long building, and the obelisks aligned in two lines on both sides of the basin.

At all events, in the absence of recent scientific excavations, it is difficult to imagine how such a profusion of obelisks (one knows at least ten of them!) could find place in such a restricted space.

Obelisks of the temple of Isis

Obelisk of the Pantheon

Obelisk of the Celimontana villa

See also: Obelisk of the villa Celimontana

This obelisk, whose only point is ancient, is regarded as the twin of the Obélisque of the Pantheon. It carries inscriptions in hiéroglyphes, with the cartouche of Ramsès II. It was probably transported to Rome under Domitien, at the same time as of others, like that of the Thermal baths (known as of Dogali), or that of the piazza della Minerva, to decorate the Propylée S of the temples of Isis and Sérapis, with the Champ de Mars. With the Middle Ages, however, it was on Capitole.

Obelisk of the piazza della Minerva

Obelisk of the king Apriès, VI E with Know, inscription in hiéroglyphes (four lines only).

Found in 1665 near the Temple of Isis, but the exact place is unknown; set up in 1667 pennies the pontificate of Alexandre VII on the elephant of Bernin, piazza della Minerva.

Obelisk of the monument of Dogali

This small obelisk carries a hieroglyphic inscription indicating that it comes from Héliopolis, with the cartouche of Ramsès II. He is regarded as the survivor of a pair completely similar to that formed by the obelisks of the Pantheon and the Celimontana villa. He was found under the apse of S. Maria will sopra Minerva in 1883, then set up in 1887, by the king Humbert {{Ier}}, on the war memorial of Dogali, viale delle Terme. Height: 6 meters (9,25 m with the monument which is used as pedestal).

Obelisk of the piazza Navona

Obelisk of the garden of Boboli with Florence

Obelisk of Ramsès II, with Héliopolis, inscription in hiéroglyphes, almost identical to that of the Obelisk of the Pantheon, () meters.

Found in front of Santa Maria will sopra Minerva in (); installed in the gardens of the Villa Médicis, on Pincio, until 1787; then transported in Florence, where it was set up in 1790 in the Jardin of Boboli. A copy then was carried out and installed with the Villa Médicis.

Obelisk of Urbino

Two obelisks of king Apriès, VI E, of (Know?), of the same dimension, carried the same inscriptions in hiéroglyphes. It was thus possible to join together four fragments of the two obelisks, not being connected completely, to form only one of them, set up in 1737 by the Albani cardinal in front of the ducal palate and/or the church San Domenico with Urbino. The result of this rescue is very pleasant and harmonious.

Urbino : piazza del Rinascimento
night Illuminations

Saint-Louis-of-French obelisk

Another obelisk is buried close to the church Saint-Louis-of-French: it excavated forever, and one can nothing say some moreover.