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from : The Art Newspaper

Pantheon in all its glory

Restoration work has been completed on the soaring concrete dome and two 21 ft bronze entrance doors of the Pantheon in Rome. The building, constructed as a temple in the first century AD on the instructions of Emperor Hadrian, was converted into a church in the seventh century. The dome, which is open to the elements at its highest point, remained the largest in the world for over 1,000 years until the construction of Brunelleschi's Duomo in Florence. It is 43m in diameter and 43m high. Funding for the five-year restoration has come from the Italian lottery. Inside the Pantheon, the restoration team repaired the floor which had been worn away by continual footfall. Cracks in the inlaid convex marble floor, which drains away the rain, were filled in with reclaimed marble. In the dome, conservators removed heavy stains caused by rainwater, and strengthened plaster weakened by the rain. The lead covering installed in the 1970s to waterproof the dome has also been repaired. The stairwell of the Pantheon bell tower has been renovated and the bell supports have been restored.