After the reign of Augustus came four emperors from the Julio-Claudian line, Nero being the last of these four. These emperors tried to not only to esteem Augustus but to construct and leave their own legacy within the Roman Empire. In this time, emperors usually sponsored the building of new aqueducts, temples, theaters, curie, and fora. They also built lavish fortresses for their own living and employed the most renowned architects and artist in Rome. The Domus Aurea, Nero’s personal theatrical palace, offers us the rare glimpse into the privileged lavish lifestyle of one of Rome’s most notorious Emperors. Domus Aurea “The Golden House” was a villa built by the Emperor Nero in the heart of ancient Rome after the great fire of 64 AD. (Ball 2.) Domus Transitora, Nero’s first home was one of many structures destroyed in the great fire. This house wasn’t just any old house though, it was extravagant built to amaze and impress all those who saw it. Property that was not claimed was allotted as the land that Nero would begin construction on for his “palace”. The land stretched from the Palatine Hills to the Esquiline Hills. (Wiki). Construction on the Domus Aurea began after the fire of 64AD, on additional land previously occupied by three imperial properties; the Domus Tiberiana on Palatine …show more content…
Soon, the Domus Aurea was stripped of many of its beautiful decorations and the areas were filled in with earth providing an area prime for construction. On this area Trajan installed a baths complex over much of it in AD 98-117. (Ball 15). Domitian built his own palace on top of the Palatine section of the Golden House. After a while, the fabulous Golden House merely had become merely underground foundations for the growing city of