Domus Aurea

About the museum

The Domus Aurea was the vast palace that the emperor Nero began to build after the great fire of AD 64. Designed by the architects Severus and Celer and decorated by the painter Fabullus, it consisted of separate buildings set within a landscape of gardens, woods, vineyards and an artificial lake, in the valley where the Colosseo now stands. The parts open to visitors are on the Colle Oppio.

Among the best-known rooms were the coenatio rotunda, the revolving dining room, and the vestibule with a colossal statue of Nero as the sun god. The complex also included baths fed by both ordinary water and sulphurous water. After Nero’s death his successors stripped the palace of its decorations and filled the rooms with earth, using them as foundations for new buildings; this sealed the rooms until the Renaissance.

At that time artists such as Pinturicchio, Ghirlandaio, Raphael and Giulio Romano went down into the underground “grottoes” to copy their decorations. The term “grotesque” derives from this name, and it denotes the decorative style widespread in the 16th century. Today the Domus Aurea is part of the Parco archeologico del Colosseo and can be visited in groups, with access from the Colle Oppio park.

Highlights

• Frescoed underground rooms of Nero’s wing on the Colle Oppio
• Coenatio rotunda, the revolving dining room
• Decorations that inspired the Renaissance “grotesques”
• Baths with ordinary and sulphurous water
• Domus Aurea Experience, an immersive journey through time

Permanent exhibition

• Domus Aurea Experience – Immersive route with multimedia technologies, presented as a journey through time in Nero’s residence.

Founded

64

Operated by

Parco archeologico del Colosseo (Ministero della Cultura)

Visitors per year

approx. 74,287

Admission & discounts

Statutory free admission and reductions apply to the price of €18. The ticket with guided tour and virtual reality costs €26. An entry-only ticket, without guided tour or virtual reality, is also offered for the 12:00 and 17:00 slots. Tickets are bought on ticketing.colosseo.it.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible: no information
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The site indicates an accessible area and accessible toilets.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The entrance is inside the Colle Oppio park, on the Via Labicana side.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Bookshop and toilets.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit