san giusto and the capitoline hill<>



In the sixth century, a large house of worship was erected on what remained of the structures of a Roman propylaeum, probably the entranceway to a commemorative monument, usually called "Tempio capitolino" because an alter pyramid had been found there with the symbols of the capitoline triad (Jupiter, Juno and Minerva). Only a section of the original floor mosaic, which is part of the present flooring, has remained and shows the perimeter of the palaeochristian walls which were destroyed in the Lombard invasion a few years after its construction. Between the ninth and the eleventh century, two basilicas were erected side by side on its ruins, the first dedicated to Our Lady of the Assumption, the second to San Giusto; the latter, which was centrally planned at first, was subsequently extended. In the fourteenth century, the contiguous side-aisles of the two basilicas were joined together and a new, extremely simple and asymmetrical façade was built, elegantly enriched by the tracery of a Gothic rose window and decorated, like the new bell-tower, with local Romanesque stones or even armorial bearings, "in situ". Inside the basilica, many elements deserve attention: suffice it to mention the twelfth and thirteenth century absidal mosaic of the Assumption and San Giusto, the work of artist from the Veneto. The small fourteenth century church of San Giovanni (old baptistery) on the left and San Michele al Carnale on the right, near the entrance to the Museum, complete the suggestive picture of a medieval church courtyard. The courtyard contains the altar in remembrance of the consecration and the layin down of arms by the III Army, the column with the halberd and the Memorial to the Fallen Soldiers of World War I. Here, in the '30s an excavation brought to light the remains of the Roman Forum with its civil basilica, built on two storeys with two rows of columns, two of which have been replaced on the ground floor. The restoration that followed the excavation has also enhanced the dimensions of the Castle, which is the guardian of a long part of history as the works for its construction, based on the ruins of the previous castles, almost lasted two centuries. In the building, the central part ordered by Frederick III (1470-71), the round rampart (Venetian work of 1508-9), the Hoyos-Lalio rampart (1553-61), the Pomis or flowered rampart (1630) mark the stages of the evolution of defensive structures in the course of the centuries. At present, the Castle - several rooms of which, such as the Capirn Chamber, are on view - has been converted into a Civic Museum where old weapons are on display and periodical exhibitions, festivals and, during the summer, open-air shows take place. Walking on the ramparts of the Castle, from the loopholes or lingering on the bulwarks it is possible to admire the complete view of the city and the hills and the sea surrounding it. The plan of the town and its archaeological set up accomplished in the '30s as well as the creation of the Parco della Rimembranza, in memory and honour of the soldiers fallen in all wars since 1915-18, all stand out for their monumental sobriety and luxurious vegetation which create a happy haven of peace. The Orto Lapidario can be entered by crossing the iron gate on one side of the Cathedral yard. Constructed in 1834 on Domenico Rossetti's initiative on the area vacated by the San Giusto cemetery, which was moved to a more suitable place at the end to the eighteenth century, the Orto Lapidario contains Roman and Medieval finds brought to light in Trieste and its region. In this garden a Cenotaph has been dedicated to Johann Winckelmann, the archaeologist considered the father of Neoclassicism who died in Trieste in 1769.