Mausoleum of Augustus, Roman imperial mausoleum in Campo Marzio, Italy.
The Mausoleum of Augustus is a circular Roman burial structure in white travertine stone in Campo Marzio with a diameter of roughly 87 meters (285 feet) and originally three levels stacked one above the other. A straight corridor led from the outer edge to the center, where the burial chamber stood.
Emperor Augustus commissioned the construction of this tomb in 28 BC, shortly after he took sole power in Rome. Members of the imperial family were laid to rest here over several generations before the use ended in the second century.
The tomb became known as the Augusteo, and from the early 20th century its interior served as a concert hall of that name until Mussolini closed it in the 1930s. The name Augustus also survives in the piazza around the monument, Piazza Augusto Imperatore. Look for the small arched niche with a metal grate above the entrance, visible in the brick facade.
The mausoleum stands on Piazza Augusto Imperatore, between the church of San Carlo al Corso and the Ara Pacis museum, near Via di Ripetta along the Tiber. It has been closed since 6 June 2022 while the piazza is redeveloped, with a new museum layout by Rem Koolhaas expected by the end of 2026. The circular brick ruin is visible from the surrounding square.
Inside the central chamber stood three rectangular niches carved from white marble for the urns of the most important figures in the ruling family. The middle niche was likely reserved for the emperor's own ashes and thus set apart from the two on either side.
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