September 29, 2009

Nero's Rotating Restaurant

Seriously -- the Emperor Nero had a revolving dining room with retractable panels in the ceiling, so his guests could enjoy the complete cycle of a day while having dinner with their imperator.  Well, for a few months anyway, before things got all stabby.  I'm sure that Romans of the first century thought it was as gauche as moderns think of the same thing today.  The Romans were generally not ones to do things by half measures and this sounds no different.  As tacky and extravagant as the revolving dining room must have been, for a little while, it would have been the hottest ticket in town.  And as importantly, it shows that the Romans not only had the know-how but the wealth to create such a thing.

No comments: