Pantheon Secret: It Has The Wrong Name
The inscription on the Pantheon proudly proclaims, “Marcus Agrippa Lucii Filius Consul Tertium Fecit.” This ‘signature’ translates to ” Marcus Agrippa, the son of Lucius, three times consul, built this.” But that is not right. Agrippa’s temple at that site, dedicated to Augustus’s Actium victory over Antony and Cleopatra, burned down. He never replaced that temple. The Pantheon is a ‘replacement temple.’ Emperor Domitian had another temple built in its place, one that worshiped multiple gods, but that burned down, too. Agrippa rebuilt it, but curiously put Agrippa’s name on it instead of his own. He did not even mention Domitian. But Hadrian may not have full claim. Some of the Pantheon’s bricks are stamped with a date that shows at least part of it was built during Trajan’s reign and finished under Hadrian. Trajan was famous for his large public projects; could the Pantheon be one of them?