Maison Carree 1742107 1280The monument is a Roman temple expressing the allegiance and attachment of the city’s population to the dynasty of the emperor Augustus.
It is dedicated to the glory of his two grandsons and adopted sons, who died prematurely.
Built before the end of the 1st century AD, when Nîmes was a Roman colony called Nemausus, the Maison Carrée is a Roman temple standing on a podium with six columns on the main façade. The temple is of the Corinthian order and is made up of thirty columns finely sculpted with acanthus leaves in an exceptional state of preservation.
In inscribing the Maison Carrée on the World Heritage List, UNESCO was primarily concerned with the exceptional state of conservation of the monument and its extremely refined decorative programme.
