# Pyramid of Cestius, Rome

> The Pyramid of Cestius is the tomb of the Roman magistrate Gaius Cestius, built around 12 BC at the height of a craze for all things Egyptian. It's about 36 metres tall and faced with white Carrara marble. It's free to see from outside at any hour, right by Piramide metro; inside visits are guided tours only. Fifteen to twenty minutes is enough.

Web page: https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/pyramid-of-cestius

- City: [Rome](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome), Italy
- YesGo score: 52/100 (Yes, go)
- Time on site: 20 min
- Entry: Free outside
- Opening hours: Outside 24 hours; inside by scheduled tour
- With kids: Fine with kids
- Outside: Free, 24 hours
- Inside: Guided tours only, by booking
- Date: ≈ 18–12 BC
- Height: ≈ 36.4 m, base ≈ 29.6 m
- Time needed: 15–20 minutes
- Location: Piazzale Ostiense; Metro B Piramide
- Coordinates: 41.87639, 12.48083
- Facts checked: 10.11.2026

## Key facts

- **≈ 18–12 BC** — built as the tomb of Gaius Cestius Epulo (source: English Wikipedia)
- **≈ 36.4 m** — height of the pyramid (source: English Wikipedia)
- **330 days** — the time it took to build, according to the inscription (source: English Wikipedia)
- **3rd century** — built into the Aurelian Walls, which saved it (source: English Wikipedia)
- **2015** — a restoration restored the marble's whiteness (source: English Wikipedia)

## A short history

After Augustus annexed Egypt in 30 BC, Rome went **mad for Egyptian style** — obelisks, statues, even pyramids. **Gaius Cestius Epulo**, a wealthy magistrate and member of a priestly college, ordered a pyramid tomb beside the road to Ostia. Its inscription says it took **330 days** to build; it was finished around **12 BC**.

It's steeper than the Egyptian pyramids — about **36 metres** tall on a 30-metre base — closer in shape to the Nubian ones. A small frescoed burial chamber sits inside the concrete core. In the 3rd century it was built into the new **Aurelian Walls**, which is why it wasn't quarried for stone.

## How it was built and restored

The core is Roman **concrete and brick**, clad in slabs of **white Carrara marble** about 30 centimetres thick. Inscriptions on the east and west faces give Cestius’s name and offices and record how his heirs carried out his will. Excavations nearby turned up statue bases and columns that once stood at the tomb’s corners.

Two thousand years of soot had turned the marble grey. In **2013–2015** a restoration funded by the Japanese businessman Yuzo Yagi, about €2 million, cleaned the cladding, consolidated the joints and the chamber, and returned the pyramid to the gleaming white Augustan Romans knew.

## Can you go inside?

The burial chamber is a small vaulted room with faded **frescoes** of nymphs, vases and Victories. It opens to **small guided groups**, usually at weekends and by booking; the schedule changes, so check the archaeology superintendency's site. Most visitors view the pyramid from outside — it's free and visible from all round the square.

## What to see

- **The pyramid** — bright white after restoration, with inscriptions on the east and west faces.
- **Porta San Paolo** — the ancient gate beside it, home to a small museum of the Via Ostiense.
- **Aurelian Walls** — the stretch of wall the pyramid is set into.
- **Non-Catholic Cemetery** — behind it, a quiet garden with the graves of Keats and Shelley; resident cats too.
- **Testaccio** — the market and trattorias five minutes away.
- **Monte Testaccio** — a hill made of broken ancient amphorae.

> **Best viewpoints** The best views are from Piazzale Ostiense by the metro exit and from the paths of the Non-Catholic Cemetery, where the pyramid rises through the cypresses. It's floodlit at night.

## How to get to the Pyramid of Cestius

1. Metro line B to **Piramide** — the pyramid is right outside.
2. The Roma–Lido train stops at Porta San Paolo, next to the metro.
3. Trams 3 and 8 stop at Piazzale Ostiense.
4. From the [Circus Maximus](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/circus-maximus), 15 minutes' walk down Viale Aventino.

## Is it worth seeing?

Yes, if you're nearby — in [Testaccio](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/testaccio), on the Aventine or heading to [St Paul Outside the Walls](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/st-paul-outside-the-walls) or [Ostia Antica](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/ostia-antica). A pyramid in the middle of Rome is a surprising sight, and it's free right by the metro. Make a special trip only if you can join a tour inside.

## At the pyramid

Tick off what's done — your ticks are saved in this browser.

- [ ] Find the best angle from the Piramide metro exit
- [ ] Check the inside tour schedule
- [ ] Look at Porta San Paolo
- [ ] Walk through the Non-Catholic Cemetery
- [ ] Have lunch at Testaccio market

## Ancient Rome: compare and choose

Ancient sites in Rome rated by YesGo.

- [Pantheon](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/pantheon) — YesGo score 82/100 (Yes, go) · 30 min · ≈ €5
- [Colosseum](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/colosseum) — YesGo score 73/100 (Yes, go) · 2 h · ≈ €18
- [Roman Forum](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/roman-forum) — YesGo score 63/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h 30 min · ≈ €18 with Colosseum
- [Circus Maximus](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/circus-maximus) — YesGo score 63/100 (Yes, go) · 30 min · Free
- [Trajan's Column](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/trajans-column) — YesGo score 60/100 (Yes, go) · 15 min · Free
- [Capitoline Hill](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/capitoline-hill) — YesGo score 58/100 (Yes, go) · 30 min · Free
- [Castel Sant'Angelo](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/castel-sant-angelo) — YesGo score 57/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h 30 min · ≈ €15–20
- [Arch of Constantine](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/arch-of-constantine) — YesGo score 57/100 (Yes, go) · 15 min · Free
- [Palatine Hill](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/palatine-hill) — YesGo score 54/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h 30 min · ≈ €18 with Colosseum
- [Mausoleum of Augustus](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/mausoleum-of-augustus) — YesGo score 53/100 (Yes, go) · 45 min · ≈ €5, booking
- [Largo di Torre Argentina](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/largo-di-torre-argentina) — YesGo score 53/100 (Yes, go) · 30 min · Free from street; walkways ≈ €5
- [Pyramid of Cestius](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/pyramid-of-cestius) — YesGo score 52/100 (Yes, go) · 20 min · Free outside
- [Appian Way](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/appian-way) — YesGo score 49/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h · Free
- [Domus Aurea](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/domus-aurea) — YesGo score 49/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 15 min · ≈ €18, with VR ≈ €26
- [Mouth of Truth](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/bocca-della-verita) — YesGo score 49/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 20 min · Donation ≈ €2
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- [Catacombs of Rome](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/rome-catacombs) — YesGo score 48/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · ≈ €10–12 with guide
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- [Baths of Diocletian](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/baths-of-diocletian) — YesGo score 42/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Basilica free; museum ≈ €10–12
- [Basilica of San Clemente](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/san-clemente) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Upper free; excavations ≈ €10–12
- [Imperial Fora](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/imperial-fora) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free from the street; museum ≈ €13–15
- [Testaccio](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/testaccio) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · Free
- [Palazzo Massimo](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/palazzo-massimo) — YesGo score 34/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · ≈ €10–12 combined ticket
- [Ostia Antica](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/ostia-antica) — YesGo score 31/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h · ≈ €12–18
- [Hadrian's Villa](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/hadrians-villa) — YesGo score 29/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h · ≈ €12–15

## Testaccio and Ostiense

The Pyramid of Cestius by the metro, lunch at Testaccio market, then St Paul Outside the Walls.

1. [Pyramid of Cestius](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/pyramid-of-cestius) — YesGo score 52/100 (Yes, go) · 20 min · Free outside
2. [Testaccio](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/testaccio) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · Free
3. [Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/st-paul-outside-the-walls) — YesGo score 57/100 (Yes, go) · 45 min · Free

## Don't mix it up

It's a Roman tomb, not an Egyptian pyramid. Medieval Romans thought it was the grave of Remus; a second pyramid near the Vatican was dismantled in the 16th century.

## Tips

- It's right outside Piramide metro.
- See it through the cypresses of the Non-Catholic Cemetery.
- Inside visits are by tour and booking only.
- Testaccio market is next door.

## Questions

### Where is the Pyramid of Cestius?

On Piazzale Ostiense by Piramide metro, next to the Aventine and Testaccio.

### Who built the Pyramid of Cestius?

The Roman magistrate Gaius Cestius Epulo, as his tomb, around 12 BC.

### How tall is it?

About 36.4 m.

### Can you go inside the Pyramid of Cestius?

Yes, but only on a scheduled guided tour with booking.

### Why is there a pyramid in Rome?

After Egypt was annexed, Egyptian style was fashionable — obelisks, statues and pyramid tombs.

### Is it free?

Yes, from outside.

## How we checked

History, dimensions and inscription from English Wikipedia. The inside tour schedule wasn't confirmed at the time of checking — hence the 'checking' badge.

## Sources

- English Wikipedia, Pyramid of Cestius
- Special Superintendency of Rome: Pyramid of Cestius tours

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