Roma is a city of history and legend in which some of the world's most famous artifacts and architectural masterpieces are located. It is in Rome where the ancient world is commingled with the modern one. Structures thousands of years old lie next to paved streets and bus stops.

Augustus' Ara Pacis ("altar of peace") was built to commemorate the period of peace and prosperity Augustus brought to Rome. It is located in a heavily traveled part of Rome on the Campo Marzio near Via Flaminia ("street of priests") overlooking the Tiber River. To preserve the Ara Pacis, the mayor of Rome, Francesco Rutelli, approached Richard Meier (in1995) asking him to design a museum which would encase the altar.

Several articles about the controversy surrounding the architectural design of the Ara Pacis' new home are available in the online database Art Fulltext (available through McConnell Library via Wilson Web). For example, you can access the full-text of an article from Art In America

To see other articles on this topic, go to Art Fulltext, and then enter the following search: "Ara Pacis" as subject; limit dates to "any year," and check the Limit To Full Text Articles box. Press the Start button. How many articles are retrieved? In what languages are the articles?