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Sala Rotonda
A brief corridor leads to the Sala Rotonda , whose floor is paved with a second century AD Roman mosaic from the town of Otricoli, north of Rome, depicting battles between men and sea monsters. There is more classical statuary around the room, notably a huge gilded bronze statue of a rather dim-witted looking Hercules also from the second century AD, the only surviving gilded bronze statue on display in the Vatican Museums. Each side of the statue are busts of the emperor Adrian and his lover, Antinous - who is also depicted in the same room as a huge statue dressed as Bacchus. There is also a beautiful white marble statue of Claudius, in the guise of Jupiter, with his oak leaf crown and an eagle.
