The heart of Jefferson's village, the graceful Rotunda, completed in 1826, was patterned on the Pantheon in Rome, its shape more or less a perfect sphere seated within a cube. From the south Rotunda steps you can take in a sweeping view of the Lawn, flanked by colonnades that link student rooms with ten pavilions, each modeled after a different Greek or Roman temple. Deans and distinguished professors occupy the pavilions, behind which are tucked formal gardens (open to the public).