Old Rome: A Handbook to the Ruins of the City and the CampagnaBurn, Robert
History
Old Rome: A Handbook to the Ruins of the City and the Campagna
Burn, Robert
Rome (Italy) -- Antiquities; Rome (Italy) -- Description and travel
The plan of the camp can still be traced. It resembled that of the
Prætorian camp at Rome, in being a quadrangular space rounded off at the
corners. The two longer sides extend from the Church of S. Paolo at Albano
to the round Temple, now the Church of S. Maria. One of the shorter sides
was parallel to the Appian Road, and the other ran near the Church of S.
Paolo. There were four terraces or levels in the camp rising towards the
hill behind. The Porta Decumana was in the north-eastern side, and the
Porta Prætoria on the south-western. The great reservoirs for water stand
on the northern side near S. Paolo, and the thermæ towards the south-east
on the opposite side of the Appian Road. At the western corner is the
round building usually called the Temple of Minerva, and supposed to be
that alluded to by Suetonius as annually visited by Domitian. This round
building is in good preservation, but its purpose cannot be determined
with certainty. Nibby says that the ancient mosaic pavement still remains
at a depth of six feet below the present surface. The amphitheatre is
situated between the Church of S. Paolo and that of the Capuchin Convent.
It is principally constructed of opus quadratum, but the interior parts
are of a mixed masonry, consisting of bricks and fragments of the local
stone. This amphitheatre is supposed to have been the scene of the feats
performed by Domitian, in killing with his own hand hundreds of wild
beasts with arrows and javelins, and also of the degradation of Acilius
Glabrio, who was forced, according to Juvenal, by Domitian to join him in
these sports of the arena.
[Illustration: Plan of the ALBAN HILLS & GABII]
Between Castel Gandolfo and Albano four magnificent terraces, rising one
above the other, were traced by Cav. Rosa as forming part of the Albanum
Cæsarum, and in the Villa Barberini there is a considerable part of a
cryptoporticus, ornamented with stucco reliefs, which probably stands over
the old substructions of the Villa Clodi.[137] On the side towards the
lake there were open balconies for viewing the mock naval engagements; and
near the entrance of the Barberini Villa the ruins of a theatre have been
discovered. It appears probable from the numerous ruins found upon the
edge of the lake that the whole of it was surrounded with quays and tiers
of stone seats, and chapels of Nymphs, making it resemble a gigantic
natural naumachia, or sheet of water for sham naval fights. These ruins
may possibly, however, have belonged to separate private villas placed at
different points round the water.
To the south of Albano, in the grounds of the Villa Doria, there are the
ruins of an extensive Roman villa. Whether this was a part of the Albanum
Cæsarum or not, is uncertain. Some of the bricks bear the stamps of
Domitian, others those of the third consulship of Servianus (A.D. 134),
Hadrian’s brother-in-law, others of Commodus.[138]
[Sidenote: Lago Albano or Di Castello.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account