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Parco archeologico di Ostia antica - Necropoli di Porto - Isola Sacra

Fiumicino

The archeological complex, known as Necropolis of Portus, includes about 200 funerary buildings. It is located in the southern limit of the burial area that developed along the ancient road Severiana, from the end of 1st century a.D. until the 4th century a.D. The tombs converge towards the main road axis. Behind a first side, there is a second line of limited extension. The most recent tombs clog up the residual space of the first side, which is seamless built. The remaining tombs in the necropolis feature a homogeneous type: a squared cell, generally with two floors, surrounded by a fence. The roofs were barrel-like or terraced, with a triangular tympanum on the facade. The front was decorated with plinths, pilasters, columns and capitals. All these elements outlined the brick walls on which small windows and framed doors open up, together with travertine jambs and lintels. On the facade there usually were inscriptions (in Latin or rarely in Greek language), located over the main door, inside pumice and brick frames. These inscriptions bear the name of the owner, the size of the tomb, the testamentary provisious, the rules of the tomb. Furthermore these inscriptions provide precious information about the social composition of Portus people, that was mainly made up of mercants, freedmen and small businessmen. On the briks at the sides of the inscriptions there were scenes of crafts - expressions of populart art - such as the midwife atteding the birth, the surgeon, the blacksmith, the grain merchant. All these figures were related to the life of the deceased. The external of the tomb was not determinated by the funerary rite, cremation or burial, that instead was decisive for its internal arrangement. Inside the tomb, the walls were divided into two levels: on the upper one, there were niches containg oils for the cremation; at the bottom there were arcosoli for buried. The underground levels were reserved for burial (formae, disposed in several levels).

Address

via Monte Spinoncia
00054 Fiumicino

Timetables

dalle ore 10.00 alle ore 16.00 dal 28 giugno l'ultima domenica del mese CHIUSO nel mese di Agosto 2020

Situazione Emergenziale Aperture :

Aperture Attive

Information

www.ostiaantica.beniculturali.it/
pa-oant@beniculturali.it
Ph: +39 06 6583888 +39 06 56358054
Closure: Monday
Full: free admission