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Document Details : Title: The Imperial horrea of the Porticus Aemilia Author(s): BURGERS, Gert-Jan , KOK-MERLINO, Raphaëlle-Anne , SEBASTIANI, Renato Journal: BABESCH Volume: 90 Date: 2015 Pages: 199-212 DOI: 10.2143/BAB.90.0.3089920 Abstract : This article presents the preliminary results of excavations carried out between 2011 and 2013 among the standing remains of the building commonly identified as the Porticus Aemilia, centrally located in the ancient river harbour of Rome. The common identification of this building as a warehouse has recently been questioned by another school of thought, which contends that it was the Urbs’ Navalia or shipshed. The excavations allow us to conclude that such one-sided interpretations fail to do justice to the archaeological evidence, which suggests instead a highly differentiated history of occupation in the area. Although the original use of the building in the late Republican era remains obscure as yet, we have documented multiple traces of abandonment, collapse, rebuilding and restructuring for the various post-Republican phases. The excavations are particularly revealing with regard to the late first and early 2nd century AD, when parts of the building were restructured to accommodate horrea. The new data constitute the first scientifically excavated evidence of the existence of horrea in the Urbs. |
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