VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Temple of
Venus. Entrance on Via Marina.
Linked to VIII.1.5. Excavated 1852, 1869, 1872, 1898, 1937, 1952 and 1984.
Part 5 Part 1
Part 2 Part 3 Part 4
Some documentation with our approximate translations
Please check these if they are important to your research.
Notizie degli scavi, 1899, p.17-23.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Notizie degli Scavi di
Antichità, 1899,
Page 17.
Come è stato
più volte annunziato {Notizie 1898, p. 171, 333, 392 e 422), gli scavi eseguiti
ad occidente della Basilica rimisero a luce gli avanzi di un antico tempio,
sito nel mezzo di una grande area, il cui lato di mezzogiorno trovasi ancora interrato.
Rimandando la descrizione di quest' area al tempo, in cui, compiuto interamente
il disterro, la si potrà studiare in tutti i suoi particolari, limito per ora
la indagine al solo tempio, del quale offro qui uno schizzo prospettico (fig.
1), la pianta a 1/200 (fig. 2) e la sezione secondo A B della pianta (fig. 3).
As has been announced several times {NdS 1898, p. 171, 333, 392 and 422), the excavations carried out to the west of the Basilica brought to light the remains of an ancient temple, located in the middle of a large area, the south side of which is still buried. Postponing the description of this area until the time when, after the complete excavation, it will be possible to study it in all its details, I limit for now the investigation to the temple only, of which I offer here a perspective sketch (fig. 1), the plan at 1/200 (fig. 2) and the section according to A B of the plan (fig. 3).
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Perspective sketch. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1899, Page 17, fig. 1.
Assai meno che
il vetusto tempio greco offre allo studio il tempio recentemente scoperto, non
esistendone che il basamento, e questo anche non nella sua integrità, e
frammenti architettonici, che quantunque rinvenuti disseminati qua e là nell'
area anzidetta, devono tuttavia, per eliminazione, reputarsi ad esso
appartenenti.
Lo stereobate
volto a mezzogiorno riposa sopra una platea di opera incerta, e non è di
struttura omogenea, poiché è costituito da un corpo di fabbrica incerta,
stretto in mezzo da cinque ordini sovrapposti, ciascuno di due filari di
blocchi di lava. A disegno ho detto stretto in mezzo e non circondato, per una
osservazione che più sotto mi occorrerà di fare. La sua lunghezza, misurata nel
lato orientale, è di m. 26,90 e la larghezza misurata nel lato settentrionale è
di m. 14,95.
Come si rileva
dalla pianta (fig. 2, I-V), tutti i cinque ordini di blocchi non si sono
rinvenuti in sita, che solo in un tratto del lato occidentale, mentre due ne esistono
tuttora nei lati meridionale ed orientale, e quattro sul lato settentrionale. I
due ordini di blocchi del lato orientale si prolungano nella direzione di sud
por altri due filari, formando uno sporto di m. 2,10 (fig. 2, a).
Much less than the ancient Greek temple, the recently discovered temple offers a study, since there is only the base, and this also not in its entirety, and architectural fragments, which, although found scattered here and there in the aforementioned area, must nevertheless, by elimination, be considered to belong to it.
The stereobate facing south rests on a platform of uncertain workmanship, and is not of a homogeneous structure, since it consists of a body of uncertain workmanship, narrowed in the middle by five superimposed orders, each of two rows of lava blocks. In the drawing, I have said narrow in the middle and not surrounded, because of an observation that I will make later. Its length, measured on the eastern side, is 26.90 m, and its width, measured on the northern side, is 14.95 m.
As can be seen from the plan (fig. 2, I-V), all five orders of blocks were not found in situ, but only in a section of the western side, while two still exist on the southern and eastern sides, and four on the northern side. The two rows of blocks on the eastern side were extended in the southern direction by two more rows, forming an overhang of 2.10 metres (Fig. 2, a).
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1899, Page 18.
I blocchi
erano tra loro fermati da grappe diritte di ferro della lunghezza media di mm.
25, incastrate nella faccia superiore dei blocchi e con le estremità ripiegate a
squadro e rafforzate col piombo nei blocchi stessi. Grappe simili ricorrono
anche altrove in Pompei, ad es. nelle fontane pubbliche di lava. E notevolissimo che taluni blocchi presentino lesioni, e che
il loro piano superiore si mostri imbrattato di calcina. Questi due fatti
farebbero supporre che il nostro tempio al momento della catastrofe si trovasse
non in via di ricostruzione, ma in via di demolizione. E la ipotesi è
confermata da una esplorazione fatta sul lato occidentale, appiè' dei cinque
ordini di blocchi, verso sud; dalla quale esplorazione si rileva che il cavo
ivi rinvenuto fu aperto dagli antichi stessi allo scopo evidente di asportarne
i blocchi, due dei quali si lasciano cogliere proprio sul punto della rimozione
(fig. 2, b). Così si spiega la trincea "d" aperta nel pronao alla
distanza di m. 0,90 dal taglio della soglia delia cella, e larga m. 1,55. Dei
cinque ordini sovrapposti di blocchi, che quale catena robustissima
congiungevano i due lati lunghi del rettangolo per rafforzare la fabbrica
contenuta in esso, avanzano tre solamente, e il terzo ordine non si estende
neppure sino alla estremità est della trincea, dove manca per m. 1,80. Così si
spiega inoltre il fatto che sul lato ovest del pronao la fabbrica manchi
insieme coi blocchi di lava. Ed altri argomenti si presenteranno nel corso
della indagine, coi quali si dimostra appieno come il tempio fosse in
demolizione, quando sopravvenne le catastrofe.
The blocks were secured to each other by straight iron brackets of an average length of 25 mm, embedded in the upper face of the blocks, with the ends bent at an angle and reinforced with lead in the blocks themselves. Similar grapples occur elsewhere in Pompeii, e.g. in the public lava fountains. It is very notable that some of the blocks have cracks and that their upper surface is smeared with lime. These two facts would suggest that at the time of the catastrophe our temple was not being rebuilt but demolished. And this hypothesis is confirmed by an exploration carried out on the western side, below the five rows of blocks, towards the south; from this exploration it can be seen that the cavity found there was opened by the ancients themselves with the evident aim of removing the blocks, two of which can be seen right at the point of removal (fig. 2, b). This explains trench "d" opened in the pronaos at a distance of 0.90 m from the cut in the threshold of the cella, and 1.55 m wide. Of the five superimposed rows of blocks, which as a very strong chain joined the two long sides of the rectangle in order to reinforce the fabric contained within it, only three are left, and the third row does not even extend as far as the eastern end of the trench, where it is missing for 1.80 metres. This also explains the fact that on the west side of the pronaos the fabric is missing together with the lava blocks. And other arguments will be presented in the course of the investigation, with which it is fully demonstrated that the temple was in demolition when the catastrophe occurred.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Plan. Notizie degli Scavi di Antichità, 1899, Page 18, fig. 2.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1899, Page 19.
Osservando
bene, non i blocchi di lava furono addossati alla fabbrica, ma questa ai
blocchi, come chiaro si desume dal modo in cui la fabbrica aderisce ai blocchi
stessi. Il che viene confermato anche dal sistema seguito nella fabbrica, che
forma il corpo del basamento. Questo è costituito da fondazioni di muri che
corrono parallelamente da nord a sud, e sono rafforzate da altre, correnti da est
ad ovest; negl' interstizi è riempimento di terra di
riporto mista a calcinacci antichi e, al di sopra, masso di fabbrica. La
sezione qui riprodotta (fig. 3) illustra pienamente la cosa. Vuol dire dunque
che, fatto il rettangolo coi cinque ordini sovrapposti di blocchi di lava, se
ne congiunsero verso il loro mezzo i lati lunghi mediante altri cinque ordini
sovrapposti di blocchi parallelamente ai lati corti; si ottennero così due
rettangoli di diversa grandezza, nell' uno dei quali si costruirono le fondazioni
dei muri della cella, e nell' altro si fecero due fondazioni laterali in
corrispondenza di quelle dei muri laterali della cella, rafforzate da una terza
che alla distanza di m. 1,40 dai filari di blocchi del lato sud corre parallela
alle fondazioni dei muri corti delia cella. Una quarta fondazione apparisce
nella trincea d e sembra che corra mediana da nord a sud così nella cella come
nel pronao. Negl' interstizi fra gli ordini sovrapposti di blocchi e le
fondazioni di muri una specie di emplecton, e in
quelli tra le fondazioni stesse riempimento di materiali di riporto. In
presenza di un tal sistema di costruzione è forza concludere che il nostro
tempio non abbia subito modificazioni di sorta, almeno in quanto alla pianta,
sino al giorno della sua rovina.
If one looks closely, it is not the lava blocks that were set against the fabric, but the fabric against the blocks, as is clear from the way the fabric adheres to the blocks. This is also confirmed by the system used in the fabric, which forms the body of the basement. This is made up of wall foundations that run parallel from north to south and are reinforced by others running from east to west; in the gaps is backfill of earth mixed with old rubble and, above, large stones. The section reproduced here (fig. 3) fully illustrates this. It means, therefore, that having made the rectangle with the five overlapping rows of lava blocks, the long sides were joined towards the middle by another five overlapping rows of blocks parallel to the short sides; thus two rectangles of different sizes were obtained, in one of which the foundations of the walls of the cella were built, and in the other, two lateral foundations were made in correspondence to those of the side walls of the cella, reinforced by a third that at a distance of 1.40 m from the rows of blocks, was built. 1.40 m from the rows of blocks on the south side, running parallel to the foundations of the short walls of the cella. A fourth foundation appears in trench d and seems to run medially from north to south in the cella as well as in the pronaos. In the interstices between the superimposed rows of blocks and the wall foundations there is a kind of emplecton, and in the interstices between the foundations there is a filling of fill material. In the presence of such a system of construction, it must be concluded that our temple did not undergo any changes, at least as far as its plan was concerned, until the day of its ruin.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Cross section. Notizie degli Scavi di Antichità, 1899, Page 19, fig. 3.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1899, Page 20.
Il pronao C è
lungo m. 10 e largo m. 11,70. Lo stilobate è privo affatto di pavimento, e il
suo piano presunta avvallamenti nei due interstizi laterali alla fondazione di
muro mediana.
La cella D è
lunga m. 11,40 e larga m. 8. Attualmente essa è circondata su tre lati da un
bassissimo muro, che internamente ha l'altezza di m. 0,55, superiormente è
conformato a piovente inclinato all' esterno ed è rivestito esternamente d'
intonaco laterizio. Di questi tre bellissimi muri solo il muro di fondo o
settentrionale, della grossezza di m. 0,53, appartiene al muro originario di
fondo della cella, poiché esso presenta qualche avanzo di un
zoccolo marmoreo, col quale combaciava la striscia di musaico bianco del
pavimento, mentre al di sotto dei muri laterali, della grossezza di m. 0,40,
passa la striscia di musaico nero. Sicché in origine i muri laterali della
cella dovevano racchiudere uno spazio maggiore, e quindi i due bassi muri
laterali oggi esistenti non appartengono agli originari muri laterali della
cella.
Negli angoli
del lato settentrionale della cella furono praticati due fori (m. 0,30 in
quadro; prof. m. 0,50 in media) ed appiè dei muri laterali di essa, alla
distanza di m. 6,90 dai primi, ne furono praticati altri due della medesima
grandezza e profondità (fig. 2, e). Dagli uni agli altri, appiè del muro, corre
un incastro della larghezza di m. 0,45 e della profondità di m. 0,08, tagliato
nella striscia di musaico nero che incorniciava il pavimento. Nei fori sono
evidenti tracce del legname che vi era confitto, come evidenti tracce di
legname si vedono in tutta la faccia interna dei bassi muri e nell' incastro
anzidetto. Il basso muro conformato superiormente a piovente, inclinato verso
l'esterno, sembra fatto per allontanare le piovane dal piede di questo elevato
in legno.
L' ingresso
alla cella, del quale si offre qui un dettaglio (fig. 4), era largo m. 2,70;
era preceduto da una specie d' invito o vestibolo di travertino, largo m. 4,86
e profondo circa m. 0,75, che presenta i soliti incavi degli stipiti e delle
antepagmenta.
The pronaos C is 10 m long and 11.70 m wide. The stylobate has no floor at all, and its plan presumes depressions in the two lateral interstices of the median wall foundation.
Cell D is 11.40 metres long and 8 metres wide. At present it is surrounded on three sides by a very low wall, which internally is 0.55 m. high, and on the upper side is shaped like a rainwater slope and is covered externally with brick plaster. Of these three beautiful walls, only the back or northern wall, with a thickness of 0.53 metres, belongs to the original back wall of the cella, since it has some remains of a marble plinth, with which the white mosaic strip of the floor matched, while the black mosaic strip runs underneath the side walls, with a thickness of 0.40 metres. Thus, the side walls of the cell must have originally enclosed a larger space, and therefore the two low side walls that exist today do not belong to the original side walls of the cella.
In the corners of the northern side of the cella, two holes
were drilled (0.30 m. square; average depth 0.50 m.) and at the side walls of
the cell, at a distance of 6.90 m. from the first, two more holes of the same
size and depth were drilled (fig. 2, e). From one to the other, at the foot of
the wall, runs an indentation 0.45 m wide and 0.08 m deep, cut into the strip
of black mosaic that framed the floor. In the holes there are evident traces of
the wood that was fixed there, as well as evident traces of wood can be seen
throughout the inner face of the low walls and in the aforementioned joint. The
low wall, which is shaped like a rainwater slope at the top and inclined
outwards, seems to have been built to keep the rainwater away from the foot of
this wooden elevation.
The entrance to the cella, of which we offer here a detail (fig. 4), was 2.70 m. wide; it was preceded by a kind of invitation area or vestibule of travertine, 4.86 m. wide and about 0.75 m. deep, with the usual recesses of the jambs and the ante-pagmenta.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Entrance to the cella. Notizie degli Scavi di Antichità, 1899, Page 20, fig. 4.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1899, Page 21.
Il pavimento consisteva
di una fascia di musaico bianco sul lato nord, la quale, larga m. 1,78, abbracciava,
girandovi attorno, il piedestallo della divinità, e di una fascia di musaico
nero più stretta, larga m. 0,80, che, come sopra è detto, passa di sotto ai
muri laterali. Questa fascia di musaico bianco e nero incorniciava un pavimento
di quadroni di marmi colorati.
Il piedestallo
e, costruito in massima parte di piccole pietre di Sarno, sorge sopra un sodo
di tufo, ed è alto, compreso il sodo, m. 1.30, largo m. 1,50. grosso m. 1,60. Era
addossato al muro settentrionale della cella e non conserva alcuna traccia di
rivestimento. Accanto trovasi tuttora la basetta di marmo descritta in Notizie
1898, p. 333.
I frammenti
architettonici, che devono reputarsi appartenenti al nostro tempio, sono i
seguenti:
a) Tre
capitelli corinti (fig. 5) di marmo lunense, di altezza m. 0,50, di diametro
inferiore m. 0,38, di larghezza nel fronte m. 0,62. Sull'abaco di ciascuno si
lascia distinguere una parte meno lavorata, con tracce di cemento calcareo, di
larghezza m. 0,42, sulla quale era adagiato l'architrave.
b) Una colonna
dello stesso marmo, di cui ricongiunti i due pezzi rinvenuti, si ha l'altezza
di m. 3,50, di diametro m. 0,44 al sommoscapo e m. 0,50 all' imoscapo,
leggermente affusolata, lavorata con ventiquattro scanalature fra altrettanti
listelli, e baccellata nella scanalatura per m. 1,20 partendo dal basso.
Parte
superiore di una simile colonna, di lunghezza m. 2.
The floor consisted of a band of white mosaic on the north side, 1.78 metres wide, which encompassed the pedestal of the divinity, and of a narrower band of black mosaic, 0.80 metres wide, which, as mentioned above, passes underneath the side walls. This band of black and white mosaic framed a floor of squares of coloured marble.
The pedestal, built for the most part of small Sarno stones, stands on a tufa sodo, and is 1.30 m high, including the sodo, 1.50 m wide and 1.60 m thick. It was leaning against the northern wall of the cella and has no trace of facing. Next to it is the marble base described in Notizie 1898, p. 333.
The architectural fragments, which must be considered as belonging to our temple, are the following:
a) Three Corinthian capitals (fig. 5) made of Lunense marble, of a height of 0.50 m, a lower diameter of 0.38 m, a width of 0.62 m on the front. On the abacus of each of them one can distinguish a less worked part, with traces of limestone cement, 0.42 m. wide, on which the architrave rested.
b) A column of the same marble, of which, when the two pieces found are joined, has a height of 3.50 m, a diameter of 0.44 m at the top and 0.50 m at the bottom, slightly tapered, worked with twenty-four grooves between as many strips, and with a convex groove for 1.20 m starting from the bottom.
Upper part of a similar column, 2 m long.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Corinthian
capital made of Lunense marble. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1899, Page 21, fig. 5.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1899, Page 22.
c) Una base
attica dello stesso marmo, avente il plinto di lato m. 0,63, il toro superiore
di m. 0,54 di diametro (su cui ben si adatterebbe l'imoscapo della colonna
menzionata) e l'altezza di m. 0,22.
d) Due basi
attiche per pilastro egualmente modanate e formanti probabilmente riscontro a
colonna isolata.
e) Una
porzione di architrave dello stesso marmo rinvenuta in tre frammenti, lunga m. 2,24.
Ha la faccia orizzontale inferiore di larghezza m. 0,42, che corrispondo esattamente
alla larghezza della parte meno lavorata dell'abaco dei capitelli. Questa
faccia orizzontale inferiore presenta, nella parte apparente che forma la luce dell'intercolunnio,
una baccellatura della lunghezza di m. 1,65; e poiché alle estremità della
baccellatura si riconoscono chiaramente le impronte dei due capitelli, così l'intercolunnio,
misurato sotto l'architrave, può calcolarsi a m. 1,60. Nella ricostruzione il
descritto architrave dovrebbe essere adagiato su due capitelli in modo da rimanerne
imposta su di essi, in ogni estremità, la lunghezza di m. 0,32, cioè sino al
centro dei capitelli. L' altezza dell'architrave è di m. 0,35 e la grossezza di
m. 0,42.
Frammento di un'altra
porzione di simile architrave (non continuazione però della porzione ora
descritta), lunga m. 0,86. Dall' un lato presenta frattura, mentre nell'altro
ha l'estremo regolarizzato per combaciare con pezzi consecutivi. Nella faccia orizzontale
inferiore conserva la impronta del mezzo capitello.
Per dare un'idea
dell'insieme, l'ultimo pezzo descritto si fa seguire al precedente nei due
disegni qui riprodotti, dei quali l'uno (fig. 6 a) rappresenta la faccia
verticale modanata, col suo profilo, e l'altro (fig. 6 b) la faccia inferiore
orizzontale.
Altro
frammento di architrave, che presenta la sola faccia anteriore verticale,
essendo stato tagliato.
f) Sette pezzi
di cornice dello stesso marmo, con gocciolatoio e dentelli, di altezza m. 0,32,
di grossezza m. 0,63, di sporgenza m. 0,28.
Del fregio
nessun frammento.
Che questo
tempio di ordine corinzio sia stato un periptero, mi pare fuori dubbio per la
presenza dei cinque ordini sovrapposti di blocchi, i quali dovevano sostenere
lo stilobate; ma non è possibile procedere ad una ricostruzione verisimile, se
non vera, delle dimensioni del portico, mancando affatto il pavimento di questo
e quindi qualunque traccia dello impianto dello stilobate.
c) An Attic base of the same marble, having the plinth of side m. 0.63, the upper bull of m. 0.54 in diameter (on which the footprint of the mentioned column would fit well) and the height of m. 0.22.
d) Two attic bases per pillar equally moulded and probably forming an isolated column abutment.
e) A portion of the architrave of the same marble found in three fragments, m. 2.24. It has the lower horizontal face of width m. 0.42, which corresponds exactly to the width of the less worked part of the abacus of the capitals. This lower horizontal face presents, in the apparent part that forms the light of the intercolumniation, a pod of the length of m. 1.65; and since the imprints of the two capitals can be clearly recognized at the ends of the pod, so the intercolumniation, measured under the architrave, can be calculated at m. 1.60. In the reconstruction, the described architrave should be placed on two capitals so as to remain imposed on them, at each end, the length of m. 0.32, that is up to the centre of the capitals. The height of the architrave is m. 0.35 and the thickness of m. 0.42.
Fragment of another portion of similar architrave (not a continuation, however, of the portion just described), m. 0.86. On one side it has a fracture, while on the other it has a regularized end to match with consecutive pieces. In the lower horizontal face it retains the imprint of the half capital.
To give an idea of the whole, the last piece described follows the previous one in the two drawings reproduced here, one of which (fig. 6 a) represents the vertical moulded face, with its profile, and the other (fig. 6 b) the horizontal lower face.
Another fragment of an architrave, which has only the vertical front face, having been cut.
f) Seven pieces of frame of the same marble, with drip and denticles, height m. 0.32, of thickness m. 0,63, of projection m. 0.28.
No fragments of the frieze.
That this Corinthian temple was a peripheral temple seems to me beyond doubt due to the presence of the five superimposed orders of blocks, which had to support the stylobate; but it is not possible to carry out a realistic, if not true, reconstruction of the dimensions of the portico, since the floor of the portico is completely missing and therefore any trace of the stylobate layout.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Fig. 6 a represents the vertical moulded face, with its profile, and fig. 6 b the horizontal lower face.
Notizie degli Scavi di
Antichità, 1899, Page 22, fig.
6a and fig. 6b.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1899, Page 23.
Sulle vicende
del nostro tempio si può dir poco. Dai saggi fatti nel materiale di riporto
dolio fondazioni non si è avuto nessun lume circa il probabile tempo della sua edificazione.
Il solo elemento che sino ad un certo punto può, sotto questo rispetto, fornire
un addentellato cronologico è la misura, secondo la quale il nostro stereobate
sarebbe stato costruito con piede romano contenuto 99 volte circa nel lato lungo
e circa 50 volte nel lato corto: sicché il rapporto sarebbe di 2:1. Ed anche il
motivo della sua demolizione ci sfugge, se non si voglia ammettere che sia
crollato pel terremoto del 63. Certo è che ai giorni del seppellimento, nella
grande area che attualmente lo circonda, ferveva il lavoro, come si rileva
dalla gran quantità, di materiale greggio ivi ammannito, che dà al luogo
l'aspetto di un cantiere, come oggi si direbbe. Ed io inclinerei a riconoscere
in quella baracca di legno innalzata nella cella, piuttosto che un sacello
provvisorio, un luogo di riparo e di trattenimento per coloro che soprastavano
ai lavori.
Unico
testimonio del culto è il frammento di un'aretta marmorea pulvinata già
menzionata in Notizie 1898, p. 392.
Ma a quale
divinità il nostro tempio fu consacrato? Il pensiero corre spontaneo alla
divinità protettrice di Pompei, la quale sino ad ora mancava di un proprio tempio;
il rinvenimento del frammento di una statuetta marmorea rappresentante una Venere
al bagno (cf. Notizie 1898, p. 333, fig. 3) parrebbe confermare questa ipotesi.
Senonché ritenendo, come altrove supposi {Atti della R. Accad.
di Arch. Lett. e B. A., voi. XV, p. 158 sg.), che la divinità protettrice fosse
adorata nel Capitolium insieme con Juppiter e con Ceres, sembrami più
rispondente alle condizioni di fatto, nelle quali il tempio si è rinvenuto, un'altra
ipotesi. È noto che le numerose iscrizioni dei ministri Mercurii Maiae, postea
Augusti, tornarono a luce rimosse dal luogo pristino, disseminate per la città
e adoperate come materiale di costruzione. Perché tale spoliazione si fosse
potuta compiere, è forza ammettere che la splendida e spaziosa aedes, nella quale i numerosi donari di quei ministri
furono esposti, sia perita qualche tempo innanzi al seppellimento di Pompei. E un'aedes già splendida e spaziosa, di cui la distruzione
era di già avvenuta, non è forse il nostro tempio? Si aggiunga che i titoli di
età certa vanno dall'anno 729 di Roma all'anno 40 d. Cr., cioè per tutto il
tempo che durò la gente Giulia; estinta la quale, non sappiamo se il ministerio
sia sopravvissuto. Oggi il dubbio potrebbe mutarsi in certezza, ammettendo che,
estinta la casa Giulia, non vi fosse più ragione di continuare a mantenere il
ministerio di Augusto, rimettendo in piedi l'aedes, che mano mano si andava demolendo dalle
fondamenta nei giorni della catastrofe, per far posto a qualche altro tempio o
pubblico edifizio. Ritengo quindi sino a prova contraria che gli avanzi descritti
appartengano all'aedes ministrorum Mercurii Maiae, postea
Augusti. Così ben si spiega l'età relativamente recente della costruzione.
Ringrazio da
ultimo l'ingegnere cav. Cozzi della sua efficace collaborazione.
Little can be said about the history of our temple. From the tests carried out in the material of the foundations, no light has been shed on the probable time of its construction. The only element that up to a certain point can, in this respect, provide a chronological insight is the measure, according to which our stereobate would have been built with Roman foot contained about 99 times on the long side and about 50 times in the short side: so the ratio would be 2:1. And the reason for its demolition also escapes us, unless we want to admit that it collapsed during the earthquake of 63. What is certain is that in the days of the burial, in the large area that currently surrounds it, work was going on, as can be seen from the large quantity of raw material stored there, which gives the place the appearance of a construction site, as we would say today. And I would be inclined to recognise in that wooden hut erected in the cell, rather than a temporary sacellum, a place of shelter and recreation for those who worked on the site.
The only evidence of the cult is the fragment of a pulvinated marble arete already mentioned in Notizie 1898, p. 392.
But to which deity was our temple consecrated? The thought spontaneously comes to mind of Pompeii's patron deity, who until now lacked a temple of her own; the discovery of a fragment of a marble statuette representing Venus at her bath (cf. Notizie 1898, p. 333, fig. 3) would seem to confirm this hypothesis. However, considering, as elsewhere assumed (Atti della R. Accad. di Arch. Lett. e B.. A., voi. XV, p. 158 ff.), that the patron deity was worshipped in the Capitolium together with Juppiter and Ceres, another hypothesis seems to be more in keeping with the actual conditions in which the temple was found. It is well known that the numerous inscriptions of the ministers Mercurii Maiae, postea Augusti, came to light, removed from their original place, scattered around the city and used as building material. For such spoliation to have taken place, it must be admitted that the splendid and spacious aedes, in which the numerous donations of those ministers were displayed, perished some time before the burial of Pompeii. And an already splendid and spacious aedes, whose destruction had already taken place, is not our temple? It should be added that the titles of certain age go from the year 729 of Rome to the year 40 AD, that is, for as long as the Julian people lasted; after the extinction of which, we do not know if the ministry survived. Today, the doubt could be changed into certainty, assuming that, after the extinction of the House of Julia, there was no longer any reason to continue to maintain the ministry of Augustus, putting back up the aedes, which was gradually being demolished from the foundations in the days of the catastrophe, to make way for some other temple or public building. I therefore believe, until proven otherwise, that the remains described belong to the aedes ministrorum Mercurii Maiae, postea Augusti. This explains the relatively recent age of the building.
Finally, I thank the engineer Cav. Cozzi for his effective collaboration.
Notizie degli scavi, 1900, p.27-30.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1900, Page 27.
I. Riferendo
intorno agli avanzi del!' aedes Augusti (cfr. Notizie 1899. p. 17-23), rimandai
la descrizione dell'area, dove quegli avanzi sorgono, al tempo in cui,
compiutone interamente il disterro, la si sarebbe potuta studiare in tutti i
suoi particolari. Veramente neppur oggi si può dire che questo tempo sia
giunto, poiché, non avendo ancora la zappa rimosso i cumuli di terra dal lato
di mezzogiorno, non conosciamo la configurazione di questo lato né i rapporti,
ai quali già gli scavi accennano, fra la detta area e il piano sottoposto.
Tuttavia, essendo state messe da tempo allo scoperto non poche fondazioni di
muri che si vedono in quest'area (cfr. Notizie cit. p. 294), ho creduto di non
differire oltre il parlarne, limitandomi ad accompagnare con alcune osservazioni
di fatto il rilievo topografico che qui si pubblica.
Il marciapiede
"a" in un tempo anteriore si prolungava sin verso porta Marina, formando
sulla strada, che discende, un rialzo simile a quello che è di rincontro (Reg.
VII, Is. occid.; Fiorelli, Descr. Pomp. p. 439).
Posteriormente, al limite del marciapiede a fu costruito l'alto muro
"b", in opus reticulatum di tufo giallo, che oggi si vede, e che
venne ad invadere l'antica carreggiata per una larghezza di circa m. 0,60.
Contemporanei e simili al muro "b" sono gli altri due "c" e
"d", dei quali il primo "c", normale al muro "b"
e posto alla distanza di circa m. 5 da esso, formava il nuovo vano d'ingresso
"e" all'area limitata per tre lati dai muri "b",
"c" e "d". Che sia un vano, è dimostrato dalla eguale
grossezza e identica struttura laterizia degli stipiti di "b" e
"c".
I. In reporting on the ruins of the aedes Augusti (cf. Notizie 1899, p. 17-23), I postponed the description of the area where these ruins stand until the time when, once the earthworks had been completed, it would be possible to study it in all its details. In fact, even today we cannot say that this time has come, since the hoe has not yet removed the mounds of earth from the south side, and we do not know the configuration of this side nor the relationship, already mentioned by the excavations, between this area and the floor below. However, as more than a few wall foundations that can be seen in this area have long since been uncovered (cf. Notizie cit. p. 294), I thought I would not delay any further in discussing them, limiting myself to accompanying the topographical survey published here with a few factual observations.
At an earlier time, the pavement "a" extended as far as Porta Marina, forming on the road, which descends, a rise similar to the one that is opposite (Reg. VII, Is. occid.; Fiorelli, Descr. Pomp. p. 439). Later on, at the edge of the pavement, a high wall "b" was built in opus reticulatum of yellow tufa, which can be seen today, and which encroaches on the old roadway for a width of about 0.60 m. Simultaneous and similar to wall "b" are the other two walls "c" and "d", of which the first "c", normal to wall "b" and placed at a distance of about m. 5 from it, formed the new entrance room "e" to the area limited on three sides by walls "b", "c" and "d". The fact that it is a room is demonstrated by the equal thickness and identical brick structure of the jambs of "b" and "c".
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1900, Page 28.
Il muro
"f", scoperto di tratto in tratto nei saggi, è evidentemente il muro
che in un tempo anteriore alla costruzione del muro b limitava gli edifici
posti a mezzodì della strada. Quali e quanti fossero i vani in esso aperti, non
è dato oggi di indagare: solamente non può mettersi in dubbio la esistenza in
esso del largo vano "g" di circa m. 6,50 sia per la ben conservata
struttura degli stipiti laterizi, sia per la eguale grossezza degli stipiti
stessi. Né va omesso che l'uno di questi stipiti, cioè l'orientale, è
determinato da un'aggiunta laterizia fatta in prolungamento del muro
settentrionale della Basilica, col quale il muro "f" appunto infila.
Contemporanei al muro "f" sembrano tutti i fondamenti di muri "h",
così nel lato orientale come nel lato occidentale dell'area, ai quali
appartengono certamente le soglie "i" dei vani d' ingresso agli
edifizi, che posteriormente vennero demoliti, e di cui avanzano ancora qua e là
parti di pavimenti laterizi. L'anteriorità degli anzidetti edifizi demoliti si desume
non solo dalla incisione che essi subirono per la costruzione di altre
fabbriche posteriori, di cui in seguito farò parola, ma anche dal coordinamento
che nel lato orientale il muro esterno di essi ebbe col muro occidentale della
Basilica, al quale è parallelo. È poi evidente che il muro interno con le
soglie "i" non fu mantenuto parallelo ai primi, certamente per
coordinarlo ad altro edificio centrale dell'area.
Wall "f", uncovered from time to time in the excavations, is evidently the wall that at a time prior to the construction of wall "b" limited the buildings located at the middle of the road. What and how many rooms were open in it cannot be investigated today: only the existence of the large room "g" of about 6.50 m. cannot be doubted, both because of the well-preserved structure of the brick jambs and because of the equal thickness of the jambs themselves. Nor should it be forgotten that one of these jambs, i.e., the eastern one, is determined by a brick addition made as an extension of the northern wall of the Basilica, with which wall "f" intersects. Contemporaneous with wall "f" seem to be all the foundations of walls "h", both on the eastern and western sides of the area, to which certainly belong the thresholds "i" of the entrances to the buildings, which were later demolished, and of which parts of the brick pavements still remain here and there. The anteriority of the aforementioned demolished buildings can be deduced not only from the incision that they underwent for the construction of other later buildings, of which I will speak later on, but also from the coordination that the eastern side of their outer wall had with the western wall of the Basilica, to which it is parallel. It is also evident that the inner wall with the "i" thresholds was not kept parallel to the first ones, certainly to coordinate it with another central building in the area.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1900, Page 29.
Posteriore ai
fondamenti "h" è l'altra muratura "k", che, come ho detto,
li incide, collegata all'altra simile muratura "l" nel lato
settentrionale, la quale, a sua volta, ripiega a squadro verso ovest col muro
m. Tutto il perimetro quindi "k" "l" "m" è
posteriore certamente agli edifici rappresentati da "h". Senonché, mentre
i muri "k", ed "l" sono di opera mista incerta, il muro "m"
è di reticolato di tufo giallo internamente e qui la sua faccia era a vista.
Nell' ultimo tratto di questo muro, andando verso mezzodì, la lavoratura
reticolata è in ambe le facce, il che le fa supporre ambedue a vista, oltre
alla presenza di un finestrino, che nella ipotesi contraria non avrebbe avuto
ragion di essere. Il rimanente della faccia esterna del detto muro era
addossato a fabbriche. È poi da notare che la muratura "k" "l"
"m" non è stata mai sviluppata ad altezza maggiore di quella che oggi
presenta, essendo che sovra essa qua e là si vedono le impronte di lastre
marmoree che un tempo ne rivestivano la faccia superiore.
Non anteriore
di certo è l'altra muratura n, anche di opera mista incerta, parallela a "k"
e che alla distanza di m. 6 da questa si collega alla muratura "l". Ed
a stabilire una quasi contemporaneità vale il fatto che "n" dista
dalle fondamenta del tempio A quanto ne dista la muratura "m".
Senza indagare
se il canaletto delle piovane "p", in tufo di Nocera, fiancheggiato da
un sodo di muratura, privo affatto di qualsiasi traccia di colonne, e con le
vasche "r" negli angoli nord-est e nord-ovest, abbia rapporto di
contemporaneità coi fondamenti "h", certa cosa è che esso già
esisteva, quando fu segnato il piantato del tempio, che nel lato settentrionale
venne a tagliare il canaletto.
Accosto alla
porzione orientale del canaletto "p" si trovano i due basamenti "s"
e "t". Il basamento "s" della grandezza di mq. 1,20 e
dell'altezza di m. 0,60 è di fabbrica rivestita di stucco modinato;
accanto ad esso sta un piccolo pilastrino rivestito di marmo e contenente un
getto d'acqua. Il basamento "t", lungo m. 2,40. largo m. 1,35 e
dell'altezza massima di m. 1,15, è di travertino; e accanto, dal lato di
mezzodì, è cavata nel suolo una vaschetta di fabbrica, larga m. 1, lunga m. 1 e
profonda m. 0,55. Piu verso mezzogiorno s'incontra la scaletta "u"
discendente ad un piano sottoposto non ancora esplorato.
Verso il lato
orientale dell'atrio giacciono tuttora il grande piedistallo marmoreo, appena
sgrossato, e il sostegno cilindrico di marmo africano (cfr. Notizie 1898, p.
171, 2 e 3). Aggiungo che quel gran piedistallo è formato da un blocco di marmo
in lavorazione, il quale presenta una faccia quadrata di m. 1,50, altre quattro
normali ad essa, di figura pressoché semicircolari e di altezza m. 0,90, le
quali si raccordano ad una superficie curva alta m. 0,15, da cui finalmente
sporge una parte cilindrica di diam. 1,05 e di altezza m. 0,22.
Posterior to the foundations "h" is the other masonry "k", which, as I have said, cuts into them, connected to the other similar masonry "l" on the northern side, which, in turn, folds at an angle towards the west with wall "m". The whole perimeter therefore "k" "l" "m" is certainly posterior to the buildings represented by "h". However, while walls "k" and "l" are of opera mista incerta, wall "m" is of yellow tuff latticework on the inside and here its face was exposed. In the last section of this wall, going towards the middle, the latticework is on both faces, which leads one to suppose that they are both visible, as well as the presence of a window, which in the opposite hypothesis would have no reason to be. The remainder of the outer face of the wall was leaning against fabric. It should also be noted that the "k" "l" "m" masonry was never developed to a greater height than it is today, since the imprints of marble slabs that once covered its upper face can be seen here and there.
The other masonry, n, also of opera mista incerta, parallel to "k" and connected to masonry "l" at a distance of 6 metres from it, is certainly not earlier. The fact that "n" is as far from the foundations of temple A as masonry "m" is from the foundations of temple A also establishes an almost contemporary relationship.
Without investigating whether the rainwater gutter "p", made of Nocera tufa, flanked by a solid masonry, with no trace of columns at all, and with the basins "r" in the north-east and north-west corners, has a contemporary relationship with the foundations "h", what is certain is that it already existed, when the temple was marked out, which on the northern side came to cut the gutter.
Next to the eastern portion of the gully "p" are two plinths "s" and "t". The plinth "s", measuring 1.20 square metres and 0.60 metres high, is covered with moulded stucco; next to it is a small pillar covered with marble and containing a water jet. The base "t", 2.40 m. long, 1.35 m. wide and with a maximum height of 1.15 m., is made of travertine; and next to it, on the south side, there is a small basin hollowed out of the ground, 1 m. wide, 1 m. long and 0.55 m. deep. Further towards south one encounters the "u" staircase descending to an unexplored lower floor.
Towards the eastern side of the atrium still lie the large marble pedestal, barely roughened, and the cylindrical support of African marble (cf. Notizie 1898, p. 171, 2 and 3). I would add that this large pedestal is formed by a block of marble in the process of being worked, which has a square face 1.50 m. high, another four normal to it, almost semi-circular in shape and 0.90 m. high, which are connected to a curved surface 0.15 m. high, from which finally protrudes a cylindrical part 1.05 m. in diameter and 0.22 m. high.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Notizie
degli Scavi di Antichità, 1900, Page 30.
Piu presso il
tempio, sempre ad oriente, si trova un altro blocco di marmo in lavorazione, a cui
si era data la grossolana forma di un sodo, di base quadrata di m. 1,42 e di
altezza 0,31, del quale la parte superiore è cilindrica, di diametro 1,42 e di
altezza 0,31.
Finalmente su i blocchi di lava (di Pozzuoli)
non lavorati e ancora greggi sono segnati in rosso i seguenti numeri:
II, V, VI,
VIII, X, XI, XII (ripetuto due volte),
XIII (ripetuto
due volte), XIIII, XX, XXI, XXIII.
Senza dubbio
sono numeri apposti ai blocchi nella cava.
Appiè del muro
occidentale della Basilica si vedono gli avanzi di fabbriche "w", che
allo stato attuale non possono essere chiaramente intese. Assai probabilmente
la Basilica sorgeva isolata, potendovisi girare alle spalle per mezzo del
vicoletto "x". In un tempo posteriore, quando mediante l'aggiunta
laterizia al muro settentrionale della Basilica si fece l'ingresso "g"
agli edifizi "h" (poscia demoliti), una porzione del vicoletto "x"
perdette la destinazione pubblica con la costruzione delle fabbriche, di cui restano
gli avanzi "w". A questo tempo può anche risalire il castello aquario
"z".
Closer to the temple, again to the east, there is another block of marble in the process of being worked, which was given the rough shape of a sodo, with a square base measuring 1.42 m. and a height of 0.31, of which the upper part is cylindrical, with a diameter of 1.42 and a height of 0.31.
Finally, the following numbers are marked in red on the unworked and still raw blocks of lava (from Pozzuoli):
II, V, VI, VIII, X, XI, XII (repeated twice),
XIII (repeated twice), XIIII, XX, XXI, XXIII.
No doubt they are numbers affixed to the blocks in the quarry.
At the foot of the western wall of the Basilica one can see the remains of structure "w", which cannot be clearly understood at present. Most probably the basilica stood alone, being able to turn behind it by means of alley 'x'. In a later time, when by adding brick to the northern wall of the Basilica the entrance "g" to the buildings "h" (later demolished) was made, a portion of the alley "x" lost its public use with the construction of the buildings, of which only the remnants "w" remain. The water tower 'z' may also date from this time.
See Notizie degli Scavi di
Antichità, 1900, pp. 27-30.
Garcia y Garcia. 2006. Danni di guerra a Pompei
According to Garcia y Garcia, one of the best descriptions
of this temple was made in A. Mau: Pompeii, Its life and art.
See Mau, A., 1907, translated by Kelsey, F. W., Pompeii:
Its Life and Art. New York: Macmillan. (p. 124-129).
When this temple was discovered, it was totally ruined due
to the AD62 earthquake.
It was in the process of being reconstructed by the ancient
Pompeians.
The excavations were then bombed on 24th August 1943 causing
the demolition of the foundation of the portico, to the west, south and east.
The north and south sides of the foundation of the temple
were hit again in the night raid of 20th September 1943.
See Garcia y
Garcia, L., 2006. Danni
di guerra a Pompei. Rome:
L’Erma di Bretschneider. (p.138)
Mau, A., 1902, translated by Kelsey F. W. Pompeii: Its Life and Art. Chapter XVIII.
The Temple of Venus Pompeiana
For some years it had been known that a temple once stood in the rectangular block south of the Strada della Marina; and in 1898 workmen excavating here began to uncover the massive foundations. When the volcanic deposits had been removed it was seen that the court of the temple, with the surrounding colonnade, occupied the whole area between the Basilica and the west wall of the long room now used as a museum. On the podium (Fig. 55) was found a part of a statuette of Venus, of the familiar type which represents the goddess as preparing to enter the bath; it was probably a votive offering set up by some worshipper. In the subterranean passageway entered near the southeast corner (, IV) the excavators found another votive offering, a bronze steering paddle of the kind shown in paintings as an attribute of Venus Pompeiana; an example may be seen in Fig. 4 (p. 12). From these indications, as well as from the size of the temple and its location, near the Forum and on an elevation commanding a wide view of the sea, we are safe in assigning the sanctuary to Venus Pompeiana, the patron divinity of Roman Pompeii.
Prior to the founding of the Roman colony the site of the temple had been occupied by houses, built in several stories on the edge of the hill, which here slopes sharply toward the southwest; remains of the houses, which must have resembled those farther east (an example is the house of the Emperor Joseph II, p. 344), have been brought to light in the course of the excavations. In less than a century and a half the temple was twice built, twice destroyed; a third building was in progress at the time of the eruption.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Mau fig. 54. Plan of the temple of Venus Pompeiana.
Key:
I, II. Remains of podium of first and second temples.
III. Altar.
IV. Entrance to underground passage.
V, VI. Pedestals.
A-B, C-D-E. Foundations of walls of court of first temple.
F-G-G', G"-H-I. Foundation of stylobate of colonnade of first temple, with gutter.
A'-B'. Foundation of rear wall of rooms opening on colonnade of first temple.
a-b-c-d. Walls of court of second temple.
e-f-g-h, e'-f', g'-h'. Foundations of colonnade of second temple—two rows of columns on each side, a single row at the rear.
K. Main entrance of court of second temple.
L. Smaller entrance of court of second temple.
x, y, z. Old foundation walls having nothing to do with the temple.
A-B-C-C'-B'. Enlargement of podium for third temple.
The first temple was erected in the early years of the Roman colony. An area approximately 185 Roman feet square was prepared for it by levelling off and filling up, terrace walls being built to hold in place the earth and rubbish used for filling. The foundations of the walls about the court (A-B, C-D-E) can still be traced except on the south side, where, perhaps in consequence of the earthquake at the time of the eruption, every vestige has disappeared, and at the southwest corner, where excavations for building materials in modern times have been carried below the Roman level, a part of the foundation of the temple itself having been removed. These walls conformed to the direction of the walls of the Basilica, the corners, as those of the Basilica, showing a noticeable divergence from a right angle.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Mau Fig. 55. Ruins of the temple of Venus Pompeiana, viewed from the southeast.
At the right, foundation of the front row of columns of the latest (unfinished) colonnade; then foundation of stylobate of earlier colonnade, with gutter. In foreground, entrance to subterranean passage. On the podium of the temple at the farther end is seen the pedestal of the statue of the divinity. The wall at the rear of the court is on the south side of the Via Marina.
The front of the earlier colonnade is outlined by the gutter (F-G-G', G"-H-I), constructed of blocks of tufa, which show signs of long use, and the foundation of the stylobate behind the gutter, which is plainly seen (Fig. 55); in places (as indicated in the plan), the layer of mortar spread over this foundation shows the impressions made by the blocks of the stylobate which rested on it. At the middle of the north side (G'-G") both the gutter and the wall under the stylobate were removed when the foundations of the third temple were extended in that direction. Along the gutter were basins for water used in cleaning the floor of the court, which was made of fine concrete. The entrance to the court was at the northeast corner.
On the east side of the court were six rooms, the rear of which was formed by the wall A'B'. Two of these opened on the colonnade in their whole breadth, and four with narrow doors, the thresholds of which, of whitish limestone, are still in place. Their purpose cannot be determined. The cross walls shown in the plan on the west side (x, y, z) belonged to an earlier building, and have nothing to do with the temple.
In front of the temple are remains of a large altar of whitish limestone (III). On the east side of the court is the base of an equestrian statue (V), of the same material, which was afterwards veneered with marble; near it is a pedestal of a standing figure (VI), of masonry covered with stucco, and behind this is the small base of a fountain figure. Near the southeast corner is the entrance (IV) to a subterranean passageway which runs toward the south; it probably led to rooms of earlier houses which were preserved, when the area was filled up, for the use of the attendants of the temple.
The temple itself, as the other edifices, religious and secular, of the first years of the Roman colony, must have been built of common materials and coated with stucco. Of the existing remains only the inner part of the podium (I, II on the Plan) can be assigned to it; a series of small blocks of tufa at the rear end is perhaps a remnant of the cornice which was carried around the upper edge of the podium.
To the Pompeians of the Empire the modest structure of Republican days seemed unworthy of the tutelary divinity of their city. On the same podium they built a temple of marble. Of this are preserved the foundations of the door posts of the cella (Fig. 56 a) and the core of the pedestal (D) on which stood the statue of the divinity, besides some bits of the cella floor, which consisted of a border of white mosaic (b), a broad strip of pavement of small flags of coloured marble (c), and an ornamental centre (a) now entirely destroyed. The only remains of the superstructure that can be identified are in a storeroom north of the temple of Apollo. They consist of fragments of large marble columns, nearly thirty two inches in diameter, and of an entablature of corresponding dimensions.
After the completion of the temple the Pompeians set about rebuilding the colonnade, on a scale of equal magnificence. First of all they enlarged the court by removing the old walls to the foundations, and constructed new outside walls (a-b-c-d), the corners of which form right angles. The wall on the north side, of reticulate work, can be distinguished in Fig. 55. That on the east side is also well preserved, but of that on the south side no trace remains. The deep foundation of the wall on the west side forms the farther wall of the present Museum, the roof of which very nearly represents the level of the floor of the ancient court. The colonnade was to be single on the north, double on the east and west sides. The principal entrance was at the northeast corner (K), with a smaller entrance (L) at the end of the narrow street south of the Basilica.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Mau Fig. 56. Plan of the second temple, restored.
A. Steps.
B. Portico.
C. Cella.
D. Pedestal of the statue of the divinity.
a. Door of cella.
b. Floor border of white mosaic.
c. Pavement of coloured marbles.
d. Ornamental centre.
How far the work had progressed before the earthquake of the year 63 it is not easy to determine. The new gutter along the front of the colonnade had not yet been laid, but the foundations of the rows of columns (e-f-g-h, e'f', g'h') were for the most part ready. From the Corinthian capital and fragments of shafts and entablature lying about the court it is clear that these members were fitted and in place when they were thrown down. Part of the colonnade was therefore finished. It was in two stories, probably without an intervening floor, like the porticoes in front of the Macellum and the building of Eumachia. Not less than three hundred marble columns must have been required to complete the work; undoubtedly the wall back of the colonnade was divided off by pilasters below and half columns above, the intervening spaces being filled with marble. In point of size, the temple with its court formed the largest sanctuary, in richness of materials the most splendid edifice of the entire city.
The great earthquake felled to the ground alike the finished temple and the unfinished colonnade. But the Pompeians, in their time of trouble least of all disposed, we may assume, to forsake their patron goddess, soon commenced the work of rebuilding. Postponing the renewal and completion of the colonnade as of secondary importance, they cleared away the débris of the temple, and on the podium where the cella had stood constructed a temporary place of worship, a small wooden building strengthened at the bottom by a low wall around the outside. Then they proceeded to enlarge the podium; the third temple was to be even more imposing than its predecessor. The old steps were removed from the front. The existing podium was cut back five Roman feet on each side, and four inches at the rear, to form the core of the new podium; on all sides of this a massive foundation wall was commenced, five and a half Roman feet thick, made of large blocks of basalt carefully worked and fitted. A similar wall was carried through the old podium (B—B'), to serve as the foundation for the front wall of the cella. The relative size of the component parts of the new temple is thus clearly indicated. The cella was to extend over the space B—C—C'—B', the portico over that marked A—B—B'; how far the steps were to project in front is uncertain.
At the time of the eruption five courses of basalt had been laid, reaching a height of more than four feet, the space between the core of the old podium and the outer wall being filled with concrete as the work progressed. On the north side of the court are still to be seen a number of blocks of basalt not yet trimmed and fitted, just as they were abandoned by the workmen when the work was stopped forever.
Maureen Carroll
Nemus et Templum. Exploring the sacred grove at the Temple of Venus in Pompeii
[Brief Extract]
In A.D. 62, most public and private buildings in Pompeii, including the temple of Venus, were destroyed or ruined by the earthquake. In the following years, the site was cleared for the reconstruction of the sanctuary and building work on the new temple foundations began. The excavations uncovered rare evidence for the work done in this final phase and for the appearance of a Roman construction site, complete with heaps of stone chips and architectural debris from the cutting of basalt foundation blocks and the carving of columns, architectural decoration and votive monuments of white and coloured marbles imported from the eastern Mediterranean. The temple was to be the biggest and finest yet on that site, and the builders had dug a broad and deep foundation trench around the old temple and were in the process of erecting courses of large basalt blocks against the original building for the new structure (Fig. 12). (Note 33: The explanations of MAU 1900, pp. 273-279, regarding the building of the new basalt foundations are still valid, although the new excavations now give us a better idea of the actual width of the foundation trench.) The precinct itself was enlarged over the slope to the south and out into the street to the north. The sanctuary, however, was never finished, nor was its sacred grove replanted, because Vesuvius erupted before this could happen.
Sacred groves in Roman sanctuaries rarely have been the focus of any controlled archaeological excavation. The results of our investigations, therefore, have validity not only for Pompeii, but also for an understanding of and insight into the physical appearance and workings of Roman sanctuaries in general, especially those in the late Republic. If our interpretation of the evidence is correct, the establishment of an impressive new landscaped sanctuary in an existing settlement casts light on the ways in which a community used sacred space to express changing political circumstances and social relations. Should an older indigenous sanctuary (of the Samnite goddess Mefitis perhaps?) have been replaced by the Roman sanctuary of Venus Pompeiana, the significance of the appropriation of this space becomes clear, especially if this occurred on the initiative of the Roman colonists.35 By the same token, a real change in the social identity of the community is also evident if the Roman temple replaced other structures such as private houses of Pompeii’s indigenous population. In either case, the establishment of the Roman temple of Venus with its sacred grove played a formative role in the political, religious and social transformation of Pompeii from a Hellenistic town to a Roman colony. Mau in Pompeji in Leben und Kunst, Leipzig, 1908, pp. 120-121, 124, refers to Samnite houses on the site of the later Roman temple.
See Carroll M.,
2008. Nemus et Templum. Exploring the sacred
grove at the Temple of Venus in Pompeii in Nuove
ricerche archeologiche nell’area vesuviana: (scavi 2003-2006). Roma: L’Erma di
Bretschneider, pp. 37-48.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Sanctuary of Venus in its first Roman phase of the first century B.C. Excavated trenches are shown in grey; the black dots in the trenches are planting pits.
Plan by O. Jessop. Photo
courtesy of M. Carroll.
See Carroll M.,
2008. Nemus et Templum. Exploring the sacred
grove at the Temple of Venus in Pompeii in Nuove
ricerche archeologiche nell’area vesuviana: (scavi 2003-2006). Roma: L’Erma di
Bretschneider, p. 38 fig. 1.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Pompeii, sanctuary of Venus from the south-west during excavation in 2006.
Photo courtesy of M. Carroll.
See Carroll M.,
2008. Nemus et Templum. Exploring the sacred
grove at the Temple of Venus in Pompeii in Nuove
ricerche archeologiche nell’area vesuviana: (scavi 2003-2006). Roma: L’Erma di
Bretschneider, p. 39 fig. 2.
Maureen Carroll
Exploring the sanctuary of Venus and its sacred grove: politics, cult and identity in Roman Pompeii.
See Papers of the British School at Rome 78, (2010) pp.63-106.
[Brief Extract]
The temple and sacred grove of the patron divinity of a Roman town could function rather like an abbreviated symbol of the town itself. Depictions on Roman coins and illustrated maps sometimes show a temple belonging to the tutelary god or goddess of a particular city, the temple being flanked by trees or situated next to a colonnaded grove. Such landscaped sanctuaries were not only an expression of religious belief, but also of political identity and power. It is well documented that plants and vegetation in public architecture could be highly symbolic and politically charged.
Whilst a variety of written and pictorial sources attest to the existence of Roman temple groves in many places, there has been little archaeological evidence to help us visualize them. The ample courtyard of the temple of Venus on the Via Marina in Pompeii became the focus of our excavations, as it offered crucial potential for advancing our knowledge about sacred groves (PLATE 1). Given the close connection between the sanctuary of the tutelary god of a community and the expression of political identity through it, the grove in this sanctuary had a special meaning, as Venus was the patron goddess of Pompeii.
Although no traces of plantings were detected in the original excavations between 1889 and 1900 or in later investigations, it appeared unlikely that the largest Roman temple in Pompeii, dedicated to a goddess who was associated closely with fertility, would have lacked a garden or grove. Fortunately, the subsoil of the sanctuary courtyard was still largely intact when we began work there in 1998, and unambiguous archaeological evidence for plantings in the sanctuary could be retrieved in all three fieldwork seasons (FIG. 1). It is one of three sites in Pompeii where excavations have demonstrated the existence of a sacred grove, the others being the suburban temple of Dionysus at Sant'Abbondio and the temple of Apollo west of the forum.
See Carroll M., 2010. Exploring the sanctuary of Venus and its sacred grove: politics, cult and identity in Roman Pompeii. Papers of the British School at Rome 78, pp. 63-106.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Looking from the northern end of the temple of Venus across the eastern half of the courtyard, where excavations took place in 1998, 2004 and 2006.
Photo courtesy of
M. Carroll.
See Carroll M., 2010. Exploring the sanctuary of Venus and its sacred grove: politics, cult and identity in Roman Pompeii. Papers of the British School at Rome 78, p. 64 plate 1.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. View from the south of the temple as it was being enlarged after AD 62.
The upright opus
caementicium core is part of the mid-first-century BC temple; the
still intact courses of large basalt blocks were laid into a construction
trench surrounding the earliest building. The scattered basalt blocks in the
courtyard are remnants of this building work. Photo courtesy of M. Carroll.
See Carroll M., 2010. Exploring the sanctuary of Venus and its sacred grove: politics, cult and identity in Roman Pompeii. Papers of the British School at Rome 78, p.89 plate 21.
VIII.1.3 Pompeii. Unfinished column of Portasanta limestone for a votive offering, brought in and worked on after AD 62.
The column shaft rests today on an unfinished column capital of Proconnesian marble.
Photo courtesy of M. Carroll.
See Carroll M., 2010. Exploring the sanctuary of Venus and its sacred grove: politics, cult and identity in Roman Pompeii. Papers of the British School at Rome 78, p.92 plate 24.
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