Arcinazzo Romano - Guida ai Musei ANTIQUARIUM COMUNALE “VILLA DI TRAIANO” ARCINAZZO ROMANO GUIDA AI MUSEI Tiziano Cinti Mauro Lo Castro 1 Arcinazzo Romano - Guida ai Musei ENTE PROMOTORE: Testi e foto: Tiziano Cinti, Mauro Lo Castro (“Il Betilo” S.C. a r.l.) Traduzioni: Catia Ronzoni Progetto grafico e impaginazione: Comune di Arcinazzo Romano Latini Photo-Video Compositing www.emanuelelatini.it Stampa: Deltamedia Artigrafiche, Roma PARTNER ISTITUZIONALI www.deltamediagroup.it E COFINANZIATORI: L’Amministrazione Comunale e gli autori ringraziano per la collaborazione prestata nei primi otto anni di lavoro nel Museo e nella realizzazione della Guida: - Regione Lazio: il Dirigente Area Regione Lazio Servizi Culturali, Dr. Claudio (L.R. 42/’97, Piano 2009) Cristallini, i funzionari referenti Dr.ssa Laura De Martino, Francesca Mattei, Paola Pascucci; - Provincia di Roma: il Dirigente Beni, Servizi, Attività Culturali Dr. Valerio De Nardo; i funzionari referenti Dr.ssa Bruna Amendolea, Dr.ssa Laura Indrio, Provincia di Roma Dr.ssa Angelica Apicella; (L.R. 42/’97, Piano 2009) - tutto il personale del Comune di Arcinazzo Romano; - Simona Troja e Irene De Horatiis per il costante apporto dato allo sviluppo delle attività del Museo; - i volontari, gli addetti di Servizio Civile Nazionale e i cittadini che ci hanno sostenuto. Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici del Lazio © Comune di Arcinazzo Romano - 2011 2 Arcinazzo Romano - Guida ai Musei 7 Arcinazzo Romano - Guida ai Musei Prefazione Abbiamo voluto scrivere questa guida immaginando di accompagnare voi visitatori negli spazi della Villa di Traiano mediante una piacevole passeggiata, sorta di “dialogo muto” tra voi che ci gratificate del vostro interesse e noi, impegnati ogni giorno nella valorizzazione di questo patrimonio storico e culturale. Abbiamo pensato di soddisfare alcune curiosità, di approfondire aspetti della vita quotidiana, forse meno frequenti nelle guide ai musei, fornendo un quadro interpretativo in cui calare la realtà archeologica che vi accingete a visitare. Le pagine che seguono non vogliono essere “istruzioni per l’uso” della Villa, né un freddo elenco descrittivo di ambienti, forme, architetture. Il tentativo è, invece, quello di fornire suggestioni, certo puntuali e scientifiche, in grado di aiutare nella ricostruzione virtuale della “vostra” Villa di Traiano e del panorama naturale che vi circonda. Ciò che ci interessa non è tanto che, all’uscita, sappiate di più circa la Villa: l’interesse nei confronti delle dinamiche archeologiche e la curiosità che vi spinge alla visita rappresenta per noi il punto di partenza. Tutto ciò che vi circonda può divenire oggetto di riflessione e l’archeologia non è altro che uno degli aspetti. Auspichiamo che, al termine, vi sentiate felici di ciò che avete visto e che siate consapevoli di essere i primi custodi e fruitori di questo patrimonio. We wanted to write this guide in order to accompany visitors inside the Villa of Trajan, as a sort of "silent dialogue" between us. We thought, by doing so, that we would satisfy your curiosity and examine certain aspects of roman daily life, perhaps less common in museum guides, and so provide an interpretive framework in which we can place the archaeological heritage which you are about to visit. The pages which follow are not meant to be taken as "instructions" for the Villa, nor as a descriptive list of a cold environments. On the contrary, the attempt is to provide scientific and precise suggestions, which will help you to reconstruct "your" virtual Villa of Trajan and the natural landscape that surrounds you. There is no need for us to provide more information, as your interest and very curiosity in the archaeological dynamics have already presented a good starting point for us. Your surroundings may become the subject of reflection and archaeology is simply one of the aspects. We hope that at the end, you feel happy with what you have seen and are aware of being the first users and custodians of this heritage. LA DIREZIONE SCIENTIFICA SSESSORE L’A DELL’ANTIQUARIUM COMUNALE IL SINDACO ALLA ULTURA C “VILLA DI TRAIANO” Giacomo Troja Roberta Miozzi Tiziano Cinti, Mauro Lo Castro 9 Arcinazzo Romano - Guida ai Musei La Villa The Villa La residenza dell'imperatore The residence of the Emperor Traiano (98-117 d.C.) sorge in Trajan (98-117 AD) is located in a un'area naturale di grande fascino. natural area of great charm. We are in Ci troviamo in un territorio a mountainous area rich in waters montuoso, ricco di acque, and popular, in ancient times as well frequentato, in antico come ai giorni as today, as being a place for holiday, nostri, come luogo di residenza per away from the city and its rhythms. trascorrere vacanze lontano dalla Thinking of ancient Rome, we must città e dai suoi ritmi. Pensando not forget that it represented, for the all'antica Roma, non dobbiamo time, a real metropolis, a centre for dimenticare che essa rappresentava the political and economic power, per l'epoca una autentica metropoli, where you could see the negative centro di gravità del potere politico effects of overpopulation. ed economico, nonché luogo in cui cogliere gli effetti negativi del sovrapopolamento. Veduta della platea inferiore Per farsi una idea di quanto della Villa simili alle attuali possano essere View of the lower terrace state le problematiche relative alla of the Villa vita metropolitana, basti pensare 11 Arcinazzo Romano - Guida ai Musei In order to have an idea of how night; you may well be deemed a problems related to urban life may fool, improvident of sudden acci- have been similar to ours, you only dent, if you go out to dinner with- have to imagine that since the I c. BC out having made your will. You can the Romans had a law to regulate the but hope, and put up a piteous traffic’s city. prayer in your heart, that they may This law1 stopped the transit for be content to pour down on you the freight wagons during the day, until contents of their slop-basins!" (John, 16.00 - 17.00, to allow a greater fluency Sat. III, 268 et seq.) of the traffic during the day 2. Even rubbish was a serious This bad habit provoked the problem: despite the widespread pres- intervention of the law, so that people ence of latrines and landfills, and the who lost their relatives, would be com- efficiency demonstrated by the Romans pensated after their death: in building sewers and drains, many organic household waste were thrown "If something is thrown away from through the window in the night and a building, on a public passages, the gathered on roadside. The problem was judge will ensure legal action for the so familiar which became subject for the harm caused. If the object determine satires of Juvenal3: the shooting death of a free man, the magistrate will ensure legal action "And now regard the different and for compensation of fifty gold coin.” diverse perils of the night. See what (Digesto. 9, 3, 5, 1). a height it is to that towering roof from which a potsherd comes crack Juvenal, as we already said, was upon my head every time that some not kind with his city that, already two broken or leaky vessel is pitched out thousand years ago, is described as a of the window! See with what a bolgia from which to escape: smash it strikes and dints the pavement! There's death in every "For where has one ever seen a open window as you pass along at place so dismal and so lonely that 1 The Lex Iulia Municipalis was promulgated by Julio Cesar in 45 BC and reached us through the so called “Heracleas’ tables”, a series of bronze lamina, found at the end of the XVIII c. in Basilicata. 2 Lex Iulia Municipalis also provided some special licenses. According to it virgin vestals carpentum, wagons for public works, sheer legs during the day of competition, circus wagons during the day of the representation and, of course, wagon for the draining of public lavatories could enter during the day. 3 Juvenalis: 50-140 AD. 13 Arcinazzo Romano - Guida ai Musei one would not deem it worse to live suggests his friend Maecenas to leave in perpetual dread of fires and fal- the city: ling houses, and the thousand perils "and stop to admire its overwhelm- of this terrible city, and poets spout- ing wealth and palace that touches ing in the month of August!" (John, the high clouds; the fume, wealth Sat. III, 5 et seq.) and the noise of Rome." Hor. Carm. Its streets were sometimes full 3. 29.9.12 of rubbish and its sights and smells were so unpleasant that, according to a The emperors appreciated the decision of Trajan, it was established most fascinating places, where nature that prisoners were also used for clean- was uncontaminated, and choose them ing latrines and sewers, and for the to build wonderful Villas. upkeep of the roads. It should be said however, that The great atmospheric pollution with the term “Villa” the Roman, ex- was a serious problem that hit both the tremely attentive in legal regulation of lower and the wealthy classes with res- civil life, identified two distinct type of piratory diseases. Often, doctors rec- settlement: the “residential” Villa, simi- ommended to take a break away from lar to the modern meaning, and that the Rome in order to treat these symptoms. so-called “ country” Villa, which was Continuous smokes from kitchens and somewhat like a farm, where the build- ovens and fumes caused by sewage ing was associated with a yard culti- flowed into sewers or ran in the open vated not only for subsistence.