Cambridge University Press 978-1-108-84568-7 — The Origins of Concrete Construction in Roman Architecture Marcello Mogetta Frontmatter More Information THE ORIGINS OF CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION IN ROMAN ARCHITECTURE In this study, Marcello Mogetta examines the origins and early dissemina- tion of concrete technology in Roman Republican architecture. Framing the genesis of innovative building processes and techniques within the context of Rome’s early expansion, he traces technological change in monumental construction in long-established urban centers and new Roman colonial cites founded in the 2nd century BCE in central Italy. Mogetta weaves together excavation data from both public monu- ments and private domestic architecture that previously have been studied in isolation. Highlighting the organization of the building industry, he also explores the political motivations and cultural aspirations of patrons of monumental architecture, reconstructing how they negotiated economic and logistical constraints by drawing from both local traditions and long- distance networks. By incorporating the available scientific evidence into the development of concrete technology, Mogetta also demonstrates the contributions of anonymous builders and contractors, shining a light on their ability to exploit locally available resources. marcello mogetta is a Mediterranean archaeologist whose research focuses on early Roman urbanism in Italy. He conducts primary fieldwork at the sites of Gabii (Gabii Project) and Pompeii (Venus Pompeiana Project), for which he has received multiple grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Loeb Classical Library Foundation, the AIA, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. He coordinates the CaLC-Rome Project, an international collaboration that applies 3D mod- eling and surface analysis to the life cycle of ceramic vessels from the Esquiline necropolis in Rome. He is the editor of Élite Burial Practices and Processes of Urbanization at Gabii (JRA Suppl. 108, 2020), and coeditor of A Mid-Republican House from Gabii (2016) and Domitian’s Rome and the Augustan Legacy (forthcoming). © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-1-108-84568-7 — The Origins of Concrete Construction in Roman Architecture Marcello Mogetta Frontmatter More Information THE ORIGINS OF CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION IN ROMAN ARCHITECTURE TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY IN REPUBLICAN ITALY MARCELLO MOGETTA University of Missouri, Columbia © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-1-108-84568-7 — The Origins of Concrete Construction in Roman Architecture Marcello Mogetta Frontmatter More Information University Printing House, Cambridge cb2 8bs, United Kingdom One Liberty Plaza, 20th Floor, New York, ny 10006, USA 477 Williamstown Road, Port Melbourne, vic 3207, Australia 314–321, 3rd Floor, Plot 3, Splendor Forum, Jasola District Centre, New Delhi – 110025, India 79 Anson Road, #06–04/06, Singapore 079906 Cambridge University Press is part of the University of Cambridge. It furthers the University’s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of education, learning, and research at the highest international levels of excellence. www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9781108845687 doi: 10.1017/9781108990516 © Cambridge University Press 2021 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 2021 A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data names: Mogetta, Marcello, author. title: The origins of concrete construction in Roman architecture : technology and society in Republican Italy / Marcello Mogetta, University of Missouri, Columbia. description: Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2021. | Includes bibliographical references and index. identifiers: lccn 2021000600 (print) | lccn 2021000601 (ebook) | isbn 9781108845687 (hardback) | isbn 9781108964852 (paperback) | isbn 9781108990516 (ebook) subjects: lcsh: Building – Rome. | Concrete construction – Rome. | Architecture, Roman. | Architecture and society – Rome. classification: lcc th16 .m64 2021 (print) | lcc th16 (ebook) | ddc 624.1/8340937–dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021000600 LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021000601 isbn 978-1-108-84568-7 Hardback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. Publication of this book has been aided by a grant from the von Bothmer Publication Fund of the Archaeological Institute of America. © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-1-108-84568-7 — The Origins of Concrete Construction in Roman Architecture Marcello Mogetta Frontmatter More Information CONTENTS List of Plates page viii List of Figures ix List of Tables xii Acknowledgments xiii 1INTRODUCTION 1 Aims and Methods 1 Ground Rules: The Building Industry of Republican Rome and Italy 4 Basic Terms and Definitions: What Is Roman Concrete? 8 The Structura Caementorum in Republican Architecture: Techniques and Processes 13 Dating Concrete Construction: A New Typological Approach 21 The Structure of the Book 23 2 DECONSTRUCTING ROMAN CONCRETE 25 Roman Concrete and Roman Culture: Words and Things 25 Roman Concrete and Roman Imperialism: Modern Perceptions 28 Roman Concrete and Identity Construction: Ancient Representations 37 Conclusions 44 3 A NEW DATE FOR CONCRETE IN ROME 46 At the Roots of Roman Republican Architecture 46 The Local Environment: Sources of Building Materials in the Region of Rome 48 Dating Early Concrete Construction in Rome: The Problem of the Porticus Aemilia 52 Redating the Early Development of Concrete Construction in Rome: The Public Monuments 58 Archaeometric Evidence on the Early Development of Mortars in Public Building 76 v © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-1-108-84568-7 — The Origins of Concrete Construction in Roman Architecture Marcello Mogetta Frontmatter More Information vi CONTENTS Redating the Early Development of Concrete Construction in Rome: The Houses 78 The Social and Cultural Context of the Technological Innovation 85 Conclusions 88 4AVIEWFROMTHESUBURBIUM 91 Roman Republican Villas and Technological Innovation: Previous Approaches 92 Agricultural Intensification and the Supply of Lime 94 Building Techniques in the Volcanic Region: Villa Architecture in the Environs of Rome 101 Concrete Construction and Urban Development in the Limestone Region: Tibur 110 Building Techniques and Republican Villas in the Ager Tiburtinus 113 The Villa Architecture of the Ager Tiburtinus in Its Regional Setting 121 Conclusions 123 5 BUILDING SAMNITE POMPEII 125 Pre-Roman Pompeii and Roman Republican Architecture 125 Building Materials and the Architectural History of Pre-Roman Pompeii 127 Reframing the Limestone Period 131 The Origins of Cemented-Rubble Construction in Pompeian Houses: Materials and Processes 136 The Diffusion of Concrete Technology in Public Building 146 Technology and Socioeconomic Status: The Innovation of Concrete Construction in Pompeii 164 Pompeian Concrete Construction in Its Regional Context 167 Conclusions 179 6 COLONIAL NETWORKS 181 Roman Urbanism and Roman Expansion: Reorienting the Perspective 181 Background: The Making of Mid-Republican Colonies 183 The Urban Development of Mid-Republican Colonies: Norba and Fregellae 187 The Early Development of Concrete Construction at Cosa 195 Comparative Evidence from Roman Colonies (c. 200–150 BCE) 205 A Tale of Two Cities: Pozzolanic Mortars at Puteoli and Aquileia 218 Conclusions 228 © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-1-108-84568-7 — The Origins of Concrete Construction in Roman Architecture Marcello Mogetta Frontmatter More Information CONTENTS vii 7CONCLUSION 232 Appendix: Catalog of Sites 244 Glossary 252 Bibliography and Abbreviations 260 Index 304 The color plate section will be found between pages xiv and 1. © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-1-108-84568-7 — The Origins of Concrete Construction in Roman Architecture Marcello Mogetta Frontmatter More Information PLATES I.A Rome, Nuovo Mercato di Testaccio excavations. Workstation for the fabrication of reticulate facing pieces (mid 2nd cent. CE). View from the side. I.B Rome, Nuovo Mercato di Testaccio excavations. Workstation for the fabrication of reticulate facing pieces (mid 2nd cent. CE). View from the top. II Rome, Testaccio Building. Restored cross section of the complex. III.A Rome, Testaccio Building. View of the exterior side of the back wall of the complex. III.B Rome, Testaccio Building. Section of the opus incertum foundation exposed below one of the interior arches. IV.A Rome, east side of the Forum Romanum. Temple of Castor and Pollux (Phase IA). View of the cemented-rubble mass overlaying the original ashlar podium. IV.B Rome, east side of the Forum Romanum. Composite map of the Lacus Iuturnae and annexed