Foto: Cabeza de mármol que posiblemente representa a Ulises.

Un equipo de arqueólogos británicos que realizaba excavaciones en un antiguo puerto de Roma desenterró los restos de un ''mini coliseo'', una versión más pequeña del monumental anfiteatro situado en el centro de la capital imperial. Los cimientos del pequeño anfiteatro, que data de principios del siglo III, fueron descubiertos en las afueras de Ostia, otrora una activa ciudad portuaria situada 25 kilómetros (15 millas) al sudoeste de Roma, y por la cual circulaban las riquezas y la mayoría de productos destinados a la ciudad.

Vía: AP, Roma | El Universal.com.mx, 1 de octubre de 2009

El hallazgo destaca el hecho de que en la antigüedad los anfiteatros se construían de varios tamaños y eran usados para una serie de propósitos, no sólo para las presentaciones públicas de la lucha de gladiadores y de animales feroces por las cuales el Coliseo romano era famoso, destacó el jueves el arqueólogo Simon Keay, que encabezó la investigación.

''Existen muchos anfiteatros en el mundo romano y la gente suponía que todos eran usados para el combate de gladiadores y animales'', destacó Keay. ''Pero podían ser usados con otros propósitos'', como un teatro privado o con propósitos administrativos. El descubrimiento constituye una sorpresa en particular porque era el único anfiteatro de Ostia, y es raro encontrar uno tan cercano a la bahía.

El ''mini coliseo'' estaba situado dentro de un palacio construido 100 años antes por el emperador Trajano. El complejo administrativo albergaba al ''procurador'', el funcionario a cargo de la bahía, pero también podría haber alojado a emperadores cuando partían o regresaban de sus travesías por mar, indicó Keay. Los expertos aún hacen conjeturas sobre cuál sería el propósito del anfiteatro, destacó Keay, catedrático de arqueología de la Universidad de Southampton y de la Escuela Británica en Roma, que colaboraron en la excavación.

''Se trata de un edificio muy enigmático, no se pretendía que fuese visto en millas a la redonda, es muy discreto'', agregó en una entrevista telefónica. ''No estamos muy seguros de la actividad que tuvo lugar en el anfiteatro''.

A diferencia del Coliseo, que era usado para espectáculos al público, el anfiteatro de Ostia al parecer tenía uso privado. La arena, que medía 42 por 38 metros (138 por 125 pies) , fue descubierta en agosto al concluir una excavación de tres años en el área del ''Portus'', el puerto marítimo construido en tiempos imperiales cerca del antiguo puerto fluvial de Ostia sobre el Tíber.

El Puerto de Trajano

Cuarenta años después de la inauguración del puerto de Claudio (64 d.C.), el emperador Trajano transformó el sistema portuario construyendo una nueva cuenca situada más hacia el interior. A partir de entonces el puerto originario, siempre en peligro inminente de enarenamiento, funcionaría como rada externa de un puerto de doble cuenca. Anteriormente, el emperador Claudio había construido un puerto (el «Puerto de Claudio») muy expuesto a las tempestades. Narra Tácito que ya en el año 62, antes de acabar los trabajos de construcción, una tempestad hundió a 200 navíos. Además su mantenimiento era muy costoso.

El emperador Trajano hizo que Apolodoro de Damasco construyera un nuevo puerto, más funcional y retirado que el de Claudio. Los trabajos duraron desde el año 100 al 112, con la creación de una dársena de forma hexagonal con 358 metros de lado y 5 de profundidad, con una superficie de 32 hectáreas y 2.000 metros de muelle. Se construyó un ulterior canal, y la unión con Ostia se aseguró a través de una calzada de dos carriles. Se le identifica muy fácil en las fotos de satélite en las coordenadas +41° 46' 30.00", +12° 16' 0.00", gracias a su forma de hexágono. Actualmente se le llama Lago di Traiano («Lago de Trajano»).

El eje del conjunto portuario lo constituía la cuenca hexagonal rodeada de almacenes y de muelles para el atraque. En el lado occidental se abría un amplio canal de acceso que comunicaba con el puerto de Claudio. Un muelle transversal (norte-sur), con un faro al final del todo, cerraba la entrada al puerto resguardando el hexágono. El puerto incluía otra cuenca rectangular, la denominada “dársena”, y un breve brazo de conexión con el canal artificial (el Foso Trajano, hoy Canal de Fiumicino) que llegaba hasta el Tíber.

En los almacenes que estaban divididos en varias plantas, gracias a unos sistemas de rampas y pasadizos cubiertos y al aire libre, se desarrollaban contemporáneamente operaciones de descarga, repartición, almacenamiento y recarga sin que ello supusiera ningún tipo de interferencias. Las mercancías que procedían de los países del Mediterráneo y que incluían todo tipo de género como telas, especias o mármoles, pero fundamentalmente trigo, llegaban al puerto en los meses en los que los barcos de carga, las denominadas naves onerariae, podían navegar por mar. Solían ser cinco meses: entre la primavera y principios del otoño.

Por otro lado, durante todo el año una gran cantidad de barcos fluviales (naves caudicariae) que remontaban el Tíber salían rumbo a Roma cargados con sus mercancías. Además de los edificios funcionales cabe recordar el denominado Palacio Imperial, una estructura elegante que asoma a ambos puertos. Alrededor de la cuenca de Trajano se desarrolló la ciudad de Portus, que desde el s. IV-V d.C. contaba con un circuito de murallas que defendían los almacenes y las vías fluviales de acceso a Roma.

Dentro de este circuito, que encerraba un área de 65/70 hectáreas, se levantó una monumental basílica paleocristiana. Ante la presión de los pueblos bárbaros, la actividad portuaria empezó a disminuir en los lados meridionales de la cuenca hexagonal y se constituyó el “Castillo de Porto”, ligado a los acontecimientos de las guerras góticas (siglo VI d.C.).

El período de la Alta Edad Media marcó el abandono de la zona; lo único que sobrevivió fue el Palacio Episcopal de Porto, aún hoy visible a lo largo del Foso de Trajano.

...

AL PORTO DI TRAIANO A FIUMICINO SINERGIE ITALO/BRITANNICHE - RIEMERSI UNA RESIDENZA IMPERIALE ED UN ANFITEATRO

Vía: Italian Network.it, 30 de septiembre de 2009

Un anfiteatro, una cisterna, un palazzo imperiale ed un edificio: sono i luoghi riportati alla luce da uno scavo svolto nel porto di Traiano dagli archeologi dell'Università di Southampton in collaborazione con la British School at Rome, la Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici di Ostia e l'Università di Cambridge.

Il progetto, denominato “Portus Project” e diretto dal Prof. Simon Keay, docente di Archeologia romana presso l'Università di Southampton, si è concentrato su un'area mai indagata scientificamente in precedenza e ha comportato complessivamente sei mesi di scavo, svolto negli ultimi tre anni. In questo arco di tempo sono riemerse importanti vestigia di quello che era il porto di Roma Imperiale, snodo commerciale fondamentale per la vita della città. Era proprio in questo porto, che si estendeva su circa 65 ettari, che arrivavano, infatti, derrate alimentari, schiavi, bestie selvatiche, marmi e molti altri beni.

“Già intorno al 1866, il famoso archeologo Rodolfo Lanciani, che aveva visitato questa aerea, aveva ipotizzato la presenza di un teatro in questo punto,” spiega il Professor Keay sottolineando come l'anfiteatro, di forma ellittica lungo 42 metri e largo 38, risalga al III secolo d.C.

“Diversamente dagli altri anfiteatri che si potevano vedere in lontanza, questo edificio era situato all'interno del Palazzo Imperiale. Aveva un carattere intimo e probabillmente rispondeva alle necessità ludiche di chi gestiva il complesso, forse un ufficiale. Non sappiamo ancora che tipo di spettacoli si svolgessero qui, se lotte fra gladiatori e bestie o solo con bestie o gare navali. Purtroppo ci sono rimaste solo le fondamenta perchè la parte superiore è stata demolita nel IV-V secolo per edificare le mura di cinta del porto,” continua il Professor Keay precisando come la presenza di un anfiteatro in un porto sia un fatto abbastanza raro.

Foto: Testa di marmo raffigurante probabilmente Ulisse.

I lavori di scavo hanno riguardato anche le parti limitrofe dell'anfiteatro e qui sono emersi degli ambienti raffinati che appartenevano ad un palazzo imperiale. E proprio in queste stanze sono stati rinvenuti reperti importanti come una testa di marmo raffigurante probabilmente Ulisse, un grande capitello corinzio e altri pezzi marmorei di pregio che adornavano il palazzo stesso. “Il palazzo era decisamente una residenza lussuosa dove si può ipotizzare che l'imperatore vivesse di ritorno dai suoi viaggi. Aveva pavimenti rivestiti di marmo e marmo ed affreschi sulle pareti,” puntualizza il Professor Keay.


Di tutto rilievo anche lo scavo della cisterna, un tempo situata proprio sui moli, che ha fatto completamente riemergere un edificio di tre piani al cui interno si trovano ancora resti di pilastri. All'esterno, da segnalare invece la presenza di un opus spicatum sui pavimenti.

Quanto all'edificio di considerevoli dimensioni che sorge proprio dietro l'anfiteatro, gli studiosi non sono ancora riusciti a stabilirne la funzione.

A pochissima distanza dallo scavo, ma non più nella parte demaniale, si trova invece il famoso bacino di Traiano, noto per la sua forma esagonale che agevolava l'attracco delle antiche navi romane. Costruito dall'imperatore all'inizio del II secolo d.C., il bacino fu nel tempo abbandonato a causa del progressivo insabbiamento della costa laziale. Caduto in completo stato di abbandono nel corso del medioevo ed invaso dalle paludi, il porto di Traiano è stato bonificato nel ventesimo secolo. Attualmente si trova nella tenuta di proprietà della famiglia Sforza Cesarini che ne permette la visita due volte a settimana.

Oltre ai luoghi appena scavati, il Porto di Traiano vanta una darsena, una basilica paleocristiana, i magazzini Severiani e quelli Traianei, canali di collegamento e l'imponente portico di Claudio.

Il sito archeologico è aperto per delle visite guidate due volte al mese ( il 1° sabato e l'ultima domenica di ogni mese). Necessaria la prenotazione al numero tel.0665010089. La visita dura tre ore ed è gratuita. Per raggiungere l’area Archeologica del Porto di Traiano: Via Portuense n. 2360. (30/09/2009-Letizia Guadagno-ITL/ITNET)


Galería fotográfica en Flickr de The Portus Project




Interview: Simon Keay Explains why Portus is as Important as Stonehenge

© 2009 Heritage Key. Submitted by Bija Knowles on Fri, 10/02/2009

The discovery of a unique amphitheatre and other structures at Rome's ancient maritime port is putting the archaeological site of Portus on the map. For decades it's been a much over-looked site next to Fiumicino's international runway and scholarly attention has focused on neighbouring Ostia Antica, but experts now believe it is a unique site that should rank alongside monuments such as Stonehenge or Angkor Wat. I spoke to Professor Simon Keay, director of the Portus Project and leading expert in Roman archaeology at the University of Southampton and the British School at Rome about the findings of the excavation, and why he describes the amphitheatre of Portus as "a very enigmatic structure... almost like a new architectural type".

HK: You've just announced these discoveries – but over what period of time did they come to light?

SK: We've been working on the site for three years now and we first discovered some of the concentric walls that belong to the amphitheatre during the first two years of the project. But it's a big building and before we could be certain it was an amphitheatre we needed to excavate another part of the site to complete the plan. We've now done that and we can confirm that it is an amphitheatre in shape. We've got a good fix on its chronology and we're getting some important clues as to how it might have been used. So it's been quite a slow process – and as with all research it takes a bit of time to be sure about one's findings.

HK: What do you know so far about the use of the amphitheatre?

SK: I'll give you a bit of background first because that's really relevant. The amphitheatre is located adjacent to a very important building known as the 'palazzo imperiale' or 'imperial palace'. This building was built by the emperor Trajan as part of his enlargement of the port of imperial Rome, Portus, he also added a new hexagonal basin, some 32 hectares in size, to the suite of basins that comprised the port. The palazzo imperiale lies between the two big basins of the port. It was a very well-appointed building and probably the head quarters of a major official who managed many of the activities in the port for much of the second century. The palace was probably finished in around 116-117 AD. For about a hundred years it was the centre of life in the port and then about 100 years after its construction, in the early third century, there was a major reform of the palace and the palace structure and we see this very large amphitheatre being built on the eastern side of the palace complex. It's 42m by 38m, so it's not massive and the other thing about it is that, unlike many other amphitheatres, it's not built to be seen from a distance. It's actually quite a discrete building and nestles between the imperial palace and two other buildings that flank the palace close to the harbour's edge (one warehouse-type building and a cistern block). The amphitheatre is at the heart of this palace complex and was probably associated with a public official who took over at the palace in the early third century – a man known as the 'procurator of both basins' (procurator Portus Utriusque).

The structure as we have it consists on the side closest to the palace of a semicircular wall, which would have supported a massive colonnade, part of the palace wall. Part of the amphitheatre fitted neatly into that wall and the rest of it extended out away from the palace.

Most of what survives from the amphitheatre consists of concrete foundations sunk into the sand at a depth of about 2m, and there's very little of it actually above ground, which means it's quite difficult for us to calculate the number of seats it would have held and the number of people that would have used it. Nevertheless, I think in terms of hundreds of people using it. And probably in terms of what actually went on there, we think that probably this was a place where the procurator, the public official of the third century, would have addressed the people who worked in the palace or people who worked in the port as a whole or a place for them to communicate verbally, which was very important.

Another possibility is that this was a place where there were gladiatorial combats of some kind or wild beast baiting. Yet another possibility given that there are fresh water cisterns nearby, is that mock sea battles with small boats (naumachia) would have been held here. We don't have any real evidence for any of these yet, but we're certainly convinced by looking very closely at what we've found and by creating 3D computer reconstructions (more detailed than the ones we've done so far), that we will eventually crack the interpretation and understand what the amphitheatre was used for.

BK: Since the amphitheatre was within the 'imperial palace' complex, was its use private or public?

SK: It's a difficult question. It's clearly a public building – by definition an amphitheatre is a place where people come together to observe spectacles. But it's not an amphitheatre that would have served the general public of Portus, Ostia and the surrounding countryside in the way that the amphitheatres in Rome itself or El Djem in Africa would have done. So I think in a sense it was a semi-public building, part of a major palace complex, which would have drawn some people from the port. The point about it is that it was not not very visible. It's actually a very enigmatic structure, which is so much more exciting – it's almost like a new architectural type: an amphitheatre, in a harbour context, adjacent to a palace complex, in this situation, is really quite new. I think it has a lot to teach us about the cultural aspirations of officials in the second and third centuries AD in the Roman empire.

BK: How closely associated would the imperial palace and the amphitheatre have been with any of the Roman emperors – such as Trajan or Hadrian?

SK: The palace itself was primarily an administrative building, built initially by Trajan. However, Portus was the principal maritime port of Rome and was the main point of contact between Rome and the Mediterranean. We know that emperors such as Hadrian travelled around the empire a lot, so it's very possible that they would have passed through Portus to get on a ship and travel. If they did that, then it's possible that our imperial palace could have served temporarily as an imperial residence. That's not impossible – but its primary purpose was administrative.

BK: Why do you think the site of Portus hasn't been fully excavated until now?

SK: A lot of scholarly attention has always been captured by Ostia, the river-port of Rome, which is a very short distance from here. Ostia, in many ways, tells us so much in terms of the port of Rome, the officials that congregated there, the families that lived there, houses, places where merchants struck up contracts – and that in a sense has often been enough to answer many scholarly questions. But it seems to me that Portus offers more – it's the place where the big cargo ships came in, where imports were stored, before they were transported to Rome. It just hadn't been much in vogue, but I think our work, along with that of our Italian colleagues at other parts of Portus, shows that, when we look at Portus together with Ostia, we finally start to get an idea of the scale and complexity of Rome's trade with the Mediterranean.

BK: Are more discoveries at the site likely?

SK: We've been funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council for a three-year period. Our phase of work at this stage is finished, but we very much hope that our Italian colleagues like our work and that we'll be able to come back and continue it at a subsequent date, hopefully not too far in the distant future, provided we can win more funds.

BK: You mentioned in a press release that this site is as important as Stonehenge or Angkor Wat – why is that?

SK: There was only one imperial Rome – and imperial Rome only had one maritime port. Also because Portus can tell us so much about the development of Rome as an imperial capital, in terms of its decoration, its population, the food that was consumed, the architecture and so on. So much of that can be explained by the existence of Portus, so clearly, understanding more about it means we can understand Rome better. Therefore it must be important - it must rank highly because it's unique. There's nowhere else like Stonehenge. There's nowhere else like Angkor Wat. There's nowhere else like Portus!






***The Portus Project was carried out by the University of Southampton, the British School at Rome, Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici di Ostia, and Cambridge University.

***Professor Simon Keay will present a lecture ‘The Re-Discovery of the Imperial Palace at Portus, the port of Ancient Rome’ at the Turner Sims Concert Hall, Highfield Campus, University of Southampton at 6pm, 21 October 2009.