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WALLS, GATES AND STORIES: DETECTING ROME'S RIVERSIDE DEFENCES

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 March 2021

T.P. Wiseman
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Abstract

The construction date of the ‘Servian’ wall and its layout in the riverside area between the Aventine and the Capitol are the two main questions addressed in this article. The interlocking topographical problems were addressed in 1988 by Filippo Coarelli, whose interpretation has become the generally accepted orthodoxy. But not all the difficulties have been solved, and with Coarelli's recent return to the subject a fresh examination of the evidence may be helpful. Careful attention is given here to stories of early Rome that involve the walls and gates, as reported in Livy, Dionysius and Plutarch; they are not, of course, taken as authentic evidence for the time of the alleged events, but as indicating what was taken for granted when the stories were first composed. New suggestions are made about a revision of the line of the city wall in 212 BC and the consequent restructuring of two important gates, the Porta Carmentalis and the Porta Trigemina; the mysterious ‘Porta Triumphalis’ is discussed separately in an appendix.

La data di costruzione delle mura “serviane” e la loro disposizione nell'area della riva del fiume tra l'Aventino e il Campidoglio sono le due principali questioni affrontate in questo articolo. Gli intricati problemi topografici sono stati affrontati nel 1988 da Filippo Coarelli, la cui interpretazione è diventata l'ortodossia generalmente accettata. Ma non tutte le difficoltà sono state risolte, e con il recente ritorno di Coarelli sull'argomento un nuovo riesame delle evidenze può essere utile. Particolare attenzione è data in questa sede alle storie della prima Roma che coinvolgono le mura e le porte, come riportato in Livio, Dionisio e Plutarco. Queste non sono, ovviamente, prese come prove autentiche per l'epoca dei presunti eventi, ma come un'indicazione di ciò che era dato per scontato quando le storie furono composte per la prima volta. Vengono avanzati nuovi suggerimenti in merito a una revisione della linea della cinta muraria nel 212 a.C. e alla conseguente ristrutturazione di due importanti porte, la Porta Carmentalis e la Porta Trigemina. La misteriosa “Porta Triumphalis” è discussa separatamente in un'appendice.

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Articles
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Papers of the British School at Rome , Volume 89 , October 2021 , pp. 9 - 40
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Copyright © British School at Rome 2021

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