The law of the collegium of ivory and citrus-wood merchants is best known for its suspected prohibition against outsiders or non-practitioners. The present study argues that the regulation in question actually prohibits curatores from enrolling outsiders—the text curiously labels such an offense ‘fraud’. Rather than banning outsiders altogether, the law provides that only quinquennales shall have the authority to admit non-practitioners. It is still a rather unusual law, and since it conveys the impression that this collegium is wildly popular even among non-practitioners, and headed by quinquennales who excel in the virtue of orderliness, its audience and function are both scrutinized here.

The paper is a bibliographical and critical survey of the archaeological research on ancient Ostia and Portus in the decade 2004–2014. The first part deals with some general themes, such as cults, architectural typologies and urban history, decoration: wall-paintings, mosaics and marble, the guilds and their seats, trades, etc. The second part is a survey of individual monuments and buildings which have been the subject of recent excavations and interpretations. The critical problem of late antique Ostia is treated separately, as well as the archaeology of Isola Sacra and Portus, with the Imperial harbours.

Romanization in the province of Asia did not manifest itself in linguistic or cultural changes, but is very visible in a trend towards corporate organization. In the cities of western and southern Phrygia, professional associations developed that were able to gain a prominent position alongside the civic institutions. It is possible to relate this process to incentives provided by Roman law. In the villages surrounding these cities, and especially in the rural areas of northern and eastern Phrygia, the conditions were different, but there are several indications that a new preference for formal organization and its epigraphic representation developed here as well.