Maxentius Villa

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Remnants of the Maxentius circus

As Circus of Maxentius of the is sometimes late ancient ruler Maxentius on the Via Appia built complex (often referred hence villa on the Appian Way ), are obtained from the still partly important remains.

Maxentius, son of the former emperor Maximian , had been made emperor in Rome in 306 . The usurpation succeeded and Maxentius was able to hold out until 312, when the troops of Constantine I invaded Italy and were able to defeat Maxentius' army several times. Maxentius himself was killed in the course of the battle at the Milvian Bridge .

During his six-year reign, Maxentius initiated a huge building program in Rome that resulted in the construction of great structures, such as the Maxentius Basilica . The Maxentiusvilla was hardly less impressive. Located on a hill between the 2nd and 3rd mile of the Via Appia, the palace, of which only remnants have survived, was connected to a circus and a tomb. The fact that Maxentius had this facility built is now considered to be fairly certain by archaeological findings, but also by written sources. The connection of the palace, which was equipped with a large reception hall, and the circus is reminiscent of the buildings of the Tetrarchs , which were also laid out.

Inner courtyard of the tomb

To the southwest of the palace is the tomb, of which only the podium remains today. The sacred complex connected to existing cult buildings. The tomb was probably dedicated to the son of Maxentius, Valerius Romulus , and was probably based on hero cult buildings. It was also intended to serve as a dynastic burial place.

The Maxentius Circus, on the other hand, is one of the best preserved in antiquity. It measures 513 m × 91 m and offered space for around 10,000 people. Even if it couldn't keep up with other large facilities in terms of size, the construction of the circus on this square is a specialty, which is also expressed in an ancient source.

literature

  • John Curran: Pagan City and Christian Capital. Rome in the Fourth Century . Oxford University Press, Oxford 2000.
  • Marina De Franceschini: Ville dell'Agro Romano . L'Erma di Bretschneider, Rome 2005, pp. 192–196.
  • Hartmut Leppin , Hauke ​​Ziemssen: Maxentius. The last emperor in Rome (Zabern's illustrated books on archeology) . von Zabern, Mainz 2007, pp. 105–118.
  • Jürgen Rasch: The Maxentius Mausoleum on the Via Appia in Rome. Late antique central buildings in Rome and Latium . Vol. 1, von Zabern, Mainz 1984.

Web links

Remarks

  1. See Leppin, in: Leppin / Ziemssen, p. 16ff.
  2. ^ Ziemssen, in: Leppin / Ziemssen, p. 109.
  3. ^ Ziemssen, in: Leppin / Ziemssen, p. 110f.
  4. See Ziemssen, in: Leppin / Ziemssen, p. 112.

Coordinates: 41 ° 51 ′ 21.6 ″  N , 12 ° 31 ′ 10.2 ″  E