Porta Latina
The Porta Latina is a gate in the Aurelian Wall in Rome, which was built between 271 and 275 AD . In ancient times the gate was the starting point of the Via Latina in the southeast of the city, which connected Rome with Capua .
With its well-preserved facade made of travertine , the gate is one of the impressive examples of the Aurelian fortifications, but in its current state it is the result of various structural changes and restructuring.
The original structure followed the common aurelian gates and had only one tower on the outside west of the simple arched passage. In its first construction phase, the gate was clad, like other gates, with fine brickwork. It was 4.20 meters wide and 6.55 meters high. The eastern tower was added later, probably at the same time the facade was clad with travertine and a gun chamber was set up above the gate with five window openings. The window openings of the gun chamber were closed again in the 6th century. The gun chamber was accessed through a still functioning door from the inside of the western tower.
Finally, the gate system was reduced to the width of 3.75 meters and a height of 5.65 meters that is still preserved today, which was probably due to fortification reasons. In addition, a portcullis , the guide of which was carved into the stone, was installed on the outside. In order to be able to take up its weight, a relief arch was drawn in. The goal was also given a fortified courtyard with a double-winged goal, which is only known from drawings. The towers were to be extended by bastions that had never been built and for which the foundations had already been laid.
When all these changes were made is controversial. The time of Honorius is generally accepted as numerous changes were made to the Aurelian Wall and its gates during his reign. However, since there is a monogram of Constantine above the center of the arch on the outside , to which a Greek cross corresponds on the inside of the gate , a restructuring in Constantinian times was also considered.
The eastern tower was completely rebuilt in the Middle Ages. Since the 13th century, the name porta Libera has been used for the gate, for the first time in a bull Honorius III. Mentioned as quae Libera sive Latina dicitur , but was superseded again from the 18th century in favor of the ancient name. The bull mentioned also mentions that the gate fee due was paid to the church of S. Tommaso in formis when passing the gate. The gate was first closed in 1408 during an occupation of the city, then again in 1576 and 1656 because of the plague. Only after thirteen years was the gate ceremoniously reopened in 1669 by Cardinal Giulio Gabrielli. This could no longer stop the loss of importance of the gate and the Via Latina. The relatively new Via Appia Nuova became more important, and the proximity of the important church of San Giovanni a Porta Latina could not change that. The gate remained closed for almost the entire 18th century and was not opened until 1911.
literature
- Filippo Coarelli : Rome. An archaeological guide. Herder, Freiburg (Breisgau) a. a. 1981, ISBN 3-451-17247-X , pp. 27-28.
- Samuel Ball Platner , Thomas Ashby : A Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome. Oxford University Press, London 1929, pp. 408-409 ( online ).
- Lawrence Richardson Jr .: A New Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD u. a. 1992, ISBN 0-8018-4300-6 , p. 304.
