Villa Centum Cellas
The Villa Centum Cellas (also written Centum Celas or earlier also known as Torre de São Cornélio, i.e. Tower of St. Cornelius ) is part of a Roman villa . The ruin is located in Colmeal da Torre , north of Belmonte in the Beira Alta in eastern Portugal , directly on the N18, the road connecting the city of Belmonte with Guarda - Covilhã. According to more recent views, the striking structure visible today belongs to the belvedere of a Roman villa. The date is given as the early 1st century. At the end of the 3rd century the building fell victim to a fire. The villa belonged to Lucius Caecilius, a wealthy Roman tin dealer .
The tower-like structure is one of the best-preserved Roman monuments in the country. The core building has a rectangular floor plan (13.3 m × 15.5 m) and was two-story; the second floor is probably a medieval addition. The tower is 12 m high and originally stood in a building complex. It was surrounded on three sides by extensions, of which only the beginnings are visible. Rows of three chambers surrounded him on the sides. At the front a column portico that belonged to an open courtyard. Due to the hillside location, the basement is accessible from the valley side. What is noticeable is the degree of symmetry in the layout of the window and door openings. The construction made of ashlars ( granite ) also contributes to this, which is quite unusual here and is reminiscent of Syria and North Africa . The position of the outer openings was determined by the view from this point on a Roman road to the confluence of the Zêzere and the Gaia, one kilometer away .
While the basement has openings on three sides, the upper floor has doors and windows on all sides. Beam holes and consoles suggest that the (wooden) beam ceiling of the extensions connected at these points. You have to imagine a gallery that was accessible through the doors on the upper floor.
In 1927 the villa was registered and protected as a Monumento Nacional .
literature
- Theodor Hauschild in: Walter Trillmich and Annette Nünnerich-Asmus (eds.): Hispania Antiqua 2 - Monuments of the Roman Age. Von Zabern, Mainz 1993, ISBN 3-8053-1547-3 , p. 365 f.
- Thomas G. Schattner (ed.): Archaeological guide through Portugal (= cultural history of the ancient world . Volume 74). Philipp von Zabern, Mainz 1998, ISBN 3-8053-2313-1 , p. 109, no.116.
Web links
- Torre de Centum-Cellas in the Portuguese Architectural Heritage Information System (SIPA) with detailed inventory, literature, etc. (Portuguese)
- Torre de Centum-Cellas. In: Pesquisa Geral - Pesquisa do Patrimonio. Direção Geral do Património Cultural , accessed March 27, 2018 (Portuguese).
Individual evidence
- ↑ Thomas G. Schattner (ed.): Archaeological guide through Portugal (= cultural history of the ancient world. Volume 74). Philipp von Zabern, Mainz 1998, p. 109.
- ^ Decreto n ° 14: 425 . In: Direção Geral da Imprensa Nacional (ed.): Diário do Govêrno . I series. n.º 228, October 15, 1927 (Portuguese, dre.pt [PDF; 208 kB ; accessed on September 23, 2018]).
Coordinates: 40 ° 22 ′ 40 " N , 7 ° 20 ′ 34" W.