Classis. Ravenna. Museo della città e del territorio (in English) 9788857242545

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Museo della citta e del territorio

ravenna

CLASS IS RAVEN NA Museo della citta e del territorio

edited by Giuseppe Sassat ell i Fabrizio Corba ra

SKIRA

Th e Museo dell a citta e del territorio is much more than an exhibition spa ce.

Th e publication of this guide, a.year afte r th e in auguration of C lass is, to-

In th e fi rst p lace, it is th e culmination of a strategic, wide-ranging proj-

gethe r with th e many initiatives already carried out and those planned, is

ect that saw a p restig ious area near t he UN ESCO World Heritage Site of th e

an encourag in g sig n that t he new museum and its diversified activities that

Basilica of Sant'Apo llin are in Classe restored to the city. Thi s was achi eved

seek to recount t he ri ch and co mpl ex history of Raven na and its te rrito ry are

t hro ugh an extraord inary industri al archaeology interve ntion in vo lvin g the

fu ll y functional. The innovati ve, technolog ica l layout enables the objects to

refurbishment of the former sugar refinery and recovery of th e who le area

illustrate the vari ous and multiple facets of our past, from the earli est discov-

of surrounding parkland.

eries of the pre-Roman era to th e Middle Ages, the wea lth of testimon ies

Moreover, the project has created a multifaceted museum capab le of re-

left by t he Ro m an Republican and Im perial age and, ab ove all, th e immense

counting the history of ou r city and its t erritory in an exciting and involving way.

quantity of fin ds fro m lat e-antique Ravenna. Thi s all ows visitors, scho lars,

A museum of emblematic finds and inform ative techno logical syst ems,

an d th e entire comm unity to gain a precise and profound understanding of

w hi ch constantly reference th e o ri g in al sites: th e protag oni sts of a great

t he existing archaeo log ica l heritage, and th e reasons fo r its protecti o n and

common history.

en hancement, present and future.

An exhibition space that provides access t o an d f ul ly en hances th e entire histo ri ca l, arti stic, and archaeolog ica l heritage of ou r rem arkab ly ri ch

G iorgio Cozzo lino

area. A vital, multifunctional hive of activity devoted to restoration, study,

Superintendent for Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape

and research projects, exhibiti o ns, educational works hops, and d ig ital in-

in the Province of Ravenna, Forli-Cesena and Rimini

clusion labs for testing inn ovative sta rt-ups. A stru cture that we lcomes and accommodates parti cip ants. Classis is thi s and much more l A ll that remains is for yo u to d iscover its excitingly different identiti es ! Mi chele de Pa sca le M ayor of Ra venna

Contents

Th e first year of activity of the Museo Classis is drawing to a close and the

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CHAPTER 6

Introduction

Giuseppe Sassate lli

publication of this guide evidences the months spent promoting and com -

78

pleting the new institution in the Ravenna area. Th e Polo Museale dell'Emilia-Romagna is strong ly repre sented in the Museo Classis and pa rti cipate s in its info rmat ive activities. In fact, there are some outstandin g finds from

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on display at Classis, and proximity to the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in MiBACT and the Fondazion e RavennAntica.

24

Mario Sca li ni

Director of the Polo Museale dell'Emilia-Romagna

in Classe

Ravenna before Rome

Andrea Augenti

CHAPTER 2 Roman Ravenna

88

Giuseppe Lepore

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CHAPTER 3 Ravenn a cap ital of the Empire Fabrizio Corbara

52

Th e Ostrogothic Kingdom

Em an uela Fiori

Director of the Museo Naziona/e di Ravenna and of the Basilica di Sant'Apollinare in C/asse

CHAPTER 1

Chiara Pizzirani

th e Museo Naziona le di Ravenna among th e archaeo logica l t estim o ni es Classe - also st ate-owned -, which benefits from the j o int collaboration of

From villa to monastery The San Severo compl ex

CHAPTER 100

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CHAPTER 5 Byzantine Ravenna

Isabella Baldini

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Th e sugar refinery in Classe

Rossano Novelli, Claudio Cornazzani

CHAPTER 4

Fabrizio Corbara

CHAPTER 7 Ravenn a and the sea Enrico Cirelli

108

CHAPTER 9 Classis Ravenna Museo della citta e del territorio Andrea M andara, Francesca Pavese

On 1 December 2018, the Classis Ravenna Museo della citta e del territorio

fundamental to its identity, whil~ another study is dedicated to the Basilica

was inaugurated. This museum is different from the others that the city of

of San Severo and the developments that the recent excavations of the

Ravenna already has: completely new, here the history of the city and its

University of Bologna have brought to light. Furthermore, in the next few

territory is told succinctly, but with a unitary and global approach, making

years (work is already underway), two new exhibition sections will be add-

use of carefully chosen archaeological materials with particular significance

ed, dedicated to other, equally important themes in the rich history of the

for the most important phases of its long historical sequence of events.

city: "Praying in Ravenna" (churches and places of worship) and "Living in

Thus, this new museum not only does not set itself in opposition to the

Ravenna" (housing).

existing museum structures, but on the contrary it represents a precious

Lastly, the museum is one more area, and an important one, to include

tool to further enhance them, proposing to its visitors explicit references

in the Archaeological Park of Classe, alongside the very nearby Basilica of

and suggestions (whose development is already in progress, after the ex-

Sant'Apollinare in Classe and the Ancient Port (inaugurated a few years

perience of these initial months), so that they will visit the other museums

ago). With its launch, the foundations were laid for a further development of

of the city and of the territory to deepen their knowledge on individual

the park initiative in which RavennAntica has been involved for many years

phases or specific materials.

with a comprehensive programme, to discover and appreciate the cultural

The motivations and reasons for this undertaking were many. An un-

patrimony of Ravenna and its territory.

dertaking made possible thanks to the full cooperation among institutions,

While awaiting the realisation of the general catalogue of the museum

that has characterised the entire preparatory and executive phase of the

(now in progress), it seems fitting to propose this brief guide. Organised in

project, and that will accompany us in the future, based on the principle, at

chapters that faithfully reflect the exhibition itinerary, it considers both the

this point widely recognised, that only a powerful synergy among different

materia ls on display and the multimedia installations. The purpose of this

subjects will allow an effective, high-quality enhancement.

publication is two -fold: on the one hand, to accompany the visitor, pointing

The exhibition is organised around what we have called the timeline,

out and commenting on the monuments and the material in the course of

that is, the long story of the main phases of the history of the city: starting

the tour, as well as the supplementary exhibits (maps and plans, models,

with the pre -Roman era, when Etruscans and Umbri joined forces to gain

videos); and on the other hand, to provide any interested reader with the

control of the seaport and the inland territory; moving on to the Roman

opportunity to retrace through the text and the rich array of images the long

era, when the port became the home of the imperial fleet; and thence to

history of the city of Ravenna and its territory, of which the guide offers a

when Ravenna became the capital of the Western Roman Empire, the seat

brief but solid overview.

of Theodoric's kingdom; and finally, following the conquest by Justinian, when the city experienced the extraordinary Byzantine phase, through to the Longobard conquest. Alongside this t imeline, there are some thematic focuses: "Ravenna and the sea" illustrates a significant segment of the history of the city,

8

Giuseppe Sassatelli President of Fondazione Parco Archeologico

di Classe - RavennAntica

9

•

RAVENNA BEFORE ROME

1 Go lden bu ll a w ith rep resentati on of Daeda lus, Spina, Walters Art Museum, Ba lti m ore, United States

RAVEN NA

Ancient historical and literary sources

BEFORE ROME

demonstration of a live ly interest in the reg ion, perceived as rem ote, but very

From the earli est times, the Adriati c shore of Romagna was a true crossroads of peoples, a cultural and mercantil e hub. Thi s area and the nearby Po De lt a are t he setting for some Greek myths, attractive. The Ancient Greek trad ition tells how Ph aethon, driving Apollo's sun cha ri ot, p lunged to his death in the swa mps formed by the rive r Eridano (recognised as th e Po) along th e A driat ic coast , and his sist ers we re turn ed

Chiara Pizzirani

into t al l poplar trees crying tears of amber. Accord ing to another myth, the scu lptor and craftsma n Daedalus (fig. 1), wo rship o f whom in th e A driati c region is we ll documented, found his way to the Elettridi Islands (from the root e/ektron, the Ancient Greek name for amber), today cal led th e Cheradi Islands in the Gu lf of Taranto; his mytho log ica l story in some respects reca lls th at of Apo llo and Ph aethon . Whi le on the islands, Daeda lus made two statues, one of tin and the oth er of bronze, portraying himself and his son Icarus. Even t he foundation of the city of Ravenn a has its roots in th e stu ff of ancient myth, and the Greek historians trace it to a tim e prior to the Troj an wa r. According t o Strabo, "Ravenna is reported t o have been founded by Th essa li ans, w ho not being abl e t o sustai n the vio lence of th e Tyr rh eni, we lcomed into th eir city some of t he Umbri, who still possess it, while t hey th emselves returned home " (Geography, V, 1, 7). The city thus shared its orig ins with the nea rby Spina, found ed by the Pelasgians, a pre -Hell eni c people th at Strabo identified as the Th essa li ans. The most ancient myths ce lebrate the great avail ability of mat erials of distant ori gin, which the Greeks found ri g ht here in the northern Adriati c: the amber th at came from the Baltic Sea, frequent ly mentioned in th e narratives; the tin from the British Isles, reca lled together with its alloy, bronze, in Daeda lus's story. For reasons of trade, defying the difficu lt sailing conditions in the Ad riatic

13

3. Graph ic reconstruction of Spina (rea lised by

R. Merlo). In appearance and fea tures, Ravenna and Spina must have been quite similar, as con firmed by the ancient h istorical

VENETI

sou rces

::-.... - - -

',,',, ··. ----*.--.

- l 1Cl!!,l!J • .: - ~ .. ... P1ag.,111,,a

often described by the historians, the Greeks navigated to these shores for ten centuries (fig . 2), from the earliest Mycenaean forays to the Syracusan expan sionistic episodes at the dawn of Hellenism. The city of Ravenna was a p art of this trade network, soon becoming an important lagoon hub, we ll-organised in terms of urban layout as we ll. It was an obl igatory stop along the lagoon trade ci rcu it. According to Strabo, "situated in the marshes is the great [city of] Ravenna, bu ilt entirely on piles, and traversed by cana ls, wh ich you cross by bridges or ferry-boats. At the full t ides it is washed by a cons iderable quantity of sea -water, as wel l as by the river, and thus the sewa ge is carried off, and the air purified" (G eography, V, 1, 7). "From here you can sai l the Seven Seas up to A ltinum" (/tinerarium Antonini, 126, 6), in the Veneto (fig. 3). The information ha nded down by the sources seems to insist on another characteristic of the Adr iatic and Ravenn a areas before Rome, which is the prese nce of many different peop les and their migrations, and th e clashes and exchanges among ethnic groups in a cu ltural melting pot we ll-documented b y archaeological finds. Th e Greeks and the ir myt hi ca l forebears, th e Pelasgians and the Thessa lians, the Tyrrh enians, that is, the Etruscans, and the Umbri are archaeological ly documented in t his area with bord ers

2. Greek trad e routes in the Adriati c

and re lationships that are not always clea rl y d efinable in the long historica l period when they were active. It was their cultural intertwining, plus the influences from the nearby Veneto and Piceno spheres, that profound ly marked thi s terr itoria l d ist rict in th e course of its history.

Prehistory Th e ri ch archaeo logical documentation found in the territory of Rave nna offers a more complete historica l pi cture than that outlined by th e literary

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15

4. Ceramic pottery, Fornace Cappuccini, Faenza

6. Grave goods from the two Russi tombs

5. Bronze axe, Cave San Bartolo, Ravenna

sources, anticipating the testimonies to the prehistoric era obviously not contemplated by the ancient literature.

Ravenna between the Etruscans and the Umbri Starting in the 6th century BC, the Ravenna territory was characterised by

In the prehistorical period, Romagna stands out for its Fornace

the presence of the Etruscans and the Umbri. The Etruscans had already

Cappuccini ditch, a technological feat of extraordinary cultural importance.

dwelt stably for centuries in Adriatic Romagna and had founded a town,

Archaeological research carried out in the Fornace Cappuccini-Minarelli

corresponding to the present-day Verucchio, which was a centre of trade

area in Faenza from 1978 to 1992 brought to light a man-made ditch dat-

between northern Europe and the Adriatic, carrying on the prehistoric her-

ing from the Neolithic period, which radiocarbon dating confirms was in

itage of processing and exporting amber from the Baltic area.

use sporadically between approximately 4300 and 2300 BC, perhaps as a

During the first half of the 6th century BC, the Umbri headed north

defensive work for a communal space reserved for animal husbandry. The

from their historic settlements in central Italy, following the Apennine ridge.

site has yielded a large quantity of Adriatic impressed pottery, while the

Perhaps this was a result of the ver sacrum practice, a tradition typical of

presence of obsidian suggests trade with southern Italy. After a period

the Italian peoples when, due to a rise in the population, some males were

of neglect, the ditch was used as a burial site and area reserved for the

sent out in search of new territories to inhabit and to cultivate. The tombs

sacrifice of animals between 3300 and 2800 BC. The sepulchres, one of

of Russi, Faenza, and San Martino in Gattara displayed here, all refer to this

which is on exhibit here, have no grave goods. It was sometimes possible

occupation, showing a people with a strong cultural identity expressed in

to reconstru ct completely the ceramic pottery found in this layer, as in the

their funerary assemblages alluding to a warrior society, indicated by the

case of the materials on show, datable to the Copper Age (fig. 4); other

weapons, and in the adherence to the practice of the Etruscan banquet,

more recent pottery fragments refer to the start of the early Bronze Age. The

to which the vessels for the service and consumption of wine refer; an ex-

more recent use of the ditch and its definitive covering over can be traced

ample of the banquet can be seen in the wall painting in the tomb of the

to the presence of a small village nearby, where some hut foundations were

Painted Vessels at the Tarquinia necropolis, reproduced on the back wall

discovered in the course of the 20th century but are now lost.

of the display case.

The bronze axe (fig. 5), dated from a more recent time, that is, the

The grave goods of the two Russi tombs represent the oldest evidence

10th century BC, is similar to others found in central and Adriatic Italy, as

of the presence of the Umbri people in Romagna (fig. 6). The materials

well as in the hoard of San Francesco in Bologna. It may have belonged to

suggest that these people came from the south and the mid-Adriatic area,

a bronze hoard or, more likely, it was a votive offering within the context

with clear influences from the Piceno area. However, some elements, such

of a cult linked to water, since the archaeometric analyses demonstrated

as the decorations of the Jars in tomb 1, suggest cultural exchange with the

prolonged contact with a flow of water, and the absence of wood fibres,

Etruscan centre of Verucchio. Great importance is given to certain vessels,

indicating that the object had never been fitted with a handle, so therefore

such as the four-handled bowl with foot (fig. 7) and the cup with a double

was never used.

vertical handle, both reminiscent of Picene and Adriatic production.

16

17

7. Four-hand led bowl with foot from the grave goods of the Russi tombs

S. MARTINO IN GATTARA . Necropoli preromana .

•

JO Periodo di scavo 1963 ; 65 no ,. » » 1968

Strutture di circonferenza de! tumolo --- Presumibile •

Strutture murarie

_. Massicciata pavimemale !:::-- Tombe

Tomb 15 in San Martino in Gattara, from a later date, represents one of the oldest burials of this very important pre-Roman necropolis, which counts sixty sepulchres datable between the mid-6th and the mid-4th centuries BC (fig. 8). Along with another twelve burials, the tomb was situated in a large circular enclosure made of roughly rectangular stone slabs wedged in the ground. All the burials were covered by a mound of pebbles. Tomb 15, shown here, held a male individual, a warrior with a high social rank (fig. 9). The deceased had been buried and a wide assortment of grave goods had been laid next to him and at his feet, carefully chosen to display his status. The funerary rite recalls typically Umbrian choices (the specific forms of vessel, such as the two-handled, oval-shaped olla and the cup with the vertical double handle, the presence of pebbles, ceremonial knife, ornamental obJects, and weapons), though at the same time, it shows the profound cultural influence of the nearby Etruscan world: the banquet is evoked by means of the prepara-

8. Plan of the necropolis in San Martino in Gattara, with indi cation of tomb 15

9. Grave goods from to mb 15 in San Martino in Gatta ra

tory utensils placed in prominently along the left side of the corpse (firedogs, Attic cup, and the cist containing the bronze pitcher, ladle, grater); the presence of the decorated cup imported from Athens through Etruscan mediation, attributed to the painter Psjax and dated between 520 and 510 BC, which is included as an integral part of the grave goods, just as in Etruscan burials (fig. 10); and the deposition of an unguent jar of Etruscan production from Orvieto. These distinctive signs highlight the privileged relationship established by the Umbrian elite, settled here, with the Etruscan world in the Adriatic area and with the inland branch of Tyrrhenian Etruria. The Umbri-

,, ~,,

an communities of Romagna, therefore, from the second half of the 6th century BC, seemed to be integrated in the region and to have carved out their own cultural identity, well exemplified by a particular variant of the so-called Negau type helmet, with embossed decorations, common only in this area, and on display here (fig. 11 ). The Etruscans certainly exerted a very strong cultural influence on these recently arrived peoples. Although, as already mentioned, their presence in this geographic area goes as far back as to the 1Oth-9th century BC, the oldest evidence we have of them from Ravenna can only be traced to the mid-5th

18

19

century, and they are represented by the cerami c pottery on display, found in the Via D'Azeglio and Via Morigia wells, of Attic, Etruscan, and upper Adriatic production. Two pottery fragm ents datable b etween the end of the 4th and the st art of the 3rd ce nturies BC bear inscriptions in the Etruscan languag e (figs. 12-1 3). The Etruscan age archaeological levels are quite deep, up to 8 metres for the 5th- 3rd centuries BC, with, in addition to the ceramic pottery, remains of wood boards supported by p il ings; but this depth has hindered our knowledge about a city that, according to the literary sources, must have been a large lagoon port, politically and commercially important, built accord ing to a coherent city plan, qu ite similar in all respects to the nearby Etruscan port of Spi na, op en and welcom ing to peoples and goods from the A driatic sea and Greece. Th e materials from the wel l in Via Morigia bear witness to the antiquity 10. Attic cup (ky/ix) by p ainter Psi ax, p art o f t he g ra ve good s fro m to mb 15 in San Martino in G attara, 520-510 BC 11 . Negau typ e he lmet, San Pi etro in C ampiano, Ravenna

and the duration of Etruscan Ravenna, the range of its comme rcial contacts, and the relatively late fl owering of this city, the life of which extended th roug h the 3rd and 2nd centuri es BC, a period in which the Padanian Etruria was already in the hands of the Gau ls.

______

__-;;

Lastly, in the display case to the right, there are some small bronze figures (fig. 14), the provenance of wh ich from th e Ravenna station excavations is not entirely ascertainable, since we on ly find mention of this in 19th-century documents. It is a homogeneous set of bronze figurines, four fem ale figures of devotees and one male figure of praying man, all suggesti ng the paleo-Veneto

12-13. Inscri ptio ns fro m the well s in Via D'Azeglio and Via Mori gi a,

wo rld by typology and iconography. The bronze figurines may be related to a

Rave nna

as a port and an emporium in the 5th and 4th centuries BC.

sma ll place of worship frequented by neighbouring peoples, such as th e Veneti, not perman ent ly settled in th e area, but in contact with it due to Ravenna's rol e The historical and arch aeolog ica l documentation of th e Rave nna territory before Rom e t hus shows an extraordin ary richness that t estifies to t he strateg ic im portance of thi s territorial district from the earli est times, an impo rtance th at the Romans were late r able to exp lo it fully.

• A. An t o n iazzi et al. , If Neolitico di Fornace

etrusca in Ita lia, acts of t he XV Convegno su lla Storia e l'Archeolog ia d ell' Elr uria (Orvieto 2007,

Capp uccini a Faenza e la ce ramica im p ressa in Ro magna, acts of th e XXVI Riunione Scientifi ca

Anna li Faina 15), Ro me 2008, pp. 39-70. • G. Sa ssate lli, " La fun zione eco no mi ca e

de ll'!stituto Itali ano d i Pre isto ria e Pro t ost o ri a,

produttiva: Merci, scambi, art ig ianato ", in F. Bert i, P. G. Guzzo (edited by), Spina: Storia d i

Bibliography

Florence 1987, pp . 553-64. • G. Berm ond M ontanari, " La necropol i di San M artino in Gattara", in G. Berm ond Mo ntanari, M . Massi Pasi, L. Prati (edited by). Oua ndo Forli

no n c 'era: Ori g in e de / t e rritori o e de / popolamento umano da l Paleo/itico al IV sec. a.C., exhibition cata log ue (Forli, Pal azzo A lb ert in i, 7 September 1996 - 31 March 1997), Fo rli 14 . Paleovenetian

bronze statue s

20

una citta tra Greci e d Etruschi, exhib ition ca ta logue (Ferrara, Castel lo Estense, 26 September 1993 - 15 May 1994), Ferrara 1993, pp . 179-217. • G. Sassatel li, "La situazione in Etruria padana", in Crise et tra ns formation d essociet e s ar-

chaiques d e l'l ta lie antique au Ve siec/e av. J.C.,

1997, pp. 303-13.

acts of th e Table Ro nde (R o me 1987), Rome 1990, pp. 51-100

• G. Colonna, "Etrusch i e Umb ri in Val Padana", in G. M . Della Fina (edited by), La colonizzazione

• G. Sassa tell i, "Verucchio, cen tre et rusco d i 'front iera "', Ocnus 4, 1996, pp. 247-68.

21

ROMAN RAVENNA

15. Clay bricks, archaeologi cal excavation of

Banca Po po la re, Ravenna, Republican era, second half of the 3rd century BC 16. Limestone cap ital, Ravenna, Rep ublican era

ROMAN RAVEN NA

Republican era: A frontier city Very littl e is known about the Republi can era city (3rd-1 st century BC): there were certa inly city walls, unfortunately on ly in part recovered (excavati ons of Banca Popol are, with bricks from the second half of the 3rd century BC) (fig. 15), made of square bricks with particula_ r symbo ls incised before firing (letters and numbers), that suggest the pres ence of ski ll ed craftsmen specia lised in th e production and firing of thi s material, perhaps from Magna Graecia. The city must also have had a forum, the ce ntral square of eve ry Rom an city, co rrespond ing to the Greek agora, perhaps situated in the area of th e present-day Piazza Kennedy. Th ere must have been also public

Giuseppe Lepore

buildings of greater monumental stature, such as the seat of the city adm inistration: this is demonstrated by th e "Tuscan" capita l (fig. 16) unearth ed in the city and by an architrave found in Via Guerrini, both made of li mestone, on which appea r traces of a long inscriptio n, difficu lt to interp ret, but referable to the 1st ce ntury AD; they must have been part of a large building, at present unknown, but perhaps dedicated to an important local magistrate (fig. 17). And there must have been houses too, as shown by the oldest parts of the Via D'Aze gl io complex (fig. 18), and especia lly the ea rl y port, o lder than t he b etter-known one commission ed by Augustus and in al l likel ihood situated in th e southern part of the city. Thu s, th e city must ha ve been locat ed in a natura lly wet site characterised by many pools of stagnant water and coastal dunes, a sort of marsh, apparently hostile to hum an settlem ent, that actually represented a particu larly adva ntageous site from severa l points of view: food sources, safety, docking facilities, links to inland waterways. A we ll-known passag e from Strabo dated 1st century AD provides us with a very clear picture of this first settlement: "Situated in the m arshes is the great [city of) Ravenna, built entirel y o n p iles, and tra ve rsed by ca na ls, which you cross by bridges

25

19. M ap of Raven na in the Republican era

17. Frag ments of li mest one architrave with inscrip tion, excava ti o ns in V ia Guerr ini, Ravenna,

1st cent ury AD

18. Archaeologica l site o f the Domus dei Tapp eti di Pietra (Domus of the Stone Carpets), excavations in Via

D'Azeglio, Rave nna

1. A lveo del fiume Padenna

4. Perimetro urbico d'eta repubbl icana

2. Alveo del Flumise//o

5. Presunta ubicazione del Fo ro di Raven na

3. Alveo de l Lamisa

or ferry-boats. At the full tide s it is washed by a co nsiderable quantity of sea-water, as we ll as by the river, and thus the sewage is carried off, and the air purified ... Anoth er remark ab le pecu li arity is that of its vines, which, th ough growing in the marshes, make very qu ickl y and yield a large am ount of fruit, but perish in four o r fi ve yea rs" (Geography, V 1, 7) . So, we have to imagine a city of water, particula rly salubrious, situ ated at the co nfluence of the Padenna and the Fl um isellum Padennae, where all th e stru ctures we re made of wood, and presumab ly cri sscrossed by navigab le ca nals (fig. 19): it is also for thi s reason, that there are very few archaeo log ica l remains of these earli est stages. Th e city probably alrea dy had a regul ar urban plan (the so-called Ravenna quadrata), based on a north-south street axis (k ardo maximus) and an east-west axis (decumanus maximus). From a hi sto rical point of view, therefore, it is possible to im ag in e that t he future city of Ravenn a started out as a co mmercial hub, perhaps inhabited by Umbri and Etruscans, p laced at t he ce ntre of a dense network

26

27

the sacrifice for the deified emperor, on disp lay here in the museum section on artistic output, came from this monument of Ravenna, the reconstruction of which is only possib le through compar ison. But the new imperial architecture is shown by the well-known Porta Aurea (fig. 21 ), the city gate which is perhaps the most representative monument of Rave nna. Located in the southern wa lls - in significant co rrespondence with the first port of th e city - it was probably commissioned by the Emperor Claudius (AD 41 - 54) and was visible until at least the 13th century. Torn down in 1582, several represe ntations of it have come down to us (including Palladi o's well-known drawings), that enable us to reconstruct it as a porta gemina with a doubl e open ing, and a ve ry rich architectura l of routes for trade an d tra vel. Worth mentioning in this regard is the we llknown Via Popilia, opened in 132 BC, linking Ariminum (today Rimini) with Adr ia, and which also made use of navigation within the lagoon . T his trade

20. M arble architrave with monumental

decoration.

inscription,

urban p lan, expanded beyond the limits dictated by the repub lican walls,

It is certain that in this period, the city, which already had

a regular

centre was very probably reactivated and fortified by the Romans starting

excavations in the

occupying both the northern secto r (beyond the Flumisel lum Padennae),

in the 3rd century BC whi le they were implementing policies of commerc ial

port area, Classe, 1st century AD

and the eastern sector (beyond the Padenna, towards the coast) (fig . 22).

expansion initi al ly, then mi litary, towards th e northern Adriatic and their

For the Imperial period, we have more information about private con-

Veneto allies. Indeed, in the same period, Rome sta rted its m arch towards

structions, as shown by the context of the domus in Via D'Azeglio, which

the Adr iatic, and in particu lar towards the fertile p lains of the Po, found ing

documents a co ntinuity of occupation for the entire Imperia l period and

new cities (the co lonies of Hatria, Sena Gallica, and especial ly Ariminum),

we ll into the 6th ce ntury AD.

weav ing a network of political and com mercial re lations with the indi genous

But it was probably Augustus w ho launched the tran sfo rm ati o n in

peop les (the Piceni in the Marche, the Umbri in Romagna, and the Veneti

a more strictly urban sense of Ravenna: the new port, commissioned by

in the upper Adriatic).

the em peror for th e imperial fl eet (c/assis) that was to control the Adriatic,

In thes e early stages of urban definition (3rd- 1st century BC), the area

alongside that of Miseno, which was to contro l the Tyrrhenian, involved a

of the future city of Classe must have been a rural zone, peripheral to the

series of structural changes that led to the definitive monumentalization of

urban centre of Ravenna, and characterised by scattered dwellings and

thi s area. We shou ld imagine large wa rehouses for stocking the goods that

buria ls dotting the coastal dunes .

Imperial era: The new monumental landscape The urban landscape of Ravenn a changed, as in the rest of Rom an Italy, with the start of th e Imperial era (1 st ce ntury AD); in Rome, too, as the ancient writer Suetonius reminds us in his Life of Augustus, 28, Augustus boasted that he had found a city of brick an d left a city of marble. Here again, the archaeologica l evidence is very scant, but sufficient for a reconstru ct ion of the new monumental landscape of Ravenn a. A large stone architrave (fig. 20), reu sed in Classe, but perhaps from Ravenna, attests to th e existence of a t emple: th e few rem ain ing letters (they must have been in bronze, and for this reason were taken away already in antiquity) suggest the presence of a sacred structure assumed to have been dedicated to Julius Caesar: " . . of the divine Julius, Father of the Homeland .. Another important city mo nument must have resembled the famous

21. Graph ic reconstruction

of the Porta

Ara Pacis Augustae in the Campo Marzio in Rome, an altar comm issioned

Aurea in Ravenna (A. Augenti,

by Augustus to glorify the imperial family. The ce lebrated reliefs showing

G. Albertini)

28

29

22. Reconstruct ion of the layout of Ravenna during t he Imperial era (A Augenti, G . Albe rti ni) 23. Grave goods, excavations

in Via Rome a Vecch ia , Classe, 2nd century AD

arrived or were to be shipped out, arsenals, roads and linking infrastructures, and the known (even if not yet identified) castra ravennatium, mentioned by Pliny the Elder; these were large barracks, with officers' quarters, spaces for the mustering of the troops, places of worship, and the canabae (provisional quarters) for the wives and children of the soldiers. The written sources also mention a theatre and an amphitheatre that, however, are yet to be found. In the Imperial period, Classe must have still been a rural area situated to the south of Ravenna: the landscape was gradually taking shape, with many suburban vi//ae springing up on the plains. These were usually composed of a rustic part, intended for the management of the family economy (agriculture, livestock, production of wine and oil), and an urban, more residential part, for housing the entire Familia, which in Roman times included the family members as well as the slaves. The Classe district was also growing in importance, as can be surmised from the great number of tombs, unmistakable signs of human presence in this area, such as those of the Minghetti and the Marabina farmsteads. On display are several cinerary urns (fig. 23), both in glass and in pottery, found in these burial grounds. They are containers intended to hold the ashes of the deceased, attesting to the widespread acceptance of the incineration rite (the corpse was burned atop a pile of wood and the remains then gathered in these containers) (fig. 24). Buried together with the urns, were grave goods, which varied according to the sex and social status of the deceased, and which also made a statement at once social and symbolic: these grave goods could include glass balsam pots, pottery lamps (often with depictions of funerary themes), objects for personal use, such as hair pins, amber rings, and jewellery. Very frequently these objects indicated the distinctions between the two sexes: usually a mirror could be found in female tombs, while a strigil (a tool for cleansing the body after athletic training) would turn up in the male ones. Sometimes the grave goods also included a bronze coin (the offering to Charon, for the crossing of rivers along the Journey to Hades), or shells. Of particular interest is Antigonus's stele (fig. 25): this is a humble stone

24. Representation of the funeral ri t e (A. A u genti, G. Albertini) 25. Funerary stele of the gladiator Antigonus, excavations in the port are a, Classe, end of 2nd beg inn ing o f 3rd century AD

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marker placed on the grave commemorating the person buried there and his or her activities in life. Our Antigonus was a gladiator who lived between the end of the 2nd and the start of the 3rd century AD, whose stele recalls his deeds in life in images - in the tympanum are shown a helmet and a g/adius, the short sword used by the Romans - and with an inscription: "To Di Manes. To Antigonus, mirmillo and provocator of the second pa/o of Campania. For him, meritorious, Maxi minus, provocator of the first pa/o, laid." Thus, Antigonus was a "mirmillo", a gladiator who fought, armed with helmet, gladius, and shield, and a "provocator", that is, the one who had to provoke the combat. The pa/o was the room where the gladiators

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26. Marble statue of a woman, excavations in the

port area, Classe, 1st century AD

27. Marble head of the goddess Fortuna, excavations in the

port area, Classe, 2nd century AD

trained: this stele, therefore, offers evidence that there was a gladiator training centre in Ravenna (or in the vicinity).

The artistic production Much has disappeared of the extensive handiwork of artists and craftsmen in the Roman world, both because of the continuity of life in the city of Ravenna and for the use of precious though perishable materials, such as hardwood. However, the most important factor was the phenomenon of reuse: starting in the period of Late Antiquity and throughout the Middle Ages, the scarcity of stone materials in these regions meant that stone elements were sought-after and expensive; thus, the dismantling and trading of ancient monuments for reuse in new buildings (even privately-owned ones) became a lucrative business activity. Statues, too, often met the same fate, reused as simple stone material inside walls, or transformed into other objects, perhaps for a more ordinary purpose. Bearing witness to a rich and flourishing production, the quality and consistency of which we can only imagine, are a series of pieces on show here. A marble statue of a woman (fig. 26), unfortunately headless, found in the Classe port, but perhaps from some important building of the city of Ravenna (or perhaps from some funerary structure, of which it may have been part of the sculptural decoration). On a stylistic basis, the statue can be dated to the 1st century AD. The head of Fortuna (fig. 27) may well be the most famous piece from the Roman phase of the city: this sculpture, too, was found in Classe, but may have come from some important building in the city of Ravenna. The crown, representing a city enclosure wall in stone blocks and with round towers, makes possible its identification as Tyche, the tutelary deity govern-

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28. Marble relief from a monument found between the end of t he 15th ce nt ury and the first ha lf of the 16th ce ntury AD, Ravenna, Julio-Claud ian age, first half of the 1st century AD (orig inal exhib it ed at the M useo N azio nale di Ra ven na)

30. Bronze standing lares (guard ian de ity). Rave nna, 2nd ce ntury AD

29. Everyday obi ects, Raven na and Classe, 1st-4th ce ntury AD

ing th e fortun e and prosperi ty of th e city. On a styl istic basis, t he sculpture can b e dated to th e 2nd century AD. Very fam o us reliefs with the imperial apothe os is (fig. 28) were fou nd in the course of the 16th century in the area of t he present-day Basili ca of San Vi t ale in Ravenna and can be traced to the Julio-Cl audian peri od (first half of th e 1st century AD). The rel iefs represent t he imperial fam ily and a procession of animals being led t o sacrifice; even though not all scho lars ag ree o n the interpretation of the figures, it is ce rt ain th at Augu stu s is shown on th e far right, in a pos e d escribed as "hero ic nudity", proof of the deification of t he founde r of the empire. Th e pi eces, of th e highest qua lity, are made in G reek marble from the island of Paros, d emo nstrating t he acti vity of a ve ry prestig ious wo rkshop and, probably, an imperial commission . Another two stone fragm ents attest to the stone decorations of the city in the 1st century A D: the ba lustrade of a we ll wit h a relief representing a garland d rap ed fro m a mask and a portion of t he architra ve of a public building , w ith a ri ch p lant decoratio n, found in Rave nna nea r the present-d ay Via Cesarea.

The everyday life In thi s case, to o, th e archaeo log ica l documentatio n is partial: in the reconstruction o f eve ryday life, in fa ct, we must use o th er docum entary sources (th e wr iti ngs of the ancient au thors, for examp le, and p aintings) to im ag ine th e shape and functi on of obj ects and too ls, of which no m aterial trace is left (ju st t hink of th ose m ade of wood, fabric, or other perishable m at eria ls) . Kitchenware and t ableware t ogether are an important category, objects used for the prep aration an d cons umption of meals, here represe nted

34

35

by jugs (in pottery, o r the more va lu able ones, in bronze}, gl ass p lates, bottles, and cups (fig. 29), datable between the 1stand 4th centuri es AD. An area that has yi elded several objects related to eve ryday life is the well locate d near Santa Croce in Ravenna, co ntaining numerous small amphorae, litt le jugs, and even a crater (a vesse l for mi xin g wine with wate r) made of com mo n pottery, fro m the 1st-2nd ce ntury A D. Another cat egory is th at of the so-cal led artisti c craftsman sh ip rel ated to th e domesti c sphere, very often represe nted by small bron ze objects: these are mostly bronze figurin es (fi g . 30) datab le between the 2nd and 3rd ce nturies AD, belonging t o the sphere of the sacra privata, that is of the fa mil y rel igious practises, managed b y the pater fami/ias or directly by each individual member. Of very high quality are also the small m arbl e sculptures representin g deities (fig. 31) o r mythologi ca l or historical figures: though we do not know the context, we ca n imagine th at in thi s case as we ll , th ey belong t o the sphere of domestic wo rsh ip, inside the /araria in the atrium of Ro man dwellin gs or in sanctua ries of a larger sca le.

31. Marble head

Bibliography

of Aph rodite, Ravenna,

• A . Aug enti, C/asse: indagini su/ p o tenzia/e

• V. Manzelli , "La forma urbis di Ravenn a in eta roman a", in M. Mauro (edi ted by), Ravenna

archeologico di una citta scomparsa, Bologna 2011 . • A Augenti, "Ravenn a e Classe: II racconto di

romana, Ravenn a 2001 , pp . 45-61 • V. Manzelli, "Ravenna nel Ill secolo a.C. ", in L.

due citti3 tra storia e archeologia ". in A. Augenti, C. Bertelli (ed ited by), San ti banchieri re: Ravenna e C la sse ne f VI seco lo. San Severo ii tem-

Malnati, V. Manzelli (edited by), Brixia. Rom a e le genti d e / Po: Un incontro di culture 111-1sec.

1st century AD

pio ritro vato, exhibition ca talogue (R avenna ,

Co mplesso di San Nicolo, 4 Ma rch - 8 O ctober

2006), Mi la n 2006, pp. 17- 22. • F. Boschi, Tracee di un a citta s epo lta : A erofotografia e g eo fisica per /'archeo/ogia di C/asse e de/ suo territorio, Bo logna 201 2. • E. Cirel li, Ra venna: A rcheofog ia di una citt.3, Flo rence 2008.

36

a.C., exhibition catalogue (Brescia, Museo di Santa Giulia, 9 May 2015 - 17 January 2016), Florence 2015, pp 104-7. • G . Montevecchi (ed ited by), Archeo/ogia urbana a Ravenn a, La "Oomus dei tappe ti di pietra "· II complesso archeologico di via D'Azeg lio, Rave nna 2004.

37

RAVENNA CAPITAL OF THE EMPIRE

32. Portra it of Em peror Honorius, pai nted on canvas by Jean-Paul La ure ns, 1880, Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk

RAVEN NA CAPITAL OF THE EMPIRE Fabrizio Corbara

This section of the museum documents one of the key moments in the history of Ravenna, a period in which the city was once again in the midst of a great revival, a phase that was decisive and contradictory at the same time, dense with events and certainly characterised by the relocation there of the imperial court. In AD 402, after a series of visits to the city starting in AD 399, Emperor Honorius (fig. 32) decided to relocate his court with its entire army to Ravenna, as Milan was under siege by the Visigoths. Ravenna, defended by the lagoon, far enough away from the more exposed northern regions, with a port system in a strategic position for contact with the eastern part of the empire and with an efficient network of inland waterways providing links with the T riveneto and the Padan Plain, it seemed a safer location for an imperial seat. Initially, this may have been considered a temporary move, but the events that followed proved the advantageousness of this choice. The port system, although undermined for strategic reasons in the 4th century AD, as well as weakened due to natural processes, was actually still vital and fully regained its importance in close connection with the city acquisition of imperial rank. The sources from Honorius's time confirm this need and it is natural to suppose that the first projects undertaken after

41

the relocation of the court focused on the refurbishing and renovation of the port facilities, for both military and trade purposes. Ravenna, promoted to the rank of capital city and safe haven, thus became the fulcrum of the supreme administration of the Western Roman Empire, with obvious and massive injections of cultural and political relations. Becoming imperial residence, it necessarily entailed urban expansion and development to meet functional and ceremonial needs of state and religion. Hence, the ferment and the structural renaissance of the city, as it prepared to launch a sweeping programme for the construction of magnificent public buildings that would express imperial power and Christian worship. This development took place within a generally complex situation. The imperial court was characterised by instability, and at times seemed downright precarious, owing to the political and military difficulties faced by the Western Roman Empire at that time. The city imposed on its citizens privation and hard work. It lacked amenities and was inhospitable; in particular drinking water was in short supply, mainly because of the insecure

33. View of

conditions of the city aqueduct. This situation was vividly described and with

Rave nna

biting criticism by some contemporaries of the political life back then, who in truth perceived the Western Roman Empire on the brink of collapse. A series of natural catastrophes soon struck the city. In particular, the earth quakes of AD 443 and 455 compromised the urban layout, and on the night of 17 April AD 488 a fire of considerable proportions broke out, burning down the main city bridge. It was such a complex territory, but at the same

in t he 5th- 6t h cent ury AD (reconstruct ion): th e Ravenn aCesa rea-C lasse conu rbation (A A ugenti , G. Alb erti ni )

With an area of 166 hectares defended by walls, Ravenna is a large city, especially if compared to its size in the Republican era, when the walls encircled an urban area five times smaller. In the Western Empire, the Late Antique walls of Ravenna were inferior only to those of Milan and Rome. Access to the city was guaranteed by main gates and small gates that today shed light on the road network of the urban fabric of the time. But it was the general urban layout that changed. The urban development along the road and river corridor running through the city from

time this is what contributed to its fortune, since Ravenna was unassailable

north to south, along which the inflow and outflow of goods, services, and

by land, thanks to the surrounding marshlands.

people took place, went hand in hand with a functional partition of the

The new status as capital gave the city a fresh stimulus and it poured its

urban fabric, which appeared particularly suitable at the defensive level.

energies into defining a new urban plan based on a sweeping public building

The port structures stood at opposite ends of this system: the port of call

project. Because of the progressive silting up of the interior basins due to natu -

to the north of the city was the gateway towards the insecure northern re-

ral causes as well as lack of maintenance, the urban layout was reassessed, and

gion, requiring protective measures, while the port of Classe to the south

the gravitational centre of the city was shifted eastward, where the functional

played an important role in relations with the East. Thus, an orderly division

and governmental activities were installed. The city had already shown in past

of the urban territory was brought about: Ravenna was closed within the

centuries a natural tendency towards this model, with the gradual occupation

walls, Classe gradually took on its own, independent urban and commercial

of the urban sectors to the east, but at this particular moment, the changed

identity, it, too, within the walled enclosure, and the suburb of Cesarea, in

natural and political conditions had made the transition more structured and

key position between Ravenna and Classe, took shape according to its own

aware. The reconstruction of the city plan shown in this section of the exhibi-

functional and residential identity.

tion offers a view of the layout and organisation of its districts (fig. 33). The most

The new imperial residence and other buildings related to public ad -

obvious thing is the introduction and construction of a new ring of defensive

ministration found quarters within the walls of Ravenna. The building pro-

walls that also incorporates the oldest urban districts. The Ravenna city walls

gramme mostly converged around the central street running through the

are one of the rare examples from Late Antiquity that are still conserved for

city, corresponding to the present-day Via di Roma, which became the pole

most of their length. It is quite a large circuit, constructed for the most part with

of attraction for urban development. The functional relationship between the

recycled materials, and with a length that is five times that of the Republican

Imperial Palace and the structures connected with the exercise of power, the

era walls. The defensive structures are remarkable, standing about 9 metres

Christian episcope, and the construction of the defensive walls formed the

high and with a thickness of 2.5 metres for a total length of nearly 5 kilometres.

main features of an urban plan that determined all of the city development,

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43

in the following century as well. Unfortunatel y, not many traces of thi s who le monumental programme rem ain, and even the structures of th e Imperi al Palace of Ravenna are documented only by a few archaeological remains and vag ue references in the written sources, which do not manage t o co nvey with sufficient force the idea and th e appearance it must have had.

The Imperial Palace As envisioned as soon as the court relocated to Ravenna, the imperi al res idence was to be sited on a st ate -owned area , recovering the structures of an ex isting Roman residen ce. It changed aspect over the years with successive operations of expansion and re-use, perhaps already promoted by Emperor Va lentinian Ill (in offi ce from AD 425 t o 455), whom the ancient sources also credit with the co nst ructi o n of th e Hippodrome and th e access road between it and the Pa lace. For th e first tim e, here at the Museo Classis Rave nna , it is possible to see a three -dimensional re construct ion of the imperial residen ce (fig. 34). It is a hypothetical reconstru ction, the realisation of which required a major research campa ign specia lly undertaken for the exhibition. The task start ed out with an analys is of t he existing archaeo log ica l data, largely derived fro m excavations ca rried out at th e beginning of the last century in th e area behind the present-day Basilica of Sant'Apo llinare Nuovo. The data gathered we re then exam ined in relation t o the inform ati o n about th e kn own urban layout of th at secti on of th e ci ty. Our ideas ab out the d eve lopment and

34. Drawing with a reconstru ct ion of the Imperial Pal ace of Raven na (A. Au genti, G . Albert ini)

35. Wal l mosaic in t he Basilica of Sant'Apol linare

Imperia l Palace, b eginn in g of the 6th cen tury AD

Nuovo, Ravenna,

showin g t he

t he elevations of th e bui ld ing's stru ctures are based on co m pa ri sons with what we kn ow ab out other imperial residences, co nsidering t hat the on ly visua l document of the Ravenna palace sti ll in exist ence is the representati on in the famo us mosaic of Sant'Apollinare Nu ovo (fig. 35). In this way it was possible to arrive at the hypothetica l reconstruction that gave rise to the mode l on disp lay here; it is a mode l th at we be li eve t rue, in its overa ll appea rance, to the main nucl eus of the imperi al pa lace, which, over time, must have developed towards the south, in th e direction of the Cesarea qua rter, with new additions. Th e imperial quarter, in addition to th e palace, the hippodrome, and the barracks of the emperor' s guard, also incl uded th e bui lding whe re the imperial co ins we re minted. In the 5th ce ntury AD, th e imperi al co ins issued in Ravenna were above all in gold and si lve r, that is, practical for th e running expenses of t he co urt and the mi litary. Th e minting of various denom in ations of coins in Ravenna reached its peak immed iate ly fo ll owing the transfer of the cap ital, and rema ined intense unti l th e mid-5th ce ntury AD. Exemp lifying the coin production of this period, on d ispl ay here is a reproduction of a go ld coin minted in Ravenna between 426 and 430, showin g the im age of Ga lla Pl acidi a (fig. 36). The size of the imperi al quarter of Ravenna is comparable w ith other imperial seat s, such as Constantinople, and refe rs to a plan th at p rogres-

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45

36. Golden coin with a portrait of Galla Placid ia, 5th centu ry AD, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Munzkab inett

37. Mosaic from the excavations o f the Imperial Palace of Ra venna, known as "Theodoric's Palace", b eginning of t he 6th ce ntury AD

sively connected the buildings. The main vehicle for the celebration of

tury or the beginning of the 5th century AD, in view of the formal style, the

imperial prestige is architecture and the artistic quality of its decorative

pose and the artistic handling of the surface, shows close similarities with

features. The splendour of these structures and the works of art that dec-

other statues from more or less the same period, that are conserved in the

orated them is described in the literature of the 5th and 6th centuries AD.

Staatliche Museen in Berlin, the Louvre, and the Kunsthistorisches Museum

The palace is portrayed as a magnificent site primarily in terms of its ar-

in Vienna. The height of the statue, considering the missing parts, must

chitectural structure, faced with the most precious materials yielded by

have been about 2 metres. The statue is in the round, and therefore was

the most important quarries of the empire, or made to arrive expressly

conceived to be seen in isolation, even if the frontal view must have been

from earlier buildings that were sacrificed in order to beautify and adorn

more important, seeing as its creator would not - as opposed to "could

the spaces and rooms of the imperial structure with precious marbles,

not" - do more than a summary treatment of the back. The movement of

statues, and mosaics. The large geometric mosaic displayed in this section,

the arms and the hands is particularly interesting. The right arm is bent and

characterised by a large geometric motif, comes from one of the rooms of

the hand rests on the hilt of the sword with the fingers relaxed, except for

the Imperial Palace in Ravenna (fig. 37). Probably, the mosaic was made at

the ring and little fingers bent towards the palm in the classic gesture used

the beginning of the 6th century AD, during a phase in which Theodoric

when giving a speech, while the left hand grasps the scabbard. The sword

launched an operation of refurbishment and reorganization of the struc-

is practically hidden among the deep folds of the garment. Thus, the figure

tures of the palace, as well as its expansion, having decided to establish

is shown not in the act of drawing the weapon, but after putting it back in its

the seat of government here.

sheath, the gesture of a victor who is returning to acts of peace. The figure is

The emperor's image

that leave no room for anatomical treatment of the underlying body parts.

represented with a linear scheme and the attire is shown with metallic pleats The statue, whose copy is displayed in the exhibition (fig. 38), is an example

Only the fingers have the nails carved in careful detail. The pose alluding to

of the representation of imperial power; the original was made of porphyry,

peace has favoured some guesses as to the possible identity of the figure,

a material that in antiquity was associated with imperial dignity and was

even if the fact that the head is missing, obviously, makes confirmation dif-

used for artefacts destined to the emperor and his immediate family. For

ficult. It could be Emperor Theodosius or Theodosius II, Constantius Ill, or

this reason, the quarries for mining this stone in various areas of Egypt were

again Honorius. We do not know if the statue was conceived for Ravenna or

overseen directly by the imperial entourage. The statue, missing the head,

if it was imported. The typology of statue has similarities with Late Antique

the legs, and the left hand, represents a cloaked figure captured in the act of

sculpture from the Eastern part of the empire and it is likely that, made in

sheathing his sword. The use of porphyry and the type of attire suggest that

Egypt, it came from Constantinople to celebrate the dignity of the imperial

the figure shown is an emperor, solemnly wrapped in a garment with stylised

dynasty, whose representatives had elevated Ravenna to the capital of the

pleats. This testimony of a commemorative statue dating from the 4th cen -

Western Roman Empire.

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47

38. Porphyry statue of emperor , late 4th - ear ly 5th century AD (origina l exhibited at th e Museo Arc ivescovile d i Ravenna)

Religious power Within the city walls stand also the spaces of religious power and the bish op's episcopate, linked to the Im peri al Palace by means of a long arcaded passage created to foste r a privil eged relationship between th e two centres of power. Th e first large religiou s bui lding of the city, the Basilica Ursiana, which t ook its name from its fo under, Bishop Ursus, was part of th e b ishop's episcopate. Accord in g to th e account of Ravenna protohistorian Andreas Agnellus (circa AD 800-850), th e Ravenn a cath edra l was built together with its baptistery annex. The historic.al information we have about this cathed ral, t he decorative features of th e baptistery, sti ll standing today, and the few remai ns o f the orig inal church furnishings and embell ishments to have been preserved contribute to conveying to us t he lost image of the magnifi ce nce of this religious bui lding, which must have been very sumptu ous ly orna mented. Th e construction of the basili ca ushered in a season wh en th e city was endowed with new religiou s buildings th at in large part were influenced by models com ing from Rom e and Milan. Some of these imp eria l buildings, such as th e Basili ca of San Giovanni Evangel ista and the Basilica of Sa nta Croce, of which on ly t he M auso leum of Gall a Pl acidi a rema ins, characte rise the urban fabric . Other impo rtant re li g ious buil d in gs, today lost, were built in t he areas of Cesarea and Classe.

Bibliography • A. Augenti, "Archeologia e topografia di Ravenna: II palazzo d i Teodori co e la moneta aurea",

Florence 2008. • S. Ge lich i, " II paesag gio urbano tra Ve X

insediamenti, territorio, 2005, pp. 7-33.

secolo", in A. R. Cari le (ed it ed by), Storia di Ravenna: Dall'eta b izantina alf'eta ottoniana,

• I. Ba ldini, "Articolazione e decorazione del palazzo imperi ale d i Ravenna", in XL/II Corso d i

vol. 11/1 , Venice 1991, pp. 153-65. • S. Patitu cci Uggeri, " II sistema f luv io-

in Archeofogia medieva /e: Cultura materiale,

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• E. Cire lli, Ravenna: Archeologia di una citti3,

Cu/tura sull'Arte Ravennate e Bizantina, 1997,

lag unare, l'in sedia mento e le difese del

pp. 1- 31. • N. Christie, "The Ci t y Walls of Ravenna: The Defense o f a Capi t al, AD 402-750", in XXXVI Corso di Cu/tura su//'A.rte Ra vennate e

te rritorio rave nn ate settentri o na le (V- V II I

Bizantina, Ravenn a 1989, pp. 113-38.

Spoleto 2005, p p . 253-360.

secolo)", in Ravenna da capitale imperiale a capita/e esarca/e, acts o f t he XVII Congresso lnternazionale d i Studi su ll'Alto Medioevo,

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THE OSTROGOTHIC KINGDOM

l'I. G raph ic , (?C o nstruction

of Theodoric's fu ne ral proce ssi on (A A ugenti, G . A lberti ni)

THE OSTROGOTH IC KINGDOM

The end of the Roman Empire and the fall of Theodoric The years that fo llowed the assassination of Emperor Valentinian Il l in AD 455 were difficult and characterised by trauma and t ransformations affecting many aspects of the society and the economy; and that was exactly in the period preceding the fa ll of the western part of the Empire, in AD 476. Ravenna was still the capital of the Western Roman Empire, but putting together all the information, the impression is that it was lead ing an empire on the brink of co llapse - a delicate situation that probably caused not a little inconven ience to its population.

Fabrizio Corbara

But Ravenna was at the centre of the interests of the Eastern Roman Empire and cou ld be the nerve centre from which to deploy actions for controlling the territories left ungoverned after the fal l of the western part of the empire. The city had all the right credentials for hand li ng this task and, though weakened after the upsets of the late 5th century AD, its strategic geographic position was still a valuable asset. Indeed, the benefits of the infrastructures built when Ravenna became capita l of the Empire were still decisive, and there was also a long -st anding adm inistrative and nava l military tradit ion and an urban layout conce ived for a ro le of great importance. In this phase, the Ostrogoths would support such a strategy. At the very end of the century, the Ostrogoths led by Theodoric conquered Ravenna . In 493, during the campaign to occupy the Ital ian territories, after a long siege, T heodo ric defeated and kil led Odoacer, conque ring Ravenna; he then chose it as his capita l. Later, in 498, Emperor Anastasius (who re igned from AD 491 to 518) sent him the insignia of roya l power,

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recognising him as a sovereign who legitimately ruled on the Italian peninsula on behalf of the Eastern Roman Empire. In the administration of this task, the Ostrogoths were accorded broad margins of independence, and Ravenna saw a new resurgence since Theodoric chose it not only as his royal residence but also as effective capital. The new situation created with Theodoric facilitated the re-proposal of the connective tissue nurtured for centuries by the Romans: the city thus reclaimed its beauty, and great resources were poured into initiatives to refurbish its public buildings following the Roman tradition, the plan for which was consolidated with renewed constructive fervour. There is no doubt that Theodoric's urban reclamation policy was a fundamental point in plan to present himself to his kingdom as a man of peace, after taking it over by force: the public buildings, with their architectural magnificence and technological efficiency, were an extraordinarily powerful visual symbol of the unquestionable Roman splendour that Theodoric, educated in the court of Constantinople, did not want to renounce. It was in this outlook that he went ahead with, for example, the restoration of the aqueduct built during Emperor Trajan's time, and of other Roman monuments and buildings, such as the Basilica of Hercules that was in the forum. A distinctive feature of the Ostrogoths in Ravenna was the significant

40. Representation of t he city of C lasse, m osaic in th e Ba silica of Sant 'Apollinare Nuovo, beg inni ng of the 6th century AO

erected in the main street (present-day Via di Roma) with the function of palatine basilica, that is, for the exclusive use of the court and thus near the Imperial Palace. With Theodoric began a very special and interesting experiment of tolerance and coexistence between different peoples (primarily Latins and Ostrogoths) and between different ways of interpreting the Christian religion. The Latins were Catholics, while the Ostrogoths were Arians, that

urban spread in the north-eastern part of the city, a strategic urban sector

is, faithful to a Christological doctrine that considered the divine nature of

for Theodoric, and later on, for the Byzantines. Theodoric's obvious interest

the Son inferior to that of God. This is how Ravenna found itself with two

in this sector of the city can be explained by the need for quick connections

cathedrals, two baptisteries, and two bishop's palaces, one for each of the

with the navigable artery that was the Po, which led straight to certain

two ways of interpreting Christian ism . Actually, however, the situation was

cities such as Pavia, Verona, and Brescia, and from there it was possible to

even more complex, because in Ravenna not only were there Ostrogoths

connect with the many territorial military presidia scattered across northern

and Latins: the city was a melting pot of different ethnic and cultural compo -

Italy. And it was in this area that Theodoric commissioned the construction

nents. It was a cosmopolitan metropolis where Jews, Armenians, Persians,

of the mausoleum for his burial site, which people can still admire today.

Greeks, Germans, and others circulated. The number of places of worship

Here, in this section of the exhibition itinerary, a graphic reconstruction of

serving the local communities increased in a burst of building activity that

the mausoleum is proposed, showing what the funeral rites of the Ostrogoth

substantiated the vitality of the city. In particular, Classe evolved in the

king may have looked like (fig. 39).

urban sense, to the extent to be referred to as Civitas C/assis in the famous

An urban residential quarter took shape in this part of the city, served

mosaic in Sant'Apollinare Nuovo (fig. 40).

by functional structures and places of worship that gave it the appearance of an "Ostrogothic quarter". From the ancient sources, it is clear that The-

Cultural and literal promotion

odoric had a keen interest in the efficient operation of Ravenna's ports,

According to the information we have, many sectors and manufacturing

for both military and commercial purposes, and it is safe to assume that a

activities received a remarkable stimulus. One of these, illustrated in the

part of the extensive commitments channelled into the renewal of the city

exhibition, was the production of books, which satisfied a growing demand

went to the maintenance of the port basins. But the same building fervour

through the realisation of important editions requiring the services of writ-

was dedicated to a new episcopal pole and churches that would serve the

ers and editors. The book was, in fact, a very expensive and prestigious

Arian cult practised by the Ostrogoths. As had happened in the previous

obJect, and as such, an important indicator of the cultural advancement

century, Theodoric, too, introduced a programme of constructing religious

and favourable economic conditions prevailing in that period. Ravenna,

buildings for Arian worshippers. The church of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo was

during the Ostrogothic reign, encouraged its circulation and production

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41. Pa ulus Orosiu s, Historiae adversus q