Located at the mouth of the Tiber River, Ostia played an important role in the commerce of Rome. We started our tour of the city at the theater, which could hold about 3,000 people. Nearby, was the Piazza of Corporation with shops and offices for the business owners. The shops had mosaic floors with illustrations of what they sold. For example, if the shop sold fish, the mosaic would be of the type of fish they sold. The workers formed collegia (unions) to protect themselves and as a source of social mobility.
Since the town imported and exported all of the goods for Rome, it needed a place to store them. These buildings were called horrea (meaning warehouses) and there were several across the city. They had 2 possible designs. The first was the courtyard design, which meant that the rooms for storage were around an open courtyard. The other design had two rows of chambers facing back-to-back. No matter the design, all horrea stored amphorae in the ground to keep them cool.
Like any other city, Ostia had baths. The Baths of Neptune here were not separated by sex. Most of the housing in the city consisted of insulae (apartment buildings) as opposed to domi (single family houses). One of the insulae was the House of Diana. The building had a long façade with a rhythm of an opening with an arch and lintel. It had a courtyard in the center, which acted as a light well, and was where the residents got water (from a communal well). It was 3 stories tall, with the wealthier people occupying the lowest level. This was the first time we saw insulae (we saw a domus in Pompeii), and it was interesting to compare them to modern apartment buildings.
The building was close to the forum, which was surrounded by porticos. At the end of the long axis of the forum was the Capitolium or temple to Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva. The forum was long and narrow with programmed entrances. This meant that you couldn’t enter the space from just anywhere.
Since the town imported and exported all of the goods for Rome, it needed a place to store them. These buildings were called horrea (meaning warehouses) and there were several across the city. They had 2 possible designs. The first was the courtyard design, which meant that the rooms for storage were around an open courtyard. The other design had two rows of chambers facing back-to-back. No matter the design, all horrea stored amphorae in the ground to keep them cool.
Like any other city, Ostia had baths. The Baths of Neptune here were not separated by sex. Most of the housing in the city consisted of insulae (apartment buildings) as opposed to domi (single family houses). One of the insulae was the House of Diana. The building had a long façade with a rhythm of an opening with an arch and lintel. It had a courtyard in the center, which acted as a light well, and was where the residents got water (from a communal well). It was 3 stories tall, with the wealthier people occupying the lowest level. This was the first time we saw insulae (we saw a domus in Pompeii), and it was interesting to compare them to modern apartment buildings.
The building was close to the forum, which was surrounded by porticos. At the end of the long axis of the forum was the Capitolium or temple to Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva. The forum was long and narrow with programmed entrances. This meant that you couldn’t enter the space from just anywhere.