Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy City Walls

Rome, Italy Vatican City Walls

Rome, Italy Vatican City Walls

Rome, Italy Vatican City Walls

Rome, Italy Vatican City Walls

Rome, Italy Vatican City Walls

Rome, Italy Vatican City Walls

Rome, Italy Vatican City Walls

Rome, Italy Vatican City Walls

Rome, Italy Servian City Walls

Rome's Servian walls were constructed early in the fourth century BC. This short span outside of the Termini rail station is the only significant remaining piece.

Rome, Italy Servian walls

Rome, Italy Servian walls

Rome, Italy Servian walls

Rome, Italy Servian walls

Rome, Italy Servian walls

Re: City walls of Rome, Italy

Hi Bryan, looks like you went to Rome (in stead of China)
Thanks for the pictures, you visited an interesting part of the wall that I missed when I crossed Rome on a mountainbike. Most fascinating is the small military amphitheater that's part of the Imperial citywall. In early century's, this amphitheater was build outside the citywalls. When the Barbarians sacked Rome, the Romans extended the wallsystem and used already existing buildings like this amphitheater as part of the wall to save bricks and money.

Here are pictures I took on my honeymoon in Rome's citywallmuseum.

A plan of the republican walls 3th-1th Century BC in red
The outer lines of the map mark the imperial walls 1th-5th Centry AD

A model with the same subject: inner wall is republican, outer wall is imperial

A model of the early imperial citywall

A model of the late imperial citywall, inner side, build after Rome was sacked by the Goths and the Vandals.

Late imperial citywall from the inner side

Re: City walls of Rome, Italy

Defense system of the early imperial wall

Late imperial Porta Via Appia

Late imperial south wall

Late imperial south wall

Porta Via Appia

Re: City walls of Rome, Italy

View from the top of Porta Via Appia

Inside the gatetowers

Another late imperial gate in the south wall

Same gate from the inside of the city

Re: City walls of Rome, Italy

This late imperial citygate, in the south-wall, next to the pyramid, was re-used in the middle ages as a castle, when the citywalls already had collapsed.
The front gate is single. The back gate is double.

Same gate from the cityside

From the outer side

The interior with a renaissance building inside

From the cityside

Re: City walls of Rome, Italy

Late imperial gate in the north wall

Same gate cityside

Three brick arches are 20th century to provide modern traffic entrance to the city

Re: City walls of Rome, Italy

This model of the republican city of Rome has been build in order of Mussolini in the 1930's to celebrate the greatness of Italy, the Italians and the history of the city. Today this area includes the Capitol Hill, the Colosseum and the Forum Romana area.

Look how primitive these walls (5th-2th century BC) must have been. The model shows very clearly why it is said that Rome has been build on seven hills. Each of these hills looks like a separate fortress.

Another giant model, also from the times of Mussolini, shows the complete late imperial city. Left and top can be seen the east and south walls, at the edge of the modeltable (not to be confused with various aquaducts running through the city. More inward, towards the citycenter, is the white structure of the abandoned, early imperial citywall visible. Top left is the military amphitheatre visible, which was finally incorporated in the late imperial walls.

Re: City walls of Rome, Italy

Yes, that construction is a typical aquaduct.
I believe there were seven of them, most of them running to the south and finally to the east, to provide drinkingwater to one million Roman citizans in the heighdays of the Roman Empire.
They ran past modern Cinecitta but the sources are much further away, about 60 kilometers, in the hills north of Palestrina.

I have never seen the aquaduct at your picture, it must be the 'Aqua Claudia'.
But on my bike-trip over the Via Appia Antica I saw part of another aquaduct.

And have a look here:
41

Re: Vatican City Walls

Thanks for sharing your pictures of the Vatican Walls.
I believe some of the structures in your pictures are Renaissance, some are Medieval.
The ones with arches are Medieval and I doubt if these are real defensive walls: on top of this runs a path, from the Vatican Palace to the Castle of Staint Angelo. The pope used this runway to bring himself in safety whithin the much stronger walls of the Castle of Saint Angelo, build on top of a (round) Imperial Roman Mausoleum. Later this Castle was extended with 'arrow-shaped' Renaissance bastions.
If you look at your pictures carefully, you might see almost all of the medieval wall is constructed with arches. Originally these were open, like an aquaduct, but might later have been filled up with masonry to give it more strength. So originally this construction was a long fortified bridge to St. Angelo's.

Re: City walls of Rome, Italy

Thanks for that info! The aqueducts were quite an achievement. I saw a lot of them from the train into Rome. But this one seemed like it was in the wrong place to me. Thanks for the confirmation.

Re: City walls of Rome, Italy

Hi Bryan,

Your pictures of the Porte Maggiore and aquaducts are fantastic. I can see how carefully you have photographed these monuments from every side.
Suddenly I remembered I had seen these monuments too, when I was in the train towards the Airfield. Since I arrived after dark, I did not see all the aquaducts on my way to Rome. But when I left in daytime, two weeks later, I was surprised to see so much left of it. And frustrated since I could not visit them any more.

Your pictures make me change my opinion on the subject.

I think the double triumph gate (Porte Maggiore) and the aquaducts on top of it have never been part of the citywall. The real wall should have been in front of it. Or more probable behind it, since there are structures visible of a circular fortress.
I think the triumph gate is the oldest object.
The aquaducts were later build over it, with arch-constructions left and right to carry the canal. Since many of the other structures you photographed are a combination of collumns and arches, it might never have been the citywall.

At the gate towards Via Appia Antica, I photographed another triumphal gate: Arco di Druso. Which is right behind the fortiefied gate, at the inner side of the walls.

The picture below was taken from top of the citygate.

Arco di Druso makes it more probable that also the Porto Maggiore was not incorporated into the citywall but in front or right behind it.

My kmz file shows some remnants of possible citywall behind Porto Maggiore and the location of Arco di Druso.

Castel Sant'Angelo

Re: Republican or Servian city walls of Rome, Italy

Again you have seen more of the Roman walls than I did!
Thanks for posting these pics.

Funny to see how the short piece of wall is 'hanging' high above the street level with 'modern' masonry under it to carry it.

The Arch of Gallenius marks the line of the Servian city wall but was build as an opening in it, when this wall was out of military use, 600 years later, during the 3th century AD. But you might know this already too.

And what is the cylindrical construction with a tiny passway through it? It looks to me like the base of a triumph-collum, similar to the collum of Trajan, with a very narrow strairway inside leading all the way to the top.