Theme 2 - The Pottery in Context
On this side, you will be able to find all publications relevant to Theme 2. When allowed and possible, we will also provide a link to the article.
In this paper, the altar of a recently discovered sanctuary in the northeast of Ostia’s forum will be discussed. The altar can be characterised as a ‘ground altar’. Its key features include a platform with a central fire pit, a ramp, a drain, a sewer, and a ‘libation hole’. The paper starts with an overview of the Ostia Forum Project’s surveys and excavations in the area. The focus lies on the building phases of the altar and the stratigraphical development of the area, including the corresponding dating evidence. Another aspect which is discussed in the paper is the functionality of the altar and the associated rituals. The altar is put into a broader context in relation to the sanctuary’s dimensions and thus, to the city’s grid-layout. The altar’s position in the centre of the precinct’s earliest parcel-size might associate it with the foundation of the sacred area and possibly of the castrum of Rome’s first colony itself.
- Gering, Axel, Sophie Menge & Trine Bak Pedersen. Forthcoming. 'A recently discovered Republican Altar in the Centre of Ostia. Excavations of the Ostia-Forum-Project (OFP) 2016-2019', in Römische Mitteilungen.
