Situated along a side street below the Palazzo Comunale, the Casa Romano or “Roman House” of Spoleto is a well-preserved example of a high-status townhouse in a Roman Colonia.
First built during the reign of Augustus, the house was remodelled during the second century AD. Some archaeologists believe it may have belonged to Vespasia Polla, the mother of the emperor Vespasian.
Roman Spoleto
The hill site of modern Spoleto was first settled by the Romans in approximately 241 BC when Umbria was growing in strategic importance to Roman Italy. Spoletium, as the new settlement was known, evolved into a full Roman town, incorporating civic and domestic features on the hillside’s natural terraces.
Most of the Roman remains visible today are situated in the upper town of Spoleto. They include a theatre (used for dramatic and religious events) dating from the first century AD, a triumphal arch at the former entrance of the forum, dedicated to Drusus, son of the emperor Tiberius and the foundations of a Roman temple under the church of Sant’Ansano.
The Casa di Romano lies just above this area.
The House of Vespasia Polla
Situated beneath the present town hall, the house was excavated between 1885 and 1914. Only the ground floor remains, with the area surrounding the atrium exposed and on public view in the basement. Its layout, coupled with its commanding position in the upper part of the Roman settlement, suggests a residence belonging to a person of wealth and high standing.
The layout of the House.
The house follows the classic plan of a regular atrium house. As well as the impluvium, the atrium still contains the cistern used to collect household water.
Immediately facing the entrance is a tablinum flanked by two sitting rooms. Rooms also run along the right and left-hand sides of the atrium. Flanking the entrance are two bedrooms with two alae or service rooms immediately behind.
A variance in the layout is that the peristyle lay to the left of the building. It was not accessible from the tablinum as was usual but from the left-hand service room.
The Mosaics
Particular features of the house are the well-preserved mosaic floors that survive largely intact in each room. Although each floor was based on a geometric pattern, the style and complexity of those patterns varied according to the area they belonged to.
The rooms with the most elaborate mosaic floors were the bedrooms and the left-hand sitting room. These rooms were less accessible, either physically or because of narrower door apertures, suggesting they were reserved for the use of the family and its friends.
On the other hand, the more public rooms, namely the tablinum and alae, had a mosaic threshold which drew the eye. Their entrances were wide, showing they were designed to be more accessible. Their mosaic floors, while still high-quality, follow a simpler pattern corresponding with their less exclusive function.
Resources
Potter, TW. Roman Italy. British Museum Press.
Casa Romana, published by Sistema Museo
