Mosaics in Umbria

This afternoon, Ashley and I went for a special visit to Carsulae, our local Roman city. This tour was sponsored by Matavitatau, a local group that focuses on the Roman period in the region, and included a few words from a local history buff to help us understand the town's importance during its time. We also had the chance to examine the current archaeological excavations, interpreted by the foreman of the dig.

Carsulae is a lovely place to visit. It's a ruined town with many foundations easily visible and interpretable without additional explanation. It was a stopping point for travelers on the Via Flaminia from Rimini to Rome during a time when the concept of "town" or "city" was not easily understood. Most people lived on farmsteads or in small clusters like Carsulae. The site itself is very scenic, with views of San Gemini easily visible, and the fortress of Narni visible with help in the distance. The local rolling hills/mountains and blue skies complete the overall look of the place.

One of the mysteries has always been where the residential zones were located. The stadium/amphitheatre and theatre are easily visible, as are the temples and the forum. The municipal building is also fairly confidently placed at a particular site. Grave sites and monuments are easily seen just outside the town's gates. But houses? Nope, no clue. Until recently.

San Gemini in the distance

The remains of a triple arch at the edge of town.
Originally, it would have been encased in marble with
columns and statues.

One of the tombs

The entry to the forum

 A few summers ago, the local archaeologists unexpectedly hit mosaic flooring. Previously unseen at the site, they were at first thought to belong to several different residential structures. Upon further excavation, though, it was determined that all the flooring is conjoined in one enormous residence. The domus is built using classical Roman architectural tenets, and has an impluvium, garden area, dining room, and more. They are continuing to uncover wonderful mosaics, but are somewhat stymied by the fact that some farmer in the 1800s plunked a grain mill directly on top of some of the mosaics. Since these could also arguably have some historical value, they are unclear about what they should/can remove in order to expose what might be ruined Roman flooring (thanks to our farmer) underneath. Decisions, decisions!

The domus. The oblique rectangle at top-right was a 19th-century
paving job directly over Roman mosaics used for grain processing.

This was the dining room. At the left, you can see a sideways
view of an "idealized cityscape"

This was the impluvium, where rainwater fell through the central
courtyard into a pool for household use. The hole was drainage
into underground storage.

Closeup of the impluvium mosaic work

Rich homeowners leased out storefronts; this
would have been something like that.
Note the brick herringbone paving (very common and cheap)

Closeup of the herringbone

This is the 19th-century paving. Our local archaeologist is not a fan.

A different view of the dining room's mosaics

Closeup of the idealized city

Getting ready to demo the drone (used to give indications of
likely spots for excavation)

This church dates to the 11th century.
It was built using locally scavenged materials.

The little white dot against the far hills is Narni's fortress (to the left of center)

This Roman structure (purpose unknown) was used as a
farmhouse (including housing animals) until the 1950s.

The stones are placed on the diagonal for anti-seismic purposes.

Drone in flight!

Part of the Via Flaminia, with the judicial building and entrance
to the Forum on the left

We also finally sort-of saw the thermal baths. These are located just on the outskirts of town, and are protected by a large roof and tarps when not under active excavation; the excavation is being carried out by a university in the US (I'm sorry, but don't remember which one), and is largely done during the summer. Hence its closure for the season.

The thermal baths

At the season's end, the mosaics will have to be covered with a fairly thick layer of earth to protect them from the freeze/thaw cycle. Even one year's cycle can irrevocably damage these fragile tiles. It was unclear whether they would re-expose them next year for visitors' enjoyment or not.

After a quick visit to the displayed artifacts, our brains were full, and it was time to head home.

Dunno where this cow came from precisely, but I liked it.

This fellow was about 7" high and would have been a ceiling decoration, probably

I thought the porcelain ware in the center was exquisite.

Some of the colors that would have been used.

Love,

Alexandra