Daily Updates
Week Four: Oct. 14
14 October. Courtney reporting: This morning we arose bright and early a few miles outside of the town of Terracina. Those of us lucky enough to have west facing rooms, might have taken our first steps of the morning out onto our balconies facing the vast Mediterranean. By 8:30 we were on the bus headed for the center of town. We took an early morning hike up to the ancient forum, a bit of a trudge but worthwhile. Modern buildings have been built up around the forum but the Roman Imperial paving is still exposed and in excellent shape. Nearby there are a few impressive temples and a theater in fairly good condition. But the main attraction in Terracina is an expansive hilltop sanctuary identified (probably incorrectly) as the Temple of Jupiter Anxur. This was a pilgrimage site in ancient times; visitors would come from miles around to visit the oracle at the peak of this hill. Fortunately for us, modern advancements (i.e. combustion) allowed us to make the ascent in our comfortably air conditioned mini-bus. Some time between 150 & 80 B.C. the Romans built a huge bastion and temple on the site. The bastion is one of the great early works in cement from the Roman world and can be seen from miles away. When we took our leave of Terracina we headed for Sperlonga, the site of one of Tiberius’ many country villas. This particular villa gets a lot of scholarly attention due to an extremely elaborate outdoor dining area, the Grotto of Tiberius. The dining area faced into a cave right on the shore, the sea behind the diners. The dining area was surrounded by a fishpond that continued in the bottom of the cave. Inside this cave were once four sculptural groups of outstanding quality (now they rest in the museum on the site). These sculptural groups are scenes from Homeric tales and are terrific examples of Hellenistic style sculpture. Appropriately this is where we chose to break for lunch. Our next stop for the day was in Benevento. We drove for many hours to reach this town, but the long haul was worthwhile. The students were rewarded with a chance to see the famous Arch of Trajan. Covered in figural sculpture, the arch was commissioned by the Senate to commemorate the reign of the emperor Trajan. We spent a few hours examining this piece of art. As the light was running out, we finally headed for our hotel. We rolled into the hotel around 6:45. Though some students were complaining about the long day, I believe all agreed that it was an interesting day, full of academic enrichment. And anything that doesn’t kill us will only make us smarter, right?
14 October. The Roman Forum of ancient Terracina
14 October. The Roman Forum of ancient Terracina
14 October. The Roman Forum of ancient Terracina
14 October. The Roman Forum of ancient Terracina with its original paving
14 October. One of the letters on the pavement from the inscription, "Aulus Aemilius, son of Aulus, paved the space"
14 October. Walls from one of the temples: note the opus reticulatum, or diamond shaped facing stones
14 October. Remnants of the ancient Capitolium can still be seen in the modern building
14 October. New excavations have revealed a Greek theater
14 October. An arch over the Via Appia which would have led to Rome
14 October. View from the sanctuary above Terracina
14 October. View from the sanctuary above Terracina
14 October. FSP heads floating through the arcades
14 October. Standing by the terrace walls of the sanctuary
14 October. One of the massive barrel vaults of the crypto porticus
14 October. Taking some notes at Speralonga
14 October. The restoration of one of the sculpture groups in the grotto dining room: the blinding of Polyphemus
14 October. The restoration of one of the sculpture groups in the grotto dining room: the blinding of Polyphemus
14 October. Original sculpture from the Blinding of Polyphemus group
14 October. Original sculpture from the Blinding of Polyphemus group
14 October. Original sculpture from the Blinding of Polyphemus group
14 October. Original sculpture from the Blinding of Polyphemus group: Polyphemus' hand
14 October. Original sculpture from the Blinding of Polyphemus group: Polyphemus' foot
14 October. Another sculptural group from the grotto: Skylla and Charybdis
14 October. Skylla and Charybdis
14 October. Skylla and Charybdis: a detail
14 October. Skylla and Charybdis: a detail
14 October. A nice exhibit of a bronze cista and some women's cosmetics
14 October. Tiberius' grotto
14 October. Tiberius' grotto
14 October. Just beyond the grotto
14 October. The Arch of Trajan in Beneventum
14 October. A panel from the arch
14 October. Standing beneath the arch and looking up at the barrel vault
14 October. An inside panel from the arch with personifications of cities and provinces
14 October. Studying the arch
14 October. Another panel from the arch: note the elaborate cornice