Guided in their navigation by the North-South Pier and the Lanterna Quay, after passing through the Basin of Claudius, the ships converged on the Basin of Trajan, entering a wide internal navigation channel that ran along the northern side of the Trajan's Warehouses on one side and the Lanterna...
Situated on the western side of the Imperial Palace, facing the basin of Claudius, the so-called Terrace of Trajan, about 200 meters in length, had a magnificent colonnade, no longer conserved. The façade visible today is marked by a line of small brick arches on travertine corbels. The back...
From this position, one can see the service corridor located behind the façade of the Imperial Palace. Extending to the east of this corridor, on ground-floor level, is an intricate series of service rooms that presumably replicated the first-storey arrangement; the circular base of a bread...
At this point there is a well-conserved section of pier belonging to the basin of Claudius, against which, during the Age of Trajan (98-117 AD), the buildings constituting this part of the Imperial Palace – the Castellum Aquae and the industrial Peristilium – were placed. Immediately to the...
Rising at the northeast end of the Imperial Palace is a Castellum Aquae (water distribution cistern) in opus mixtum, from the Age of Trajan (98-117 AD), organized on three levels: a large service environment, still accessible, is located on the ground floor, while the first and second storeys...
Organized around an upper peristyle called a residential Peristilium, this residential complex had rooms with floors in opus sectile, the preparatory layers of which remain, and a latrine. The short side of the peristyle’s portico, of which the lower portions of the two corner pillars and a...
In the unbuilt space between the Imperial Palace and the Navalia, a small amphitheatre was built in the Severan Age 193-235 AD, of which two concentric foundations, cast in formwork and visible especially along the modern path, remain; a third foundation most likely created an exedra....
The Navalia were intended for the sheltering and maintenance of military vessels, as shown by the discovery of bronze ship nails from the Age of Trajan (98-117 AD). The complex, 240 metres in length, consisted of three large, identical modular sections facing both basins, with a corridor 4.5...
Built in the second half of the 5th century AD, the Late Antique walls in this sector recycle the northern front of the Navalia. They were built by obliterating all the openings in the original building with a masonry structure endowed with a face of recycled bricks arranged with great care,...
Built in continuity with the Portico of Claudius, the pier had the function of protecting the loading and unloading areas around the warehouses from waves and, thanks to the long colonnade that ran its length, contributed to the monumentalization of the inner harbour. The first section of the...
Portus was the Roman Empire’s main seaport, essential for the supply of goods from the entire Mediterranean. At its maximum extent, the complex covered an area of about 350 hectares. The first harbour installation, construction for which was begun by Emperor Claudius in 42 AD, was inaugurated...
In the Age of Constantine, between 313 and 314 AD, Portus achieved complete administrative autonomy and took the name of civitas Flavia Costantiniana Portuensis. Home to a thriving Christian community, the city became a diocese. The first phase of the life of the Basilica Portuense and the...
Brought to light in 1933 during the reclamation works carried out by Prince Giovanni Torlonia, this monumental portico is perpendicularly linked to the Colonnaded Road. The travertine columns, in shafts crudely carved in “rustic ashlar” style, originally also ran around the other three...
The wet dock is a very large, rectangular basin surrounded on three sides by Trajan’s Warehouses. Already planned in the original design of the Harbour of Claudius to function as an inner basin, it saw at least two major construction phases: the first during the reigns of Claudius and Nero...
Although this large monumental complex has been known since the second half of the 16th century, only recently has it been subjected to planned archaeological investigations; built in the Age of Trajan on Claudian-era piers and situated between the basins of the Harbours of Claudius and Trajan,...
Starting from the 4th century AD, the Imperial Palace underwent a profound transformation. During this phase, the most significant intervention was the complete demolition of the amphitheatre, of which only its foundations were spared, covered by a levelling layer of sand and construction...
The archaeological area of the Harbours of Claudius and Trajan is marked by a strong presence of nature quite evident in both its flora and fauna. Portus is a complex ecosystem, thanks to is particular condition: a vast area – even vaster when also considering the adjacent Oasi di Porto with...