The portico of Octavia was created by Augustus (27-23 B.C.) who restructured the earlier portico of Metellus opposite the Circus Flaminius and rededicated the monument to his sister Octavia. The Metellan construction (146 B.C.) was the first quadriportico in the city. The great podium in opus quadratum and incertum is partially known. In its interior were the temples of Jupiter Statoris and Juno Regina. The Augustan alterations virtually maintained the same dimensions but monumentalised the southern entrance which was enlarged by the addition of the propylaeum and a projecting structure in front of it. Further restoration, also of a substantial nature, was carried out under Septimius Severus at the beginning of the 3rd century A.D.; most of the remains that are visible today are from that phase. In the following centuries the area underwent great transformations linked to the use of the area for religious (in the 8th century the church of S. Angelo in Pescheria was founded) and civil purposes (the creation of the fish market). The investigations undertaken in 2000-2001 clarified the dimensions and characteristics of the forepart of the Augustan podium. A large part of the 11th-12th century cemetery connected to the church was also uncovered. The tombs, mostly intact, in masonry or multiple earthen graves, belonged to individuals of various ages and were covered with stone slabs. The infant burials were grouped together in one sector. There was no excavation in 2005 but static monitoring was undertaken on the propylaeum. (MiBAC)

In recent years a series of archaeological interventions in the Portico d’Ottavia which have considerably improved the comprehension and fruition of the monument. In fact, at present most of the front part of the portico, with the central entrance propylaeum, is visible. Furthermore, numerous structures came to light relating to medieval interventions linked to the church of Sant’Angelo in Pescheria. The ongoing excavation, begun in 2010, in the interior of the _propylaeum_, has produced important results showing that this was a cemetery church and also revealed some elements from earlier phases. Excavation of the tombs (which cut into the Roman structure) revealed several sections of wall, made up of an _opus caementicium_ core and _opus incertum_ facing. These belonged to the monumental entrance of the Republican building erected by _Metellus_ sometime around the mid-2nd century B.C. This find confirmed for the rear area what had already been documented for the anterior facade: in the Republican period the building did not have a projecting propylaeum, but the entrance must certainly have had a monumental appearance. In fact, the walls of the base, which were aligned with those of the portico, were of a thickness suggesting they supported a much heavier and more imposing structure than that of the wings. Also of interest was the discovery of a further stretch of very thick wall, again with _opus incertum_ facing, abutting the perimeter wall towards the interior of the _quadriporticus_. Further data came to light regarding the Augustan phase of the monument, in particular the discovery of several stretches of the front and back wall of the propylaeum’s base highlighted the differences in construction technique and use of materials. For the Severan period the phenomenon of reusing earlier materials was confirmed. In the medieval period the construction of the church caused large-scale changes. The excavation has documented the presence of an uninterrupted network of tombs across all of the investigated area, except for the space in front of the central _intercolumnium_. Nineteen tombs were identified (to date 8 fully and 4 partially excavated). The stratigraphy was far more complex and rich in finds than the burials already known from the propylaeum, despite the presence of a large robber trench. The tombs were quite ‘regular’ in size (50-93 cm wide and 200-220 cm long), on the same alignment as the Roman walls, but not uniformly aligned among themselves. The depth was also variable. With the exception of one earth grave all the tombs were multiple burials inside ‘a cassone’ tombs. Some were ossuaries with bones in secondary deposition, other contained individuals in primary deposition, some placed side by side and almost always accompanied by infant remains. Most of the graves lined in moderately good quality brick, sometimes with reused marble inserts. Some tombs also had stone dividing walls. The cemetery chronology seems to fall between the end of the 10th and beginning of the 12th century, however study of the pottery and numerous coins found will further define this dating.