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AIAC_966 - Monte Testaccio - 2004
The 2004 campaign excavated the southern zone of Monte Testaccio, at the same height as the 2003 excavation (232m a.s.l.), where material dating to the years 178-179 A.D. were found. Some of the pottery fragments bore epigraphic evidence: stamps, _tituli picti_ and graffiti.
The surface layer, to a depth of 45 cm, was made up of _humus_ mixed with collapsed material of the 3rd century A.D. At this depth, in the north-western corner of the excavation, was a wall, on a north/west-south-east alignment, comprised of large fragments of Dressel 20 _amphorae_. In the excavation area outside the wall, at a depth of – 160 cm, was a layer of crushed material which may have been a floor. At – 180 cm the remains of _amphorae_ which could be easily re-constructed were found. It appeared that the _amphorae_ had been placed along the outer front of the wall, even if in an unorganised fashion. It can be suggested that this row constituted one of the wall’s foundation offsets. The material outside the wall was excavated to a depth of – 180 cm, which in terms of typology corresponds to the second half of the 2nd century A.D., and provided a _terminus ante quem _for the wall itself through finds of _tituli picti delta_, one of which probably datable to 151 A.D. Inside the wall none of the _tituli delta_ have consular dates, thus the _terminus ante quem_ is 145 A.D. (the date when they started to appear). The characteristics of the _amphorae_ date them to the Hadrianic period. From the – 180 cm level down to – 200 cm crushed material appeared attributable to a different floor. As the wall was lost at – 180 cm, it was not possible to determine whether this level constituted the base of the wall or the wall was at a lower depth further on.
Below the depth of – 240 cm another probable floor appeared and at – 320 cm Dressel 20 _amphorae_ were found. The study of the amphora stamps produced two different groups: those from inside the wall and those from outside. Amongst the first group were those from _Vinginensis_ (Alcalà del Fio, Seville), known from the mid 2nd century A.D. onwards. In the second group were stamps of the CIALB group, originally from Malpica along the river Genil (Palma del Rio, Cordova) of mid 2nd century A.D. date. The same phenomenon occurred for the _tituli beta_ amongst which were the names of individuals known in the 2nd century A.D., including members of the _gens Valerii_, the _gens Caecilii_, the _gens Segolatii_ or _Vibii_. (MiBAC)
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AIAC_966 - Monte Testaccio - 2005
The 2005 campaign was motivated by the need to find a contact point between the Hadrianic platform, excavated in 2004, and the Antonine one, excavated in 2000.
The excavation produced material belonging to the Antonine platform, attested by finds dating to 177-179 A.D., and others dating to 174 A.D. The northern side of the trench contained material that was still in situ, whilst to the south the features were disturbed and collapsed due to surface erosion. In this area of the excavation two collapses were identified: the first reached a depth of – 1.30m from the surface; the second began at – 0.60m. Although the finds belong to the same period, that is 179 A.D., there is a difference between the _in situ_ material and that which had been moved. To a depth of – 60 cm there was a prevalence of material produced in Africa, which however diminished in the lower layers. Down to – 3.40m there was almost exclusively fragmented material from Baetica.
Most of the stamped material came from the production zone at Catria and the zone of Villar Brenes, both belonged to the _conventus_ of _Hispalis_. The quantity of stamped material of this period (174-179 A.D.) is inferior with respect to the stamped amphorae of the mid 2nd-beginning of the 3rd century A.D. The number of graffiti was also inferior, amongst these more bore names than numerals. (MiBAC)
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AIAC_966 - Monte Testaccio - 2006
The 2006 excavation investigated a sector of the north-eastern area of Monte Testaccio, above the two modern pathways. This zone was chosen with the aim of identifying the continuation of the platform, and also of finding earlier material than had so far been found during the preceding campaigns.
The excavation reached a _maximum_ depth of – 1.80m. In the surface layer a wall was found on a north-south alignment which continued beyond the trench’s eastern edge. It comprised five rows of Baetican oil _amphorae_ datable, on a typological basis to the mid 2nd century A.D. (stamps and tituli found confirmed this chronology). Outside the wall the _amphorae_ found were exclusively African, coming in particular from Tripolitania and Byzacena.
Numerous stamps were found for both types, on the whole dating to the mid 3rd century A.D. This date confirmed the presence of the platform, which dates from 230 A.D. onwards. At a depth of – 1.20m below the western edge of the excavation another row of _amphorae_ was found which may have been a wall placed on a diagonal line with respect to the first. The _amphorae_ were filled with broken sherds, according to the construction technique in use on Testaccio.
At the base of the second row of _amphorae_ was a floor level constituted by numerous fragments. In the deeper layers _tituli picti_ without consular date emerged suggesting that the level reached may be attributed to a period in which that dating system was not in use. Moreover, a _titulus_ dating to 137 A.D. was found, the earliest known so far on Testaccio. The upper part of the first wall presented material datable as far as 145 A.D.; from that date the wall divided and a second wall was created on a different alignment.
It can be hypothesised that middens existed on this site that pre-dated 137 A.D., whilst finds of materials datable to between 145 and 161 A.D., already present in higher strata, confirm the hypothesis that Testaccio was constructed using a system of stepped platforms, that were subsequently filled with later material. (MiBAC)
