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Series Number
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535
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Title
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Archaeological Research at the Sanctuary of Venus in Pompeii:
Interim Report of the 2018-2019 Seasons of the
Venus Pompeiana Project
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Date of Publication
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2022
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Abstract
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As part of the new cycle of archaeological research promoted by the Archaeological Park of Pompeii in the Sanctuary and Temple of Venus (VIII.1.3), a team from Mount Allison University and the University of Missouri undertook a second and third season of fieldwork in the summers of 2018 and 2019. This report presents the stratigraphic data collected from trenches ex-cavated within the cella, in the open court E of the temple, and in the E wing of the triporticus that surrounded it. The results have allowed us to further define the spatial organization of the area prior to the construction of the monumental sanctuary, first uncovered in 2017, revealing more remains of Samnite-era buildings that occupied elongated city blocks which were for-mally developed during the 2nd century BCE and repurposed in the early 1st century BCE, possibly for commercial functions. Based on finds from the obliteration sequence of these features and the surviving architectural decoration, the erection of the temple and triporticus can be securely dated to the late 1st century BCE, thus undermining previous reconstructions that vari-ously assigned the first building phase to the Late Samnite, Sullan or Caesarian periods.
