Description
Book SynopsisThe Campus Martius began as a military training ground but later became filled with some of the most extraordinary republican and imperial structures conceived by Roman patrons and architects. This book explores the factors that contributed to the transformation of the site from an occasionally visited space to a crowded center of daily activity.
Trade Review'Campus Martius by Paul W. Jacobs, II and Diane Atnally Conlin expertly reveals how the ancients transformed this expansive plain outside Rome into an architectural showcase. Strabo said the region 'affords a spectacle that one can hardly draw away from'; the same could be said of this well-written, engaging book.' Diane Favro, University of California, Los Angeles
'Jacobs and Conlin have produced a meticulously researched and richly detailed account of the Campus Martius' topographical history and development from the regal period through its decline and transformation in the medieval and early modern eras. Their book is the first definitive assessment in English of this vibrant component of ancient Rome's monumental landscape.' Eric R. Varner, Emory University, Atlanta
'This useful contribution to the study of ancient Roman topography provides a highly readable assessment of one of the city's most important regions, tracing its dramatic evolution from the regal period to the late empire.' Penelope Davies, University of Texas, Austin
Table of Contents1. 'The size of the plain is remarkable': defining the limits of the Campus Martius in time and space; 2. Gathering troops in the war god's field; 3. 'Very costly temples': the Campus Martius and republican temple construction; 4. 'Chariot races', 'three theatres', 'an amphitheatre' and more: entertainment in the Campus Martius; 5. 'Colonnades about it in very great numbers': the porticoes of the Campus Martius; 6. Between the Aqua Virgo and the Tiber: water and the Field of Mars; 7. 'A zeal for buildings': reshaping of the space by the emperors; 8. Conclusion: 'the rest of the city a mere accessory'; Appendix A: chronology of development in the Campus Martius to the early fourth century CE; Appendix B: glossary of architectural terms.
