Tomb 18Isola Sacra Menu

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tomb 18 is on the south side bounded by the burial chamber of tomb 16 and was, originally, looking out over the Via Severiana. Later tomb 17 was built in front of it. The entrance, now looking out on the back wall of tomb 17, can only be reached via a passageway between tombs 17 and 19. The tomb, built about 170 AD, is constructed in small yellow bricks. An inscription fails and also the two terracotta reliefs which once were attached next to the inscription are missing.

The burial chamber measures 3,29 x 2,86 metres and has two rows of arcosolia and one row of small niches. The entrance wall too is equipped with niches.
The grave was built for a mixed form of burial. The arcosolia were closed on the front side with painted plaster. According to Professor Calza there was a painting in the central niche on the right wall of a woman wearing a mantle.
In the rectangular niche on the right wall a painting was found of a naked winged Cupid with a purple scarf (now in the museum of Ostia).
Besides that you can still see several paintings of flowers. The decorations are of good quality and date clearly from a time of prosperity (170 - 180 AD).
Beneath the floor, which is not preserved, four formae were brought to light.

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Sources
• Russel Meigs - Roman Ostia, At the Clarendon Press 1973
• Guido Calza - Necropoli nell'Isola Sacra'(1940)
• Dr. Jan Theo Bakker.
• Hilding Thylander - Inscriptions du port d'Ostie (Lund C W K Gleerup 1952).
• Ida Baldassarre, Irene Bragantini, Chiara Morselli and Franc Taglietti - Necropoli di Porto, Isola Sacra (Roma 1996).