City Walls in Late Antiquity: An Empire Wide Perspective

The construction of urban defences was one of the hallmarks of the late Roman and late-antique periods (300–600 AD) throughout the western and eastern empire. City walls were the most significant construction projects of their time and they redefined the urban landscape. Their appearance and monumental scale, as well as the cost of labour and material, are easily comparable to projects from the High Empire; however, urban circuits provided late-antique towns with a new means of self-representation. While their final appearance and construction techniques varied greatly, the cost involved and the dramatic impact that such projects had on the urban topography of late-antique cities mark city walls as one of the most important urban initiatives of the period. To-date, research on city walls in the two halves of the empire has highlighted chronological and regional variations, enabling scholars to rethink how and why urban circuits were built and functioned in Late Antiquity. Although these developments have made a significant contribution to the understanding of late-antique city walls, studies are often concerned with one single monument/small group of monuments or a particular region, and the issues raised do not usually lead to a broader perspective, creating an artificial divide between east and west. It is this broader understanding that this book seeks to provide. The volume and its contributions arise from a conference held at the British School at Rome and the Swedish Institute of Classical Studies in Rome on June 20-21, 2018. It includes articles from world-leading experts in late-antique history and archaeology and is based around important themes that emerged at the conference, such as construction, spolia-use, late-antique architecture, culture and urbanism, empire-wide changes in Late Antiquity, and the perception of this practice by local inhabitants. Contents list Preface – Emanuele E. Intagliata, Christopher Courault and Simon J. Barker Part 1. New Approaches to the Study of Late-Antique Walls Ch. 1 – Emanuele E. Intagliata, Christopher Courault and Simon J. Barker Approaching late-antique city walls through an Empire-wide perspective Ch. 2 – Carmen Fernández-Ochoa, Angel Morillo Late Roman city walls in Hispania. A reappraisal Ch. 3 – Adriaan De Man The City Walls of Lusitania revisited: a current perspective Ch. 4 – Christopher Courault The evolution of Cordoba’s city walls in Late Antiquity. New research perspectives. Part 2. Construction Techniques Ch. 5 – Cristina-Georgeta Alexandrescu Defence, identity and transformation in the Late Roman cities from Scythia minor: inherited knowledge in new building projects Ch. 6 – Pierre-Antoine Lamy, Mathieu Ribolet Dismantling, re-carving and re-using: some observations about the late city-wall of Agedincum Ch. 7 – James R. Snyder Defending a New Capital: Ravenna’s Circuit Wall and the Revival of the Construction Industry in Late Antiquity Part 3. Regional Styles and Trends Ch. 8 – James Crow Power and Glory: ceremonial gates in Constantinople and the Balkans: prototypes and legacy Ch. 9 – Ayşe Dalyancı-Berns 6 An exceptional city wall? Re-thinking the fortifications of Nicaea in an empire-wide context Ch. 10 – Marc Heijmans The late Roman city walls in southern Gaul Part 4. City Walls in Times of Conflict and Peace Ch. 11 – Catharine Hof The revivification of earthen outworks in the eastern and southern empire by the example of Resafa/Syria Ch. 12 – Simon Esmonde Cleary Late Roman city walls in Gaul: urban monument or state installation? Ch. 13 – Sylvie Blétry Halabiya-Zenobia: a city fortress on the Euphrates. The case of the evolution of its fortification system Part 5. The Afterlife of Late-Antique Walls Ch. 14 – Francesco Maria Cifarelli, Federica Colaiacomo The Wall Circuit of Segni in Late Antiquity: Urban and Topographic Issues Ch. 15 – Jon Frey Living in the shadow of the past: the afterlife of the Byzantine fortress at Isthmia Ch. 16 – Michael Greenhalgh Walls in Asia Minor in the accounts of European travelers Conclusion – Emanuele E. Intagliata, Christopher Courault and Simon J. Barker La construction de fortifications urbaines a été l'une des caractéristiques de la fin de la période romaine et de l'Antiquité tardive (300-600 après J.-C.) dans tout l'empire occidental et oriental. Les murs de la ville étaient les projets de construction les plus importants de cette époque et ils redéfinissaient le paysage urbain. Leur aspect et leur échelle monumentale, ainsi que le coût de la main-d'œuvre et des matériaux, sont facilement comparables aux projets du Haut Empire ; cependant, les réseaux urbains ont fourni aux villes de l'Antiquité tardive un nouveau moyen d'autoreprésentation. Bien que leur aspect final et les techniques de construction varient considérablement, le coût engendré et l'impact spectaculaire que de tels projets ont eu sur la topographie urbaine des villes de l'Antiquité tardive font des fortifications urbaines l'une des plus importantes réalisations urbaines de la période. À ce jour, les recherches sur les fortifications des villes des deux parties de l'empire ont mis en évidence des variations chronologiques et régionales, permettant aux chercheurs de repenser comment et pourquoi les réseaux urbains étaient construits et fonctionnaient dans l'Antiquité tardive. Bien que ces recherches aient contribué de manière significative à la compréhension des fortifications des villes de l'Antiquité tardive, les études portent souvent sur un seul monument/petit groupe de monuments ou sur une région particulière, et les questions soulevées ne conduisent généralement pas à une perspective plus large, créant une division artificielle entre l'est et l'ouest. C'est cette compréhension plus large que ce livre cherche à présenter. L'ouvrage avec ses contributions sont issus d'une conférence tenue à la British School à Rome et à l'Institut suédois d'études classiques à Rome les 20 et 21 juin 2018. Il comprend des articles d'experts de renommée mondiale en histoire et en archéologie de l'Antiquité tardive et s'articule autour de thèmes importants qui ont été abordés lors de la conférence, tels que la construction, l'utilisation de la spolia, l'architecture de l'Antiquité tardive, la culture et l'urbanisme, les changements à l'échelle de l'empire dans l'Antiquité tardive et la perception de cette pratique par les habitants locaux The construction of urban defences was one of the hallmarks of the late Roman and late antique periods (300-600 AD) throughout the western and eastern empire. City walls were the most significant construction projects of their time and they redefined the urban landscape. Their appearance and monumental scale, as well as the cost of labour and material, are easily comparable to projects from the High Empire; however, urban circuits provided late-antique towns with a new means of self-representation. While their final appearance and construction techniques varied greatly, the cost involved and the dramatic impact that such projects had on the urban topography of late-antique cities mark city walls as one of the most important urban initiatives of the period. To-date, research on city walls in the two halves of the empire has highlighted chronological and regional variations, enabling scholars to rethink how and why urban circuits were built and functioned in Late Antiquity. Although these developments have made a significant contribution to the understanding of late-antique city walls, studies are often concerned with one single monument/small group of monuments or a particular region, and the issues raised do not usually lead to a broader perspective, creating an artificial divide between east and west. It is this broader understanding that this book seeks to provide. The volume and its contributions arise from a conference held at the British School at Rome and the Swedish Institute of Classical Studies in Rome on June 20-21, 2018. It includes articles from world -leading experts in late-antique history and archaeology and is based around important themes that emerged at the conference, such as construction, spolia-use, late-antique architecture, culture and urbanism, empire-wide changes in Late Antiquity, and the perception of this practice by local inhabitants Cover Book Title Copyright Table of Contents Contributors Acknowledgements Preface : Emanuele E. Intagliata, Simon J. Barker, and Christopher Courault 1. Approaching late antique city walls with an empire-wide perspective : Emanuele E. Intagliata, Christopher Courault, and Simon J. Barker Section A. Regional trends 2. Late Roman urban walls in Hispania: a reappraisal1 : Carmen Fernández Ochoa and Ángel Morillo 3. The city walls of Lusitania revisited: a current perspective : Adriaan De Man 4. Urban defences in late Roman Gaul: civic monuments or state installations : Simon Esmonde Cleary 5. The late Roman city walls in southern Gaul : Marc Heijmans Section B. City walls in old and new capitals 6. Power and glory: ceremonial gates in Constantinople and the Balkans: prototypes and legacy : James Crow 7. An exceptional city wall? Re-thinking the fortificationsof Nicaea in an empire-wide contextAyşe Dalyancı-Berns 8. Defending a new capital: Ravenna, Classe, and the revival of the construction industry in late antiquity : J. Riley Snyder Section C. Case studies: West and East 9. Dismantling, re-carving, and re-using: some observations about the late antique city wall of Agedincum : Pierre-Antoine Lamy and Mathieu Ribolet 10. A statement on the late antique city walls of Córdoba : Christopher Courault 11. The wall circuit of Segni in late antiquity: urban and topographic issues : Francesco Maria Cifarelli and Federica Colaiacomo 12. The revivification of earthen outworks in the late Eastern Empire: the case study of Resafa, Syria : Catharine Hof 13. The fortifications of Zenobia reinterpreted : Sylvie Blétry Section D. The afterlife of city walls 14. Disuse, re-use, and misuse of the early Byzantine fortress at Isthmia : Jon M. Frey 15. Popes, senators, barons, and popes again: the Aurelian wall from the twelfth to the fifteenth centuries : Hendrik Dey