The troubled history of the former wash houses of Ostia Antica

Not far from the Renaissance village, in via della Gente Salinatoria, there is one of the most important buildings for its historical and social value, the ancient wash houses of Ostia Antica, known as “Le Fontane”. The building was designed by the architect Raffaele De Vico in 1931, as part of the interventions for the arrangement of the gardens adjacent to the Borgo di Ostia Antica, first called gardens of Porto and later Parco dei Ravennati. It is one of the first buildings made of reinforced concrete, decorated with square section columns of classical inspiration.

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Maria Rita Bertoncini

Why did you decide to become a tour guide?

I qualified as a tour guide in Rome, the city where I have lived for ten years, despite having trained as an archaeologist in Padua. When I moved to Rome, for me it was a bit like the realization of a dream. Of course, studying archeology I had already visited the city several times, but experiencing it was another matter entirely. I spent all my free time visiting archaeological sites and museums but I also began to get passionate about Raphael, Michelangelo, Caravaggio, the stories of noble families and the palaces of Renaissance and Baroque Rome.
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Stefania Gialdroni

Why did you decide to become a tour guide?

Since I can remember it, I have always loved history and art. The ingenuity and talent of the men who preceded us, and which manifests itself in extraordinary works of art and architecture, give me a sense of security, an awareness of my identity. At school I loved art history lessons and since I was a teenager I tortured relatives visiting Rome to show them its beauty. I started law studies but my passion for history did not leave me: I chose a precise path, which led me to an international doctorate in History of law.
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Paola Salvatori

Why did you decide to become a tour guide?

Being born in a city like Rome meant a lot to me: the passion also reflects the habits of my family which, having been Roman for generations, has considerably influenced my personal perception of the city. The playground of my childhood was Villa Celimontana, in Villa Borghese we went by bicycle, with skates, to ride a pony. We reached the park near the house, the one with the big tower around which we played hide and seek: ah yes! The Mausoleum of the Gordians.
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The Borgo di Ostia Antica: a jewel suspended in time

This last article closes the column on the monuments of the Borgo di Ostia Antica. The ancient village owes its origin to the decline of Ostia Antica. In the Middle Ages, in fact, the city was gradually abandoned and a modest village was built behind it, around the church dedicated to Sant’Aurea. This first inhabited nucleus took the name of “Gregoriopoli”, from its founder Gregorio IV. The pontiff, in the ninth century, decided to protect the few inhabitants by building a fortification that could defend them from Saracen raids.

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Winckelmann at the Capitoline Museums until 22.04.2018

The exhibition “The Treasure of Antiquities. Winckelmann and the Capitoline Museum in eighteenth-century Rome “, at the Capitoline Museums from 7 December 2017 to 22 April 2018, intends to celebrate the founding father of modern archeology, on the occasion of the 300th anniversary of his birth (9 December 1717) and the 250th anniversary of his death (June 8, 1768).

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“Trajan. Building the Empire, creating Europe “: unmissable exhibition at the Mercati di Traiano (until 16.09.18)

On the occasion of the 1900th anniversary of Trajan’s death, Rome pays homage to this great emperor with the exhibition “Traiano. Building the empire, creating Europe “, which can be visited until 16 September 2018 at the Mercati di Traiano.

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Study day… Let me introduce you to a museum. Archeology Public Museums

On December 14, 2017, the Study Day was held at the Roma Tre University – School of Literature, Philosophy and Languages ​​”… I present you a museum. Archeology Public Museums “promoted by the History of Archeology and Roman Art course, in collaboration with ICOM-Lazio and the museums involved.

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