Palestrina
Date Visited: 11 Nov 1999
Karina's Documentation
Date: 2nd-1st century BC (turn of century)
'Theatrical space' below porticus summa cavea.
But present day cavea is a reconstruction
View of 'cavea' as it is today.
No space for a scaenae frons. (Coarelli suggests
a raised wooden structure used)
Behind and above adjoining porticus summa cavea is
a tholos temple to Fortuna Fertility.
In right niche of lower terrace looking West is a well of
Fortuna Chthonic (oracular).
Visible within Barberini palace on site of porticus summa
cavea are foundations of tholos and surrounding wall
in opus reticolatum c. 1.5 ft. between the two, and
a deep channel.
Surrounding wall:
a retaining wall, including (later?)
drainage apertures into channel from hillside.
and/or demarcates temenos
and/or: is external wall and/or colonnade
section of tholos (in which case, visible foundations are
inner wall and/or earlier, smaller tholos)
Niche (medieval) carved into v. rough foundations.
two-thirds of the way up the opus retic. wall is
a stratum of foundation-type material. Is possibly
the level at which opus retic. wall links to inner wall
(as in museum's model).
Some earthquake / landslip damage visible in opus retic.
wall.
Central columns of double-porticus summa cavea are
visible through museum floor.
Foundation includes apse and broader curve (mirrored by
/ mirroring that of) opus retic. wall (intersected
by later wall to North of apse.)
Question: Did temple have 1 or 2 levels? (i.e.
would it have been visible from below porticus summa
cavea?) (Karina notes: There are two different
ways of reconstructing the building.)
Below cavea is highly orgnised and
architecturally unified series of terraces, apses, ramps,
buildings.
Significance re. TPP
Combination of cavea, porticus summa cavea, temple
(at 'apex' of cavea) in pyramid-like vertical formation.
Theatre and porticus summa cavea and
temple are at summit of unified architectural complex.
Ambiguity of 'theatrical space' akin
to ambiguity re. fn. of TP cavea: theatre, or steps up to
the temple?
Cicero De Divinatione II.41 re. rites.
Cicero Pro Plancio XXVI and XXIII re. use of theatrical
space.
Model of architectural complex at Palestrina, in museum
housed in porticus summa cavea.
Views of the model of the architectural
complex at Palestrina
Views of the model of the architectural
complex at Palestrina
Views of the model of the architectural
complex at Palestrina
Notes from Teatri Greci e Romani
Palestrina
Praeneste
Regio I, Latium et Campania
Structure in the form of a theatre cavea. Urban,
it belongs to the sanctuary of Fortuna Primigenia.
It dates to the 2nd century B.C. The steps, which
were destroyed in the fourteenth century, were partly
reconstructed in the seventeenth century, when the monument
was transformed into a building. The construction
of the well at the centre of the 'orchestra' is also attributed
to this transformation.
The 'cavea' rises over the 'curtain' terrace. A
monumental facade level with the wall of the analemmata
forms a link between the level of the 'curtain' terrace
and that of 'the orchestra', and goes on to join the porticoes
enclosing the terrace. Sic barrel vaults open onto
the facade. In the centre the facade is thought
to have been occupied by a flight of steps providing access
to the 'orchestra'. The cavea ends higher up with
a portico in summa gradatione with two rows of
colunms covered by concentric barrel vaults, under which
there ran a cryptoporticus. Behind this, on a central
axis, there is a circular templet. There was no
constructed stage building.
Some scholars (Coarelli) consider the structure to be
a theatre proper and believe that a wooden scaena
must have been assembled each time (this is also confirmed
by Cicero, Pro Plancio 26, 23). This interpretatoin,
which finds support in the many theatre caveas bereft
of a fixed stage building, is contradicted by the lack
of space available for assembling the scaena and
for the actors to perform. The semicircular area
of the orchesta is suddenly interupted and preceded only
by a flight of steps providing access. It is more
probable that this complex consisted of a simple monumental
tier of steps in the form of a theatre cavea (as Fasolo,
Gullini and Hanson maintain) that could indeed be used
for sacred ceremonies but not for theatrical performances.
State of preservation:
restored, it is used as a flight of steps providing access
to the museum. Remains of the portico in summa
cavea can be seen inside Palazzo Barberini.
The cavea steps are restored, and the orchestra is partly
ocupied by a well.
Measurements:
diameter of the cavea: 59 m.
Current utilisation of the theatre:
it is used for occasional cultural events in the summer.
Current capacity:
500 seats.
Bibliography
F.FASOLO, G. GULLINI Il santuario della Fortuna Primigenia
a Palestrina, Roma 1953, pp. 183-192.
J.A.HANSON, Roman theater-temples,
Princeton 1959, pp.34-36.
G. FORNI 1970, s.v. Teatro.
F. COARELLI, Lazio, Bari 1984, pp.144-146.
Further Bibliography
F. COARELLI I santuari del Lazio de eta republicana
Rome 1987, p.35 ff.
H. KAHLER Das Fortuna helligtum von Palestrina, Praeneste
(Publ?) 1958
H. KAHLER Recensione a Fasolo - Gullini. "Il
santuario della Fortuna Primigenia a Palestrina" Gnomon
XXX fasc. 5, 1958, pp.366-383.
