Un pavimento musivo a contatto con il mare a Ostia

Since 2007 the Ostia Marina Project has been carrying out stratigraphic investigations in some strategic areas of the ancient suburban district of Ostia. During the excavation campaigns, still in progress, it has been possible to find a series of decorated pavements from various buildings, datable between 2nd and 5th century A.D. In particular, it has been possible to document some floors of the Building of Two Staircases (IV, ix, 6), a commercial and residential building erected during the Hadrian’s reign and characterized by a long continuity of use, until the second quarter of the 5th century A.D. During the 2019 campaign, some fragments of a new black and white mosaic were found, located in a room of the southern wing of the structure. This pavement was almost totally destroyed by the effects of the wavy way of the sea. Following the abandonment and partial collapse of the building, after the year 1000, the sea eroded many of the ruins located along the shore.