Villa Romana Minori: a past revealed

Having visited Pompeii previously and more recently, MAR Positano, you can get a little spoilt when it comes to getting your Roman history fix. Pompeii is a huge architectural site: an entire maritime city in fact, a snapshot of Roman civilization, frozen in time. MAR Positano, on a much smaller scale, only a small corner of the Villa having been excavated at this time, is a beautifully presented look into Roman life.

Contents hide

1 Villa Romana Minori

6 Triclinium-nymphaeum

7 The mosaic floor

8 Terme - the spa

9 Visitor Information

Villa Romana Minori

Villa Marittima Romana Minori is none of these. Unheralded and understated, it is nonetheless a historical gem in the centre of Minori. Entry to the site is free and you are able to wander around at your leisure. However, be aware that some of the more interesting areas are actually closed to the public, which is a little disappointing. I visited the site twice – the first time some of these areas were floodlit and so you were able to get a peek inside. The second time – just darkness and I was told it was “not possible to turn the lights on”.

The Antiquarium

When you arrive at the site, you will see a small building – the Antiquarium. The Antiquarium was built in the 1960’s and is built on what remains of the villa’s upper level. It incorporates both a fish tank from the summer triclinium (dining room) and a floor with terracotta pillars – perhaps from adjoining thermal baths. You will be asked to sign a visitors book upon entering the Antiquarium. Make sure you pick up a guide in your language of choice – there are plenty of information boards spread throughout the villa but they are all in Italian.

The Antiquarium houses a great many artifacts and findings, not all of which are from the Villa but from the sea and surrounding areas too. Included in the collection are a series of wall panels not from the villa itself but possibly from an adjoining building or even another villa. A recessed wall niche (lararium): a shrine to household gods from a Roman building by Scafati is interesting. The showcases are filled with some of the elements of everyday Roman life: coins, pottery, pitchers, jugs, lids, plates, fine tableware, oil lamps, glass vases, hooks used in the making of nets and decorated bowls.

A large collection of commercial amphorae is also displayed en masse in the main room. Common in both Pompeii and Herculaneum there are three types: narrower necked ones for wine and preserved fruit and wider mouthed ones used for the trade of fermented fish sauces.

The exhibit extends outside too – some of the bigger pieces such as a mill stone and large urns are on display here. Room #2 also contains a small collection of findings: terracotta pipes, terracotta tiles and pieces of marble etc.

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You can access the ground floor of the Villa in two ways. Walk around the site to the stairs located near the original entrance to the sea or via the ancient staircase located just near the Antiquarium. This staircase has 29 steps. The risers vary in height but interestingly they also vary progressively in width from 1.37m at the top to 2.17m at the bottom. This form of design, where perspective is accentuated is known as scaenography. It is often seen in stage scenery.

The Villa

The Amalfi Coast, with its coves and natural harbours protected by steep cliffs overlooking the sea, its amazing climate and natural beauty, was a popular holiday destination for the Roman elite, many of them building residences here. Villa Marittima Romana Minori, is one such residence. Nothing is known about the owner of the Villa, except for the fact that he must have been a man of considerable wealth, culture and very good taste. Apart from the extent and aesthetics of the Villa, just getting the building materials themselves to the site by sea, would have been an extremely expensive exercise.

Villa Marittima Romana Minori, which dates back to the 1C AD (30 – 60 AD) was not discovered until 1932. A partial collapse during the renovations of a local property, led to the discovery of an underground room (#9 on the plan) belonging to the villa. Works to redirect the river also revealed other structures relating to the Villa.

Excavations did not begin until 1934. However it was not until after the flood in 1954 at which time it was buried again, that the villa was again brought to light. Houses and gardens that had been built on top of it were demolished. Rooms that had been used as cellars cleared. The result? What we see today. A well preserved ground floor of an ancient maritime Roman Villa: preserved ironically, because of the floods and debris from the houses built on top of it. Little remains of the upper level which was probably covered in wooden terraces facing the sea, except for fragments of the mosaic floor.

The Triportico

Location! Location! Location! In real estate terms – Perfect! Located on the beach, right at the point where the Regina Minor spills into the sea, its 2500m² extending along the river, into the valley – at one with nature.

Built at sea level, you will see that the Villa is constructed around a viridarium or ‘pleasure garden’, only half of which is visible at the moment. The eastern side is still covered by a private building. The garden with its central pool, is surrounded on three sides by a barrel vaulted, triportico (arcaded walkway). You can only imagine what it might have been like: a sensory garden, open to the sea, brimming with scented flowers and plants, fountains and statues. The Roman nobility bathing in the pool or maybe seeking shade from the midday sun under the portico. Unfortunately now just lawn with a pool that needs a little TLC.

The arches of the triportico, with their slightly protruding pilasters, are constructed in typical Roman brick (opus latericium), faced in several layers of a lime based mortar. The top layer has fine marble dust incorporated into it which provides a smooth finish suitable for painting. You are quite easily able to make out the colours the portico was painted in. Painted in 111 Pompeian style, the bases black with red bands and figures with cream motifs. The walls yellow. The pilasters red. I believe parts of it were also painted blue but I was not able to see this.

Interestingly, a lead pipe with valves runs the length of the western side of the portico. This supplied water to the villa: possibly also feeding the water features in the viridarium and maybe also a fish tank used for fish farming – common in seaside villas of the time.

Beach facade

There is a second access point to the beach in the southern portico aside from the large monumental opening in its centre. I’m not sure if this was some sort of emergency exit or not. Nor am I sure of the purpose of the room just nearby, at the end of the western portico.

The exterior of the villa facing the sea, like the interior is highly decorated. Arched with rounded brick pilasters instead of the square ones seen inside, the wall also contains large square niches, which I’m sure would have contained statues. The pilasters, as inside were painted red.

Triclinium-nymphaeum

Villa Romana Minori is quite symmetrical in its layout. Along the same north-south axis as the pool, is a large monumental opening in the southern portico. This is the original entrance from the sea.

Along this same axis but in the villa itself, with views across the pool and through to the sea, is the most important room of the complex – the Triclinium-nymphaeum (dining room). Instead of the usual three triclinio normally found in such a room, only two masonry beds are seen here.

The vaulted ceiling of this room is the oldest example of this type of ceiling in the western world – further emphasizing the historical importance of this discovery. You will notice that the triclinium beds each have a channel running down the length of them. This was for the washing of hands and for spitting into. Water cascaded down the marble clad stairs in the northern wall, into a pool along that same wall, flowed into the channels and was then fed out to the viridarium via an underground channel.

Three phases of decoration are seen in the triclinium. The first two phases (1C AD) correspond to the actual construction of the villa, whilst the third phase (earlier than 3C AD): renovations. The actual layout of the triclinium, the frescoes, the stuccos of the vault and the faux niches belong to the first (Guilio-Claudio) phase. The frescoes are of the 111 Pompeian style. The addition of the columns along the northern wall, pediments along the side walls and a remake of the stuccos belong to the 2nd (Severian) phase. The actual triclinia, with their marble cladding and the mosaic floor were added during the third phase.

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The mosaic floor

There are two scenes depicted in the mosaic floor. The first lying between the triclinia is that of a hunting scene. Unfortunately I was unable to see this properly during my visits. Apparently a hunter is holding a dog on a leash in his left hand and a lance in his right. You can see the net at the bottom of the scene.

The second, at the entrance to the triclinium is a marine scene framed by acanthus like scrolls. Made from tiny black, white and the occasional red (for accent) tessellated tiles, I was able to make out a marine ox?, a donne-medusa like figure, a seahorse, dolphin, a deer? and a nymph. The fact you can see anything after 2000 years is remarkable!

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Several other rooms, called representative rooms, also open out onto the viridarium. Most of these (#2/#6/#7) are barrel vaulted. Room #5 however, which also can be accessed via a corridor off the stairs, has a domed vault. Constructed of travertine, it is a simple vault with concentric rings sitting on a rectangular base. It is the only known preserved example of such a ceiling from that time.

There are more rooms behind the corridor. Unfortunately these are not open to the public. One of these includes the barrel vaulted living room – the first room discovered. This is apparently decorated with beautiful frescoes of the 111 Pompeian style. I would have loved to have seen these!. Other rooms here are a music room, cubicle and theatre room.

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Terme - the spa

The eastern side of Villa Romana Minori is dedicated to a favourite Roman social activity: the Terme or ‘spa’.

Once again, this section is not open to the public and I was only able to get glimpses of some of the rooms here.

The room immediately adjacent to the triclinium is the Apodyterium or changing room. It has a mosaic floor dating back to the 3rd C AD and is the only room to have a preserved marble threshold. It is barrel vaulted, decorated with a stucco relief.

From here you are able to get glimpses of both the Tepidarium (warm bathroom) and the Caldarium (hot bathroom). The brick piers, spaced in such a way to allow for the circulation of hot air beneath the floors of these rooms, are clearly visible. I have included a sketch of how the rooms were heated.

This short video courtesy of http://incampania.com/en/location/12558/ gives you a little peek at what Villa Romana Minori may have looked like when it was built.

Visitor Information

If you love wandering around local markets, then Thursday mornings are a great time to visit the site. A small but interesting market is held on the foreshore, every Thursday between 8.00 am and 1.00 pm. I would suggest that if you combine your visit with a stroll around the market, a visit to the Basilica Santa Trofimena, a pastry or two at either Sal De Riso or Gambardella or a pasta at one of the little restaurants tucked away in the ancient streets, you will have spent a lovely morning in Minori.

Address: Via S. Maria Vetrano, 19, 84010 Minori SA. If you are coming by bus, bus stop 7 Bello or the Sita stop across the road is only 100 m from the site, making it really easy to get to.

Opening hours: 8.00 am until an hour before sunset

Entrance Fee: Free

If you love Roman history and you are visiting the Amalfi Coast, I would thoroughly recommend you pay a visit to MAR Positano. Located in Positano, beneath the Chiesa di S.S. Maria Assunta, lies the most fascinating, historical and cultural treasure: Villa Romana (La Villa D’ozio). You can discover more here. (Positano’s hidden treasure: a guided tour)

amalfi coast history minori roman villa ruins

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Positano’s hidden treasure: a guided tour

Villa Romana Minori: a past revealed

Positano’s hidden treasure: a guided tour

Il Sentiero dei Limoni: when life gives you lemons

Praiano NaturArte: the art of exploring

Praiano NaturArte: the art of exploring

Villa Romana Minori: a past revealed

Villa Romana Minori

The Antiquarium

The Villa

The Triportico

Beach facade

Triclinium-nymphaeum

The mosaic floor

Terme - the spa

Visitor Information

Positano’s hidden treasure: a guided tour

Villa Romana Minori: a past revealed

Positano’s hidden treasure: a guided tour

Il Sentiero dei Limoni: when life gives you lemons

Praiano NaturArte: the art of exploring

Praiano NaturArte: the art of exploring

Villa Romana Minori: a past revealed

Villa Romana Minori

The Antiquarium

The Villa

The Triportico

Beach facade

Triclinium-nymphaeum

The mosaic floor

Terme - the spa

Visitor Information

Il Sentiero dei Limoni: when life gives you lemons

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