A Monumental Progression : Additions and Rebuilding in Fountains in the Provinces of the Roman West, 46 B.C.E. - 337 C.E. (20 min)

Presenters

Katherine Halcrow, University of Oxford

Abstract

Fountain architecture of the western Roman provinces (46 B.C.E.–337 C.E.) remains understudied and underpublished. Because of this, formal architectural details and phase changes of these monuments have yet to be thoroughly considered in the wider interpretation of Roman architecture. Fountains in Roman Gaul, Hispania, and North Africa during this period display high levels of architectural experimentation in their formal characteristics and vary from site to site. They do not fit into clearly delineated typological categories. Despite this variety, I argue that additions and renovations made to western fountains across time underscore a progression toward monumentality that has not previously been recognized. These changes took particular and predictable form: renovations completed to a fountain’s decorative façade, an increase in the number of linked basins, the enlarging of extant basins, and the addition of structural supports.

Furthermore, these changes made to fountain constructions prompt a nuanced definition of monumentality within the study of Roman architecture. Modern scholarship defines monumentality through Vitruvian characteristics of size, elaboration, and durability but unnecessarily assumes monumentality was assigned from the initial planning stages of buildings. Current definitions rely on the assumption that there were plans for monumental creations from the outset of construction; however, the examples underscored in western fountains point to something quite different. Their architectural development shows that monumentality was more complex than the modern definition dictates and anything but unilateral. Instead of building entirely new structures, these fountains were renovated to fit the changing needs of people using them and those planning surrounding building projects. Fountains varied based on ranging sites, landscapes, and communities, but modifications made to them across time were remarkably consistent due to the practical needs of the people within these cities.