Avenches – Roman Museum – Permanent Exhibition
Avenches – Roman Museum – Permanent Exhibition Avenches – Roman Museum – Permanent Exhibition
Second Floor Life in Town Houses 1. Marble disc with mask of river god (p. 52, 3). 2. Alabaster cantharos (p. 52, 3). Life in Town The inhabitants of Aventicum, most of whom belonged to the tribe of the Helvetii, were strongly influenced by Roman lifestyle. This became apparent at an early stage in all areas of everyday life, particularly from the mid 1st century AD onwards. Houses, construction techniques, interior and exterior decorations as well as gardens all mirror the infatuation of the local population with Roman style. Town Layout Like all Roman towns, Aventicum was organized into residential quarters of regulated size, which fitted into an orthogonal grid of streets (1). Each of these quarters contained approximately 40 regular blocks (lat. insulae) on average measuring 110 by 75 m. Two main perpendicular roads – the cardo (running northsouth) and the decumanus (running east -west) – ran through these quarters. The forum, which was the civic and religious centre, was situated at their intersection. Although it is difficult to estimate the density of the population in these “blocks”, it can, nevertheless, be assumed that approximately 20,000 inhabitants lived in the ancient city. In general, a “block” contained between two and six houses; in rare cases one house could extend over a whole insula. Houses In the beginning, the houses were timber-framed constructions with mud bricks. The foundations consisted of timber sill beams on corner stones and the roofs were usually thatched. Towards the mid 1st century AD, houses began to appear, which showed the influence of the Roman style (2) in as much as they were built entirely of stone, had tiled roofs and plastered or painted walls. It was only when Aventicum was elevated to the rank of a colony in the 70s AD, that masonry was commonly used. The traditional indigenous construction techniques, however, were not entirely replaced. The size of a house, its amenities, decorations and furniture were determined by the wealth of its owners. To date, more modest houses have not been very well researched, because, so far, none have been completely excavated. Most would have definitely been rather small; they would have included a kitchen, perhaps a shop facing the street plus perhaps a workshop and a few bedrooms upstairs. There may have been a vegetable patch in the backyard. 1 2 53 Second Floor
Second Floor Protective Gods of the Household It is difficult to estimate the number of people that would have lived in one house. It can be assumed that there would have been at least three generations: grandparents, parents and children, but also aunts and uncles, and, of course, all the servants. The Interior Decoration of a Room Situated on insula 10 East Reconstruction of the “White Room” (1) The walls inside most houses in Aventicum were decorated with either simple or rich ornaments depending on the function of the rooms and the wealth of the owner. These murals were found in a room heated by a hypocaust (floor heating). The backs of the fragments still show traces of the heating system in the walls and the framework of the vaulted ceiling. Since limited space in the museum does not permit the reconstruction of the room in its original height of 3.75 m, the bottom 1.6 m of the wall are not represented. The floating couple Amor and Psyche are depicted above a window in the back wall of the room. The long walls are decorated with female heads representing the four seasons – here spring and summer – framing a still life consisting of pears and an apple, which are attributes of the summer. Further still lifes were painted on the vaulted ceiling: a lemon on the left, a pomegranate and figs on the right, and between them a woman holding a torch, placed in the centre of a veil draped over a bed of roses. The style, the artistic technique and the archaeological context date this room, which was part of a house owned by a wealthy person, to the first third of the 3rd century AD. Model of the Murals in the “White Room” The model illustrates how fresco wall paintings were made in a workshop of the 3 rd century AD: A worker is covering the wall with the first layers of mortar, a painter is applying the colours while the master is discussing the design. The painting is applied on the topmost and finest layer of mortar, while it is still wet. This room would have been heated by a hypocaust, a system heating the floor and the walls. The hot air emanating from a furnace (praefurnium) circulated between two layers of tile flooring. The lower layer rested on pillars (pilae) between 50 and 70 cm in height and set at original intervals. The hot air could also move up through the walls in vertical flue tiles (tubuli) fitted into the walls. Scale 1:10. Protective Gods of the Household The six bronze statuettes (2) belong to a small domestic altar (lararium) from insula 27. Such altars were usually placed either in the atrium (inner courtyard), in the peristyle garden or sometimes in the kitchen. These statuettes of Roman deities represent (from top to bottom and left to right) Fortuna, Minerva, Juno, another Minerva, Mercury and Lar to ensure the protection of the family members during their daily routine. This group was assembled between the 1 st and 2 nd centuries AD. 1 2 54 Second Floor
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- Page 39 and 40: First Floor Religion Roman Religion
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- Page 43 and 44: First Floor Religion The Local Gods
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Second Floor Life in Town<br />
Houses<br />
1. Marble disc with mask of river god (p. 52, 3).<br />
2. Alabaster cantharos (p. 52, 3).<br />
Life in Town<br />
The inhabitants of Aventicum, most of whom belonged to the tribe of the Helvetii,<br />
were strongly influenced by <strong>Roman</strong> lifestyle. This became apparent at an early stage<br />
in all areas of everyday life, particularly from the mid 1st century AD onwards.<br />
Houses, construction techniques, interior and exterior decorations as well as<br />
gardens all mirror the infatuation of the local population with <strong>Roman</strong> style.<br />
Town Layout<br />
Like all <strong>Roman</strong> towns, Aventicum was organized into residential quarters of<br />
regulated size, which fitted into an orthogonal grid of streets (1). Each of these<br />
quarters contained approximately 40 regular blocks (lat. insulae) on average<br />
measuring 110 by 75 m. Two main perpendicular roads <strong>–</strong> the cardo (running northsouth)<br />
and the decumanus (running east -west) <strong>–</strong> ran through these quarters. The<br />
forum, which was the civic and religious centre, was situated at their intersection.<br />
Although it is difficult to estimate the density of the population in these “blocks”,<br />
it can, nevertheless, be assumed that approximately 20,000 inhabitants lived in the<br />
ancient city.<br />
In general, a “block” contained between two and six houses; in rare cases one<br />
house could extend over a whole insula.<br />
Houses<br />
In the beginning, the houses were timber-framed constructions with mud<br />
bricks. The foundations consisted of timber sill beams on corner stones and the<br />
roofs were usually thatched.<br />
Towards the mid 1st century AD, houses began to appear, which showed the<br />
influence of the <strong>Roman</strong> style (2) in as much as they were built entirely of stone,<br />
had tiled roofs and plastered or painted walls.<br />
It was only when Aventicum was elevated to the rank of a colony in<br />
the 70s AD, that masonry was commonly used. The traditional indigenous<br />
construction techniques, however, were not entirely replaced.<br />
The size of a house, its amenities, decorations and furniture were determined<br />
by the wealth of its owners. To date, more modest houses have not been very<br />
well researched, because, so far, none have been completely excavated. Most<br />
would have definitely been rather small; they would have included a kitchen,<br />
perhaps a shop facing the street plus perhaps a workshop and a few bedrooms<br />
upstairs. There may have been a vegetable patch in the backyard.<br />
1<br />
2<br />
53<br />
Second Floor
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