The Square of the Corporations

West porticus - statio 57

The statio was excavated in 1881, but there is no description of what was found. In the front room are remains of a mosaic with a geometric design. The lower level in the back room was investigated in 1913. Nothing was then reported about the layer above the lower level. A figurative scene in a thick black frame was found. A inner thin frame encloses vegetative motifs. Below and in between is yet another frame, with a standing figure and an animal. According to Becatti we see Diana holding a spear and a bow, and a deer.

The statio seen from the back. Photo: Gerard Huissen.

The mosaic is at a level that has been assigned to the reign of Claudius. A column with a travertine plinth is standing on top of it. The central row of columns on the square is usually assigned to the reign of Claudius, but here we have a clear indication that they are later, probably from the reign of Domitian, when the temple in the centre of the square and the back wall of the east porticus were built. During the excavation in 1970 the secondary pouring of foundations of columns was noted.

Back room, lower level. Photo: Scavi di Ostia IV, plate 81.