The main hall of the Ostia synagogue, reconstructed to its
fourth-century C.E. state.
Overview
Situated at the mouth of the Tiber, Ostia was
first occupied in the fourth century BCE as a defensive settlement. Later, as Rome’s
maritime activities increased, it served as the port city for the capital, with the wealth
of the empire passing through its harbor. To handle the increasing traffic, larger harbors
were built during the reigns of Claudius and Trajan, at which time the city may have
boasted a population as high as 60,000. The eventual silting of the harbor led to the
town’s decline beginning in the third century CE. A diminished population continued
to live there until the ninth century when the site was abandoned.
Because the site was quickly covered over and remained
undisturbed for centuries, excavations at Ostia have produced many stunning finds,
including scores of building-remains and over 4,000 inscriptions. It stands second only to
Pompeii in presenting us with a portrait of a Roman city in the early empire.
The Ostia synagogue was discovered in 1961 at the edge of the
town, near the ancient coastline. It was excavated and restored over two seasons
(1961–62) by a team led by Maria Squarciapino, then director of the Department of
Antiquities of Ancient Ostia. The building was identified as a synagogue on the basis of
its monumental size and the presence of Jewish artwork including a relief with a menorah,
several lamps with this same motif, and an inscription which makes reference to an ark. In
its present state, the synagogue dates to the fourth century CE, though the excavations
revealed two earlier phases of the building, the first of which dates to the middle of the
first century CE.
In its original construction, the
synagogue consisted of a main hall with benches along three walls; a propyleum or
monumental gateway with four marble columns; and a triclineum or dining room with three
couches. A well with attached basin rested outside the entryway, evidently for ritual
washings. The main entrance of the synagogue faces the southeast, towards Jerusalem.
The entryway to the Ostia synagogue. Notice the "fishnet" pattern in the
brickwork of the facing wall. This type of construction, known as opus reticulatum,
was commonly used in Ostia during the reign of Claudius (41-54 CE). The earliest phase of
the synagogue dates to this period.
View of the aedicula, which housed the ark for the Torah scrolls. This structure was
added to the synagogue in the fourth century CE. An inscription suggests that it replaced
an earlier wooden platform that was first donated in the second century CE and then
replaced by a certain Mindus Faustus in the third century CE.
View of the propyleum (monumental gateway) in the foreground and the aedicula in the
background. While the aedicula was not added until the fourth century CE, the propyleum
was part of the original edifice.
View of the bema (reader's platform) of the Ostia Synagogue in its
fourth-century state. It is unclear whether the first-century structure
also had a bema: it may be that the stone benches lining the walls of the
main hall in its earliest stratum (which were recovered by excavators)
continued around the entire apse. Note also how the earliest and latest
phases of the synagogue are represented by the brickwork behind the bema:
the opus reticulatum in the foreground dates to the middle of the
first century CE, while the brickwork in the background dates to three
centuries later.
View of the kitchen of the fourth-century synagogue. An oven lies in the
background to the right, while a preparation table rests in the foreground.
In the synagogue's earliest phase, this room housed a triclinium or
three-sided couch, the bases of which excavators uncovered in a lower
stratum.
The remains of couch-bases in Room G of the fourth-century synagogue.
Similar couch-bases were discovered in a lower stratum of the synagogue in
Room E (see picture of kitchen above and plans
below).
Plan of the Ostia synagogue in its fourth-century CE state. Entry into the complex was
from the northeast. After walking down some stairs, one came to the vestibule (A). From
there, the approach to the main hall (D) was through an entry court (B) and a propyleum or
monumental gateway (C). The synagogue was also equipped with a kitchen (E) and a banquet
room (G), the latter accessed through a corridor (F). (Click image for more detail.)
Plan of the Ostia synagogue's remains. The area labeled "Study Hall"
was probably a banquet room because it contained the bases of couches along two walls.
This room was not part of the original structure. Instead, the room that was later a
kitchen served as the banquet room: the earliest stratum contains the bases of
couches along three walls, forming a triclineum.
Reconstruction of the Ostia synagogue's earliest phase (I CE). The structure consisted
of an entry court with adjoining triclinium (dining room with three couches), a propyleum
and a main hall with benches on three sides. The well and basin outside the main entrance
were probably used for ritual cleansings. The façade of the synagogue is oriented toward
Jerusalem.
Other Sites Devoted to Ancient Ostia
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Ostia
