Cosa

ARCHAEOLOGY AT COSA

In the 20th century, Cosa was the site of excavations carried out under the auspices of the American Academy In Rome , initially under the direction of the archaeologist Frank Edward Brown . Excavations (1948-54, 1965-72) have traced the city plan, the principal buildings, the port, and have uncovered the Arx, the Forum , and a number of houses. Unexcavated buildings include a bathing establishment, but no trace of a theater or an amphitheater has been found. In the 1990s a limited series of excavations were carried out under the direction of Elizabeth Fentress, then associated with the American Academy In Rome . This latter campaign aimed at understanding the history of the site between the imperial period and the middle agest. Sample excavations took place over the whole site, with larger excavations on the Arx, the Eastern Height and around the Forum.

THE URBAN LAYOUT

Within the city walls the urban area was divided into an Orthogonal plan, with space allotted for civic, sacred, and private architecture. The plan represents a subtle adaptation of an orthogonal plan to the complicated topography of the hill.The forum was found on a saddle between two heights, with the sacred area, with the Capitolium, linked to it by a broad street. Recent excavations have suggested that the original layout provided for ca. 220 houses, of which 20 were intended for the decurions, and were double the size of the houses of the ordinary citizens. The larger houses were found on the forum and the main processional streets.

THE CAPITOLIUM

The ''arx'' or citadel of Cosa received some of the first serious treatment by Frank E. Brown and his team when they began the Cosa excavations in 1948. The citadel was a fortified hill on which were built several temples, including the so-called ''capitolium'' of Cosa.

Brown also discovered a pit (''mundus'') that he thought was connected to the first rituals of foundation carried out at Cosa in 273 B.C.

THE CITY WALLS AND GATES

THE FORUM

The Forum was the public square of the city and was the site of many important structures, included a Basilica and a ''curia-comitium'' complex.

PRIVATE HOUSES

The site has played an important role in the interpretation of Roman colonization during the Middle Republican period. The housing has been the subject of two extensive publications, that of R. T. Scott (1993), which deals with a series of small houses in the Western part of the site. These occupy street frontages of around 8 metres, with open courtyard spaces and gardens in the rear. They bear a strong resemblance to similar houses of the second century B.C. at Pompeii. On the forum, the House of Diana was excavated and restored between 1995 and 1999. It was published in full by E. Fentress (2004), and a detailed report on the stratigraphy is available on the web (http://www.press.umich.edu/webhome/cosa/home.html) This was a much larger house, on a standard atrium plan, very similar to that of the House of Sallust in Pompeii. Built around 170 b.C., it was entirely rebuilt in the Augustan period, from which we have a fine series of frescoes and mosaics. In the 50s A.D. it seems to have become the house of Lucius Titinius Glaucus Lucretianus , and a small sanctuary to the goddess Diana was added in the rear garden.

SETTEFINESTRE

A large villa complex in the ''Ager Cosanus'' at Settefinestre was excavated by Andrea Carandini in the 1970s.

FURTHER STUDY

For "Port of Cosa", Amphora Industry:

---See Fish Sauce , ''garum'' produced by Fish Farming .

See Pozzolana Mortar , for the marine concrete in the Port Cosa harbor.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

FINAL PUBLICATIONS

#Brown, F.E., Richardson E. H. and Richardson, L. jr. "Cosa I, History and Topography." ''MAAR'' 20, 1951, 5-113.
#Brown, F.E. ''Cosa II, the Temples of the Arx.'' ''MAAR'' 26, 1960.
#Dyson, Stephen L. ''Cosa: The Utilitarian Pottery'' ''MAAR'' 33, 1976.
#Brown, F. E. ''Cosa, the Making of a Roman Town'' Ann Arbor 1980.
#Brown, F.E., Richardson E. H. and Richardson, L. jr. ''Cosa III, The Buildings of the Forum''. ''MAAR'' 37, Rome 1993.
#Bruno, V. J. and Scott., R. T. ''Cosa IV, The Houses''. ''MAAR'' 38, Rome 1993
#Collins Clinton, J. ''A Late Antique Shrine of Liber Pater at Cosa'', (''Etudes préliminaires aux religions orientales dans l'empire romain'', vol 64), Leiden, 1977.
#McCann, A. M., J. Bourgeois, E.K. Gazda, J.P. Oleson, and E.L. Will. ''The Roman Port and Fishery of Cosa: a Center of Ancient Trade'', Princeton, 1987.
# Fentress, E. ''et al.'' ''Cosa V: An Intermittent Town, Excavations 1991-1997'' Ann Arbor, 2004.

MATERIALS
#Brendel, O. "A Ganymede Group from Cosa," ''AJA'' 73, 1969, 232.
#Buttrey, T.V. "Cosa: The Coins" ''MAAR'' 34, 1980, 11-153.
#Fitch, C.R. and Goldman, N., ''The Lamps'', ''MAAR'' 39, 1994.
#Hobart, M.: 'Ceramica invetriata di Cosa (Ansedonia - Orbetello)' in L. Paroli, ed., La ceramica invetriata tardoantica e altomedievale in Italia, Florence, 1990, 304-309.
#Hobart, M. 'La Maiolica arcaica di Cosa (Orbetello)' in ''Atti del XXIV convegno interna-zionale della ceramica, Albissola, 1991'', 71-89.
#Marabini Moevs, M. T. ''The Roman Thin Walled Pottery from Cosa (1948-1954)'', ''MAAR'' 32, 1973.
#Marabini Moevs, M. T. "Italo-Megarian Ware at Cosa," ''MAAR'' 34, 1980, 161-227.
#Marabini Moevs, M. T. "Aco in Northern Etruria: the workshop of Cusonius at Cosa," ''MAAR'' 34, 1980, 231-280.
#Scott, R. T. "A New Inscription of the Emperor Maximinus at Cosa" ''Chiron'' 11, 1981, 309-314.
#Scott, R. T. "A new fragment of "serpent ware" from Cosa," ''JGS'' 34(1992) 158-159.
#Taylor, D. M. "Cosa, Black-Glaze Pottery," ''MAAR'' 25, 1957, 65-193.
#Tondo, L. "Monete medievale da Ansedonia," ''ArchMed'' IV, 1977, 300-305.
#Tongue, W. "The Brick Stamps of Cosa," ''AJA'' 54, 1950, 263.
#Will, E. Lyding "Ambiguity in Horace, ''Odes'' 1.4," ''CP'' 77 (1982), 240-245.
#Will, E. Lyding. "Defining the "Regna Vini" of the Sestii," in Goldman, N.W., ed. ''NEW LIGHT FROM ANCIENT COSA: STUDIES IN HONOR OF CLEO RICKMAN FITCH''. New York, 2000, 35-47.
#Will, E. Lyding "The Roman Amphoras," in McCann, A.M., J. Bourgeois, E.K. Gazda, J.P. Oleson, and E.L. Will, ''THE ROMAN PORT AND FISHERY OF COSA: A CENTER OF ANCIENT TRADE'', Princeton, 1987, 170-220.
#Will, E. Lyding "The Sestius Amphoras. A Reappraisal," ''JFA'' 6, 1979, 339-350

EPIGRAPHY
#Babcock, C. "An inscription of Trajan Decius at Cosa," ''AJP'' 83, 1962, 147-158.
#Manacorda, D. "Considerazioni sull'epigrafia della regione di Cosa," ''Athenaeum'' 57, 1979, 73-92
#Saladino, V. "Iscrizioni del territorio di Cosa," ''Epigraphica'' 39, 1977, 142-151.
#Scott, R. T. "A New Inscription of the Emperor Maximinus at Cosa," ''Chiron'' 11, 1981, 309-314.

STUDIES
#Brown, F.E., Zancani Montuoro, P. "Il faro di Cosa in ex-voto a Vulci?," ''RIA'' 2, 1979, 5-29.
#Fentress, E., Richardson Jr. L., Scott, R.: "Excavations at Cosa: the First Fifty Years"
#Gerkan, A. von "Zur Datierung der Kolonie Cosa," in ''Scritti in Onore di Guido Libertini'', Florence 1958, 149-156.
#Hesberg, H. von. "Coloniae Maritimae," ''RM'' 92, 1985, 127-150.
#Manacorda, D. "The Ager Cosanus and the production of the amphorae of Sestius: New evidence and a reassessment," ''JRS'' 68, 1978, 122-131.
#Richardson Jr., L. "Cosa and Rome, Comitium and Curia," ''Archaeology'' 10, 1957, 49-55.
#Scott, R. T. "The decorations in terracotta from the temples of Cosa," In ''La coroplastica templare etrusca fra il IV e il II secolo a.C.'' Florence 1992, 91-128.
#Scott, R. T. "The Latin colony of Cosa," ''DialArch'' 6, 1988, 73-77
# Taylor, Rabun. "Temples and Terracottas at Cosa," ''AJA'' 106.1 (2002) 59-84.
#Dyson, Stephen L. "Success and failures at Cosa (Roman and American)." ''Journal of Roman Archaeology'' 18 (2005) 615-20.

INTERIM REPORTS
#Brown, F. E. "Scavi a Cosa - Ansedonia 1965-6," ''BdA'' 52, 1967, 37-41
#Brown, F. E. "The Northwest Gate of Cosa and its Environs," ''Studi di antichità in onore de G. Maetzke'', Rome 1984, 493-498
#Ciampoltrini, G. "Orbetello (Grosseto) Località Ansedonia. Ricerche sui monumenti d'età traianea e adreanea del suburbio orientale di Cosa," ''BA'' 11-12 1991
#Ciampoltrini, G. "Orbetello (Grosseto) La necropoli di Cosa. Ricerche e recuperi 1985-1991," ''BA'' 7, 1991, 59-73.
#Fentress, E., Hobart, M., Clay, T., Webb, M. "Late Roman and Medieval Cosa I: The Arx and the Structure near the Eastern Height," ''PBSR'' 59, 1991, 197-230.
#Fentress, E. "Cosa in the empire: the unmaking of a Roman town," ''JRA'' 7, 1994, 208-222.
#Fentress, E., and Celuzza, M.G. "La Toscana centro-meridionale: i casi di Cosa - Ansedonia e Roselle." In R. Francovich and G.Noyé eds., ''La Storia dell'Alto Medioevo'' Florence 1994, 601-613
#Fentress, E., and Rabinowitz, A. "Excavations at Cosa 1995: Atrium Building V and a new Republican Temple," ''MAAR'' 41, 1996.
#Hobart, M. "Cosa - Ansedonia (Orbetello) in età medievale: da una città romana ad un insediamento medievale sparso," ''ArchMed'' 22, 1995, 569-583.
#Scott, R. "The Arx of Cosa (1965-1970)," ''AJA'' 73, 1969, 245

THE TERRITORY OF COSA AND THE LOWER ALBEGNA VALLEY IN THE ROMAN PERIOD
#Attolini, I. et al. "Political geography and productive geography between the valleys of the Albegna and the Fiora in northern Etruria," In G. Barker and J. Lloyd, eds, ''Roman Landscapes'', London, 142-153.
#Bisconti, F. "Tarda antichità ed alto medioevo nel territorio orbetellano. Primo bilancio critico," ''Atti del VI congresso nazionale di archeologia cristiana'', Florence 1986, 63-77.
#Bronson, R., Uggieri, G. "Isola del Giglio, Isola di Giannutri, Monte Argentario, Laguna di Orbetello," ''SE'' 38, 1970, 201-230.
#Cambi, F., Fentress, E. "Villas to Castles: first millennium A.D. Demography in the Albegna Valley." In K. Randsborg, ed., ''The Birth of Europe'', Rome, 1989, 74-86.
#Carandini, A. "Il vigneto e la villa del fondo di Settefinestre nel Cosano. Un caso di produzione per il mercato trasmarino," ''MAAR'' 36, 1980, 1-10.
#Carandini, A. ed. ''La romanizzazione dell'Etruria: il territorio di Vulci (catalogue of the exhibition at Orbetello, 1985)'', Florence 1985
#Carandini, A., Ricci, A. eds. ''Settefinestre: una villa schiavistica nell'Etruria romana'', Modena 1985.
#Carandini, A., Settis, S. eds. ''Schiavi e padroni nell'Etruria romana'' Bari 1979
#Carandini, A., Cambi, F., Celuzza M.G. and Fentress, E., eds. ''Paesaggi d'Etruria : Valle dell'Albegna, Valle d'Oro, Valle del Chiarone, Valle del Tafone : progetto di ricerca italo-britannico seguito allo scavo di Settefinestre'' Roma : Edizioni di storia e letteratura, 2002.
#Carlsen, J. "Considerations on Cosa and the Ager Cosanus," ''AnalRom'' 13, 1984, 49-58.
#Castagnoli, F. "La centuriazione di Cosa," ''MAAR'' 25, 1957, 149-165.
#Celuzza, M.G., Regoli, E. "La Valle d'Oro nel territorio di Cosa. Ager Cosanus and Ager Veientanus a confronto," ''DdA'' 1, 31-62.
#Ciampoltrini, G. "Un insediamento tardo-repubblicano ad Albinia," ''Rassegna di Archeologia'' 4 1984, 149-180.
#Ciampoltrini, G. "Una statua ritratto di età imperiale dalla foce dell'Albegna," ''Prospettiva'' 43, 1985, 43-47.
#Ciampoltrini, G., Rendini, P. "L'agro Cosano fra tarda antichità e alto medioevo. Segnalazione e contributi," ''ArchMed'' 15, 1988, 519-534.
#Del Chiaro, M. "A new late republican-early imperial villa at Campo della Chiesa, Tuscany," ''JRA'' 2, 1989, 111-117.
#Dyson, S. "Settlement Patterns in the ''Ager Cosanus''. The Wesleyan University Survey," ''Journal of Field Archaeology'' 5, 1978, 251-263.
#Fentress, E. 1984. "Via Aurelia - Via Aemilia," ''PBSR'' 52, 1984, 72-77.
#Manacorda, D. "Produzione agricola, produzione ceramica e proprietari nell'ager Cosanus nel I sec. a.C." In ''Società romana e produzione schiavistica'' Bari 1981, 3-54.
#Pasquinucci, M. 1982. "Contributo allo studio dell 'ager cosanus: la villa dei muraci a Porto Santo Stefano," ''SCO'' 32, 1982, 141 -149
#Quilici-Gigli, S., Quilici L. "Ville dell'agro cosano con fronte a torrette," ''RIA'' 1 1978, 11-64.
#Quilici-Gigli, S. "Portus Cosanus. Da monumento archeologico a spiaggia di Ansedonia," ''BstorArt'' 36, 1993, 57-63.
#Peacock, D.: 1977. "Recent Discoveries of Amphora Kilns in Italy," ''AntJ'' 57, 1977, 262ff.
#Rathbone, D. "The development of agriculture in the Ager Cosanus during the Roman Republic. Problems of evidence and interpretation," ''JRS'' 71 1981, 10-23.
#Uggeri, G. "Il popolamento del territorio cosano nell'antichità." In ''Aspetti e problemi di storia dello Stato dei presidi in Maremma, Grosseto'' 1981, 37-53.

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Cosa