Saturday 8 May

9 AM BST
10 AM CEST
6 PM AEST
8 PM NZST

With Dr. Eireann Marshall

In order to increase the efficiency of trading, the emperors Claudius and Trajan built Portus close to Ostia. Located on the doorstep of Rome’s Fiumicino airport, the famous hexagonal basin of Portus is visible from the air. The many channels, including the fossa traiani, which connected the port to the Tiber and to the city, are wonders of engineering, fossilised by the name Fiumicino. Currently being excavated by the University of Southampton, new discoveries are being made about the scale of the site, as well as functions of its various facilities.

In order to explore the magnitude of the trade carried out in the Roman empire and in order to gauge the sophistication of its economy, it is essential to understand the role played by this port.