Opuscula is published by the Swedish Institutes at Athens and Rome, with the aid of a grant from the Swedish Research Council. Distributed by Eddy.se AB. View journal at ERIH PLUS. All content available with open access. The development of the water supply on the Peloponnese in Greco-Roman times By Patrik Klingborg (Uppsala University) Abstract It has long been clear that the water supply in ancient Greece was transformed over time, with the relative number of various types of water sources varying in time and space. Yet, what patterns this produced has never been explored, and the degree to which trends suggested by local or qualitative studies are representative for larger areas and patterns is unknown. The root of this uncertainty lies largely in the difficulty assembling an extensive and representative material beyond individual sites or cities. Following this, the present article has two aims. The first is to test and evaluate a method for collecting an extensive and (more) representative material for the investigation of the water supply in ancient Greece on a regional scale, based on a systematic review of the material from the Peloponnese published in Archaeological Reports 1887–2012. The second aim is to discuss how the collected data…

Opuscula is published by the Swedish Institutes at Athens and Rome, with the aid of a grant from the Swedish Research Council. Distributed by Eddy.se AB. View journal at ERIH PLUS. All content available with open access. Building the social. A query into the societal impact of the Pompeian water supply By Anne-Marie Leander Touati (Lund University) Abstract This study explores the importance of the means of ensuring water supply in the formation of the architectural profile and basic social organization of Pompeii. It sees the city’s domestic water supply, for over two centuries ensured through rainwater-harvesting areas, basins and cisterns situated mainly in and below the many atria, as a stabilizing factor of both cityscape and household. Through the introduction of the city aqueduct in the 1st century AD and the creation of a generous network of public fountains this situation changes and the need to maintain the traditional organization of the “houseful”, comprising enlarged family, slaves and dependents of various kind including shopkeepers, is lessened; the physical proximity between those of different status renegotiated. This development, witnessed in adaptations of the architecture, can be followed through close study of the standing structures in Insula V 1. The hallmarks are…

Opuscula is published by the Swedish Institutes at Athens and Rome, with the aid of a grant from the Swedish Research Council. Distributed by Eddy.se AB. View journal at ERIH PLUS. All content available with open access. From 2D and 3D documentation to 4D interpretation. Building archaeological conclusions and workflow strategies gained by remote study of Insula V 1, Pompeii By Anne-Marie Leander Touati (Lund University, Sweden), Thomas Staub (Lund University, Sweden) & Renée Forsell (Lund University, Sweden) Abstract The text describes new methods elaborated for and used in the building archaeological assessment of a city block, studied first on site, then remotely by members of the Swedish Pompeii Project. Use of a digital platform, with collected wall observations and analysis, systematic photographic documentation of all standing structures, and 3D models, allowed discussion to proceed after the fieldwork came to an end. The models provided new possibilities and new angles of approach, e.g. examining walls at any given point, studying boundary walls as wall-strings in their full extent, allowing all kinds of sectioning at will, introducing bird’s-eye views as a new perspective in study, and measuring wherever needed. The joint results obtained are summed up in a four-phase development of the…

Opuscula is published by the Swedish Institutes at Athens and Rome, with the aid of a grant from the Swedish Research Council. Distributed by Eddy.se AB. View journal at ERIH PLUS. All content available with open access. The cisterns of the Bisti promontory at Hermione. With a preliminary description of the Roman aqueduct By Patrik Klingborg (Swedish Institute at Athens, Greece) Abstract This article reports the findings of the fieldwork exploring the cisterns at the Bisti promontory of Hermione, executed as part of a collaboration between the Ephorate of Antiquities of the Argolid and the Swedish Institute at Athens. In order to better understand the function of the cisterns within the water supply system, the article begins by presenting an overview of existing water resources in the area, primarily the naturally occurring sources and the city’s 2nd-century AD Roman aqueduct. Following this the study describes the remains of the 14 potential cisterns on the Bisti. Based on the empirical material the similarities and contrasts between these are explored, as well as what they can tell us about the history and life in ancient Hermione. In particular, the article suggests that the presence of the cisterns contributes to our understanding of…