The Porta Viminale () was a gateway in the

Servian Wall The Servian Wall ( la, Murus Servii Tullii; it, Mura Serviane) was an ancient Roman defensive barrier constructed around the city of Rome in the early 4th century BC. The wall was built of volcanic tuff and was up to in height in places, wide ...

of ancient Rome, at the centre of the most exposed stretch of the wall between the

Porta Collina The Colline Gate ( Latin ''Porta Collina'') was a landmark in ancient Rome, supposed to have been built by Servius Tullius, semi-legendary king of Rome 578–535 BC. The gate stood at the north end of the Servian Wall, and past it were two ...

and the

Porta Esquilina The Porta Esquilina (or Esquiline Gate) was a gate in the Servian Wall,Platner, S.B. and Ashby, T. ''A Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome''. London: Humphrey Milford Oxford University, Press. 1929 of which the Arch of Gallienus is extant tod ...

. These three gates and the

Porta Querquetulana The Porta Querquetulana or Querquetularia was a gateway in the Servian Wall, named after the sacred grove of the Querquetulanae adjacent to and just within it. The grove appears not to have still existed in the latter 1st century BC. The location ...

were the oldest gates in the wall. Their construction dates back to a very ancient period, around 200 years prior to the construction of the

in 378 BC. It seems that the four original gates can be dated to the time of the enlargement of the city by King

Servius Tullius Servius Tullius was the legendary sixth king of Rome, and the second of its Etruscan dynasty. He reigned from 578 to 535 BC. Roman and Greek sources describe his servile origins and later marriage to a daughter of Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, ...

, which added to the territory of the city, in addition to the hills already inserted between the initial seven hills, the Quirinal (), the

Viminal The Viminal Hill ( ; la, Collis Vīminālis ; it, Viminale ) is the smallest of the famous Seven Hills of Rome. A finger-shape cusp pointing toward central Rome between the Quirinal Hill to the northwest and the Esquiline Hill to the southeast ...

, the

Esquiline The Esquiline Hill (; la, Collis Esquilinus; it, Esquilino ) is one of the Seven Hills of Rome. Its southernmost cusp is the ''Oppius'' (Oppian Hill). Etymology The origin of the name ''Esquiline'' is still under much debate. One view is ...

, and the

Caelian The Caelian Hill (; la, Collis Caelius; it, Celio ) is one of the famous seven hills of Rome. Geography The Caelian Hill is a sort of long promontory about long, to wide, and tall in the park near the Temple of Claudius. The hill over ...

(then called , meaning covered with oak woods).Strabo, Geography, V,3.7 The first defensive bulwark that connected the hills to each other is obviously of the same period, the agger built along the whole stretch of about from Porta Collina to Esquiline, to try to defend the most vulnerable part of the city. According to scholars, a further clue to the antiquity of these gates is also provided by their name, which derives directly from the name of the hill to which they gave access, rather than being the adjective of some monument, such as a temple or altar, located there, which could only be subsequent to the incorporation of the area into the urban perimeter. Servian Wall-Termini Station

The Porta Viminale opened approximately in the center of the long stretch of walls still existing in Piazza dei Cinquecento (the most impressive find still visible), on the right side of those leaving Termini Station. The garden that surrounds the walls covers the embankment of the ancient agger —the slight slope on the side of the square is a pale reminder—whose retaining wall is still visible in the basement of the station building. The identification of the road or roads to which the gate gave access is still a topic of discussion among scholars. The

Via Collatina Collatia was an ancient town of central Italy, c. 15 km northeast of Rome by the ''Via Collatina''. It appears in the legendary history of Rome as captured by Tarquinius Priscus. Vergil speaks of it as a Latin colony of Alba Longa. In ...

and the

Via Tiburtina Via Tiburtina is an ancient road in Italy leading east-northeast from Rome to Tivoli (Latin, Tibur) and then, with the via Valeria, on to Pescara (Latin, Aternum). Historical road It was probably built by the Roman censor Marcus Valerius Maxi ...

have been suggested, or perhaps that it did not open onto any important road. The destruction carried out in the imperial era for the construction of the

Baths of Diocletian , alternate_name = it, Terme di Diocleziano , image = Baths of Diocletian-Antmoose1.jpg , caption = Baths of Diocletian, with the basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri built in the remains of the baths. , map_dot_ ...

, then by Pope Sixtus V for the urban renewal of the area, and finally for the construction of the station after 1856, have erased good part of the traces, not only of the walls but also of the gates (perhaps there was also a ''Porta Collatina'' near Via del

Castro Pretorio Castro Pretorio is the 18th ''rione'' of Rome (Italy), identified by the initials R. XVIII, and it is located within the Municipio I. The ''rione'' takes its name by the ruins of the '' Castrum Praetorium'', the barracks of the Praetorian Guard, ...

, or in the railway station area), and of the original roads around the adjacent perimeter. Work for the construction of the Termini station, however, had at least the merit of bringing to light the remains of the walls, which until 1892 had remained buried under an accumulation of debris, called "Monte della Giustizia", resulting from the work for the construction of the nearby Baths of Diocletian.

References

Bibliography

*Strabo, ''Geographica'', V.37. *Mauro Quercioli: ''Le mura e le porte di Roma.'' Newton Compton Ed., Roma, 1982 *Laura G.Cozzi: ''Le porte di Roma.'' F.Spinosi Ed., Roma, 1968 *Filippo Coarelli: ''Guida archeologica di Roma.'' A.Mondadori Ed., 1984 {{coord, 41.9025, N, 12.5011, E, source:wikidata, display=title

Viminale The Viminal Hill ( ; la, Collis Vīminālis ; it, Viminale ) is the smallest of the famous Seven Hills of Rome. A finger-shape cusp pointing toward central Rome between the Quirinal Hill to the northwest and the Esquiline Hill to the southeast ...