Villa Roman of Casale

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The Roman villa of Casale is a villa located close to the town of Piazza Armerina, in the south of the Sicily. Its construction began at the end of the 3rd century. It counts about thirty parts decorated with 3500  m ² of mosaic S. It was occupied until in 1160 when it was devastated by a fire and disappeared under a crumbling from the Mont Mangane.

A villa of the the Lower Empire

Maximien Hercules, colleague of Dioclétien in the Tétrarchie, undoubtedly ordered this whole of buildings. Having refused to abdicate at the same time as Dioclétien, he revolted and ends up committing suicide in 310 with Marseilles, without to have benefitted much from his sicilian villa.

The site was recognized in 1812 but it was necessary to await 1929 to put at the day the first mosaic ( Travaux of Hercules ). The end of the restorations go back to 1954.

Thermal baths

They were heated by the system of the Hypocauste and were fed out of water by a Aqueduc. They consisted of:

  • two caldari (hot baths)
  • a bath with average temperature ( tepidarium )
  • large a frigidarium of plan circular and decorated with a mosaic representing a marine scene.
  • a Sauna
  • a swimming pool for the Swimming
  • a room of Oilings: a mosaic depicts this Greek practice which used the Strigile.

Entry

  • polygonal Court
  • Hall

Peristyle

The Péristyle is an essential component of the architecture of the Roman villas: with the villa of Casale, its dimensions are 38 meters out of 18 meters.

Principal parts of the Villa

The most beautiful mosaics are visible in the following rooms:
  • Ambulacre of the Great Hunting with mosaic a 60 meters length and 350 m ² of surface
  • Palestre or Living room of the Circus: the mosaics represent the Circus Maximus of Rome.
  • Room of the Dance
  • Room of the Seasons
  • Room of the Small Hunting
  • Room of the fishing children
  • Room of the young girls in bikini
  • Room of the myth of Orphée
  • Room of the children vintagers
  • Triclinium (dining room)
  • Room of the housewife: mosaic representing Arion
  • Atrium or boudoir

Sources

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