Tomb of Caecilia Metella
Type:
Mausoleums,
Tombs
Date:
Late first century BCE
Location or Findspot (Modern-Day Country):
Italy
Dimensions:
Total height (cylindrical drum and podium) of 21.7 m, and diameter of 29.5 m
Description:
Caecilia Metella, daughter of a Roman consul and wife of a quaestor of the Roman Republic, was buried in a tomb south of Rome along the via Appia, the principal route from Rome to south Italy. The large rotunda (cylindrical drum) on a square podium has a marble frieze decorated with ox heads and garlands, as well as a large panel with military trophies carved in relief. The inscription below the frieze reads CAECILIAE Q[uinti] CRETICI F[iliae] METELLAE CRASSI (to Caecilia Metella, the daughter of Quintus Caecilius Metellus Creticus, [and wife] of Crassus). Much of the travertine facing is now missing, and the crenelated top is a later addition from when the mausoleum became part of a fortress.
Relevant Textbook Chapter(s):
1,
2
Image Credits:
Wikimedia Commons
