Brickstamp, Portus Alison E. Cooley AEC/ASHL AN1872.1500.xml Oxford Ashmolean Museum AN1872.1500 AshLI 197 Coll. Ref: 16 Roman catalogue: 380

A rectangular brickstamp (0.035 0.125+), with hollowed letters inset into the brick’s surface. Brick: 0.132+ 0.178+ 0.032+

The letters are stamped on two lines. The lettering is damaged at the start of each line on the left-hand side. The end of the lines marked off by quadrilateral indentations.

0.014 Portus AD 127 (consular date). According to Dressel, it was found at Portus, 1866, in the structure known at that time as the xenodochium (guest-house) of Pammachius, built by a senator at the end of the 4th century for Christian pilgrims visiting Rome, now known as the ‘Christian basilica’ (cf. Lanciani 1870: p.25; Pavolini 2006: p.290). This brickstamp was part of a collection of brickstamps from Rome, Ostia, and Portus given to the Ashmolean by J.H. Parker, Keeper of Antiquities in the Ashmolean Museum (1870-84), after a visit to Rome in the winter months of 1871/2. It is currently in store. Photograph Photograph Photograph
Tito Atilio Titiano Marco Squilla Gallicano consulibus ex praedis Quinti Servili Pudentis fecit Marcus M V

In the consulship of Titus Atilius Titianus and Marcus Squilla Gallicanus, from the estate of Quintus Servilius Pudens. Marcus M(?) V(?) made (this).

In line 2, there appears to be a vacat in front of the letter Q, but comparison with other examples of the same stamp in CIL suggests that the letters EX PR must originally have been present at the start of line 2, followed by a blank space before continuing with Q.

Other stamps relating to the estate of Q. Servilius Pudens (PIR2 S594) are known from AD 123-25, 127-31, and 139. He was a friend of Pliny the Younger, legate in Bithynia in AD 111 (Setälä 1977: pp.183-85). See also AN1872.1529.

Ashmolean Museum Department of Antiquities MS Accession Register 1872.1500 (16) no. 38; Marini (1884) p.171 no.447; CIL XV.1 no.1432,5 (from an impression sent by Waldstein) (Dressel 1891); Thylander 1952: p.451 B394, 25.

Online: EDCS-13600356 [accessed 06/10/14]

Lanciani R. 1870 Recenti scoperte nelle vicinanze di Roma. Porto Bullettino dell’Instituto di Corrispondenza Archeologica 18-25 Marini G. 1884 Iscrizioni antiche doliari G.B.De Rossi H.Dressel Rome Tipi del Salviucci Pavolini C. 2006 Ostia Rome Laterza Setälä P. 1977 Private Domini in Roman Brick Stamps of the Empire. A Historical and Prosopographical Study of Landowners in the District of Rome Helsinki Academia Scientiarum Fennica Thylander H. 1952 Inscriptions du port d’Ostie Lund Gleerup