Brickstamp, Portus Alison E. Cooley AEC/ASHL AN1872.1520.xml Oxford Ashmolean Museum AN1872.1520 AshLI 218 Coll. Ref: 36 Roman catalogue: 400

A circular orbicular stamp (0.09), rather worn and damaged on one side. The orbiculus is faintly visible. Brick: 0.107+ 0.16+ 0.042

There are two lines of letters around the edge of the stamp, running in concentric circles. In the centre is the figure of a cockerel. There are triangular interpuncts.

0.01-0.011 According to Dressel, it was found at Portus, in the southern part of the ‘palazzo imperiale’, together with many other examples of the same stamp (cf. Lanciani 1868: p.175; Thylander 1952: p.438 B387.5). AD 154 (Bloch, on another example from the Forum Baths at Ostia, 1938: p.270 no.52; Thylander 1952: p.439) . 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
Cai Niunidi Felicis opus figlinum doliare Lucio Aurelio Commodo consule

Brick product of Gaius Nunidius Felix. In the consulship of L. Aurelius Commodus.

NVNIDI (Lanciani): given other stamps of the officinator Nunidius/Nunnidius Felix, it seems that I is here an error for V; COMMOD (Lanciani).

There are four known officinatores named Nunnidius, from different generations of the same family, two of whom, including Nunidius Felix, worked for the emperor L. Verus (=L. Aurelius Commodus) before he became Augustus in AD 161 (Helen 1975: p.123).

Lanciani 1868: p.175; Ashmolean Museum Department of Antiquities MS Accession Register 1872.1520 (36) no.400; CIL XV.1 no.738,12 (from an impression sent by Waldstein) (Dressel 1891); Thylander 1952: p.438 B387.5.

Online: EDCS-34500072 [accessed 06/10/14]

Bloch H. 1938 I bolli laterizi e la storia edilizia romana Rome C. Colombo Helen T. 1975 Organization of Roman Brick Production in the First and Second Centuries AD. An interpretation of Roman brick stamps Helsinki Annales Academiae Scientiarum Fennicae Dissertationes Humanarum Litterarum 5 Lanciani R. 1868 Ricerche topografiche sulla città di Porto Annali dell’ Instituto di Corrispondenza Archeologica 40 144-95 Thylander H. 1952 Inscriptions du port d’Ostie Lund Gleerup