Archaeology department secures prestigious grant

A prestigious grant of £799,000 has been secured by the University of Southampton’s Archaeology Department.

The grant which was awarded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) will be used to finish the excavations at Portus, the harbour for ancient Rome which supplied goods to the Etearnal City from around the Mediterranean.



Model re-construction of Portus showing the hexagonal anchorage built by the emperor Trajan



Excavations in 2009 revealed an Imperial complex, an ancient theatre and one of the largest canals ever built by the Romans.

One of the most spectacular finds was a sculpted head which could be that of the mythical hero Odysseus.

Sculpted head which may be that of the mythical hero Odysseus

Project Director Professor Simon Keay said: "This is a massive boost for the university, the department and archaeology in general. This is one of the few global archaeology projects that is still ongoing so we’re very excited to be taking part in in."

The Portus Project which was begun in 1998 .is a collaborative effort between Southampton University, the University of Cambridge, the British School at Rome and the Italian Ministry of Culture.

The excavations which will run from March to May 2011 will focus on a mystery building.

"This is a huge structure of 170m by 35m and so far we’re completely in the dark about. it," said Professor Keay. "We think it could be absolutely central to understanding how the port operated."

"The only reason the Roman Empire survived for 300 years was because it was supplied with grain, wine, olive oil and other goods through Portus. This was not unlike the way Southampton supplies modern Britain today , he said."

Cutting edge digital technology will be developed to show exacltly how the port worked: "We are lucky enough to have some fantastic specialists at the university such as Graeme Earl who will set up computerised models of the port to show the traffic passing through it. We plan to create a major new website so that the public can see it for themselves and we’ll be able to publish academic books and a popular guide to the site for people who want to visit it."

Re-construction of the theatre

Professor Keay is hopeful that the site will be opened to the public in years to come to rival the great ancient parks such as Ostia, Heculaneum and Pompei: "This is a major site with a theatre, temples, warehouses and wharves. The will is certainly there in the Italian miinistry to open it up, " he said.

The grant comes as a welcome boost at a time when archaeology and the university is threatened by funding cuts: "We’ve got an excellent record of securing major sources of funding at Southampton and this just proves that we will continue to do so, " Professor Keay said.

Communications officer Peter Franklin said: "This will have a massive benefit to students at the university and will help us to continue to attract the very best academic candidates."

For details on the excavations and graphic re-constructions visit http://www.portusproject.org/

 

Excavations on the site of the theatre