On the Caelian Hill, at the northern corner of the Castra Peregrina, stands the Arcus Dolabellae et Silani. This gate, dating to A.D. 10, is likely a rebuilding of an earlier structure that formed part of the Servian Wall. It may have been the Porta Querquetulana or the Porta Caelimontana, though such identities remain speculative. The arch is a sturdy, functional piece of Roman infrastructure, its name a reminder of the consuls who oversaw its construction. The Servian Wall, Rome’s early defensive circuit, was by this period increasingly redundant, its gates often rebuilt as monuments or absorbed into later buildings. Here, the arch marks a threshold between the ancient city and the military encampment of the Castra Peregrina, a barracks for foreign troops. It is a quiet survivor, unassuming and easily missed, yet it speaks of Rome’s layered past, walls repurposed, names half-remembered, and the city’s steady growth outward from its old boundaries.
Description via source. Coordinates and heritage data from the Atika atlas.
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