Pruned — On landscape architecture and related fields — ArchivesFuture Plural@pruned — Offshoots — #Chicagos@altchicagoparks@southworkspark
1
Drowned Rome
Rome Flood Markers


While writing our earlier post on Rome, we remembered that the city is pockmarked with stone markers accurately recording the dates and high water marks of historic flood events. Most are embedded on the sides of buildings, and their inscriptions read something like this:

ANNO DOMINI MCDXXII IN DIE SANCTI ANDREE CREVIT AQUA TIBERIS USQUE AD SUMITATEM ISTIUS LAPIDIS TEMPORE DOMINI MARTINI PAPE V ANNO VI.


Or:

In the year of the Lord 1422 on the day of Saint Andrew the water of the Tiber rose as far as to top of this stone, in the time of Pope Martin V, his sixth year.


In many markers, a finger, from which a swirl of lovely, frothy curlicues swooshes out, points instead to the upper limit of inundation.

According to Aquae Urbis Romae, “nearly one hundred flood markers still exist,” with the earliest dating to the 13th century. None from earlier eras are extant, but presumably there were many, a collective testament to a watery past.

When it wasn't being ravaged by veritable dry disasters such as barbarian invasions, plagues and fires, Rome drowned.
3 COMMENTS —
  • Anonymous
  • December 26, 2008 at 9:54:00 AM CST
  • Check these photos out from the trump tower crane.

    http://jimojimo.smugmug.com/gallery/5936452_DVKmB#369822078_zPNT6

    Dc.


  • Kate
  • January 15, 2009 at 1:04:00 PM CST
  • Venice drowned, too. Have you seen the WIRED magazine article on the future of Venice's water systems? Another attempt to control nature to save lives.

    http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.08/venice.html


  • Alexander Trevi
  • January 15, 2009 at 6:20:00 PM CST
  • Not sure if Venice's anti-flood projects are meant to "save lives." To protect people's livelihood and history from slow, natural decay perhaps; but to avert future, near-sudden disasters that result in loss of lives is a bit hard to accept.

    Meanwhile, from The Big Picture, some great photos of Venice under water last month here.

    Also, there's the so called MOSE Project, but there's also Project Rialto.


Post a Comment —
Comments on posts older than a week are moderated —

—— Newer Post Older Post —— Home
1