Abstract:

Recent excavations in the Roman villa of Los Torrejones (Yecla, Murcia, Spain), are redefining the chrono-statigraphic and architectural sequence of the site, which was occupied without interruption between the Augustan period and the 5th-6th centuries AD. An spectacular pars urbana, defined by a monumental architectural and decorative programme, was built during Phase 2 (1st-3rd century AD). This work presents the preliminary analysis of over 600 items, including lastra, fillets, plain base and crown mouldings and decorative plaques, among other architectural, epigraphical and sculptural elements. The quality of the material and the spectacular nature of the decoration of the villa’s main rooms illustrates the dimensions of the project; the builders used white and coloured marmora from all over the Mediterranean as well as Iberia. The materials range in date from the 2nd (in two different phases) to the early 3rd century, and must have been used as an spectacular frame for a portrait gallery displaying effigies of emperors and members of the owners of the villa.