Fortifications
Dublin Core
Title
Fortifications
Description
Location: Paestum
Date: the walls visible today were probably built between the late fourth and third century BC, when a Roman colony was established here. However, they may have been preceded by an earlier fortification system.
Details: The massive fortification walls of Paestum once stood about 7 meters (~23 feet) tall--or taller--and were 5-6 meters (15-20 feet) thick. They stretched nearly 5 km (~3 miles) around the city. They had 28 towers and four main gates. The wall is ashlar (which basically means that it was made of rectangular dressed stones) and made from local travertine stone. There was a large ditch in front of the walls, as was common in Hellenistic fortifications.
Date: the walls visible today were probably built between the late fourth and third century BC, when a Roman colony was established here. However, they may have been preceded by an earlier fortification system.
Details: The massive fortification walls of Paestum once stood about 7 meters (~23 feet) tall--or taller--and were 5-6 meters (15-20 feet) thick. They stretched nearly 5 km (~3 miles) around the city. They had 28 towers and four main gates. The wall is ashlar (which basically means that it was made of rectangular dressed stones) and made from local travertine stone. There was a large ditch in front of the walls, as was common in Hellenistic fortifications.
Creator
Gabriel Baker
Rights
Shared under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License
Collection
Citation
Gabriel Baker, “Fortifications,” Archaeology, Artifacts, & Landscapes, accessed April 19, 2024, https://gabrieldavidbaker.com/digital-exhibit/items/show/12.