The mosaics of Ostia

Between the ruins of ancient Ostia we still find many beautiful mosaics. In a previous post I already discussed the mosaics in the mithraeum of Felicissimus, which are not just impressive, but also provide us with a lot of information about the mystery cult of Mithras. Ostia’s many complexes of…

Continue reading

The baths of Ostia

Unfortunately no precise figures are available for the population of ancient Ostia. Perhaps the city had just over 20,000 inhabitants, perhaps some 50-60,000. However, we do know one thing for certain: the people of Ostia had ample opportunity to take a bath. Public baths were omnipresent in Ostia, and these…

Continue reading

Mithras in Ostia

The mystery cult of Mithras must have been very popular in Ostia. The city had at least 17 mithraea or places of worship.[1] It should, however, be noted that these mithraea were not that large: they could perhaps accommodate twenty to thirty people each. Twenty to thirty men actually, as…

Continue reading

The Jews of Ostia

I get the impression that very few people bother to visit the remains of Ancient Ostia’s synagogue. These are located some 300 metres outside the Porta Marina, the gate that faced the sea in Antiquity. The location feels rather isolated, and the situation was probably not very different some 2.000…

Continue reading