When one thinks of Roman villas, one immediately imagines soaring white columns, cascading fountains, and lush courtyards. Sculptures dotting manicured gardens and servants running around fulfilling their lord and lady’s every whim. What most people don’t know is that the “roman villa” was a dwelling for ancient Romans engaged in agricultural activity.
The roman villa typically consisted of the Vestibulum, Ostium, Atrium, Tablinum, Peristylium, Culina, and Cubiculum. Many of these villas were two stories tall with rooms similarly used in modern houses we see today. The roman villa was also called a “domus” consisting of front and rear living areas connected by a small courtyard.
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A roman family’s wealth and standing in society dictated the size and number of rooms in a villa. The very rich were able to afford luxurious country estates spread out over many acres of land. Some smaller villas were built by the seashore while others were situated on the edges of bustling urban centers.
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Rooms in a Roman Villa
Since roman villas are residential structures, it follows that all the rooms in the home serve some type of domestic function. You will find an entryway, a kitchen, a living room, a dining room, and bedrooms. Here are the most common rooms in a roman villa and their uses.
Ostium
The ostium is the pathway leading to the main entrance hall of a Roman villa. This includes the doorway and the door itself. In poorer houses, the ostium is directly on the street, and when open, leads straight to the atrium.
Vestibulum
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The vestibulum is the main entrance hall that you can access through the ostium. Not all roman houses include a vestibulum, only the larger and more prosperous villas are fortunate to have them. The vestibulum would be decorated with shrubs and statuary, sometimes even a row of shops, lending a more impressive entrance.
Atrium
Passing through the ostium and the vestibulum, one finds oneself in the atrium, an important feature in any roman villa. The atrium serves not only as the central point for arriving guests, but it also showcases the rooms on all sides. The atrium is also where you see the important impluvium; a shallow sunken pool to catch rainwater from the roof.
The impluvium usually features marble and sits roughly 30 cm below the center of the atrium. This shallow pool then collects rainwater gathered from a square, sloped opening on the roof called the compluvium. This water empties into a subfloor cistern and used throughout the house.
Aside from housing the essential compluvium and impluvium, the atrium also served as the public face of the roman home. Most atriums are beautifully decorated, showcasing the family’s wealth and prestige. This room served as the center of the family’s social and political dealings with friends and foe alike.
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Tablinum
The tablinum is a room or small alcove used by the family to store important documents or personal records. In wealthy families, it was the pater families’ office to convene with business and political associates. This room also served as an exhibition space for lavish wall paintings and the busts of famous ancestors.
The tablinum was always directly behind the atrium, granting a commanding view of the atrium and landscaped gardens. It also opened on both sides but had folding doors or panels that you could easily shut for privacy.
Peristylium
Rather than outside lawns, the ancient Romans created their green space within the walls of their villa. The peristylium is the Roman villa’s open courtyard replete with lush gardens, marble benches, impressive statuary, and spaced columns. These columns were essential in supporting the shaded roofed portico whose walls were decorated with beautiful paintings.
The presence of a shrine within a peristylium was not uncommon in ancient Roman villas.
In such estates where space was available, the peristylium also housed the statues of many gods the family worshipped.
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Culina
Unlike the modern kitchen, the roman culina was out of view and relegated to the very back of the villa. Usually small, dark, and poorly ventilated, this area was frequented only by the servants and maids. The matron of the house never cooked, hence, it did not matter that this room was always hot and uncomfortable.
There was constant baking going on in the culina ovens. Hot embers from the oven were also used under metal braziers that formed a stove-top of some sort. The kitchen staff utilized these tops not so much for cooking, but to keep dishes warm.
Cubiculum
The cubiculum provided many functions in the Roman villa. When found on the second floor, these areas served as bedrooms for the occupants of the home. Cubicula were also present on the main floor of the home and were usually used as small sitting rooms.
You wouldn’t find much furniture in bedrooms in old roman villas. These rooms featured minimal furnishings, with a sleeping couch and a small, wooden chest for personal belongings.
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Lararium
The lararium, or altar, was a sacred place in the home where people made offerings and prayers to the gods. In large Roman villas, one may find the lararium in the atrium right by the reception area. But in a smaller home with no atrium, the lararium was near the hearth or by the kitchen.
It was not unusual to find more than one lararium in a roman home, especially in the more luxurious villas. Made from marble or plain wood slats, these shrines were placed both indoors and outdoors, some even in the bedrooms. The essential factor was to have a permanent place of worship that you didn’t have to put away when unused.
Roman Toilets
Despite the prevalent aim for modernity and innovation, there is not much to be said about toilets in a roman villa. There are rare cases where you would discover toilets with indoor plumbing in private homes. But typically, residents used the public latrines that were benches with holes in them that covered one big trench.
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Additional Rooms in a Roman Villa
You could find extra, rarely used rooms in the opulent villas owned by the patrician Romans. Families that held leadership status in politics, economics, and religion, and the ruling military elite populated this class.
Bibliotheca
In a few wealthy villas, the bibliotheca was a revered space housing occupants dedicated to education. Collections of books, or scrolls in the olden days, were large and numerous.
Therefore, people placed them in cabinets around the room. Some of these home libraries were open and available for public use.
Only the grander, more opulent villas had space for a bibliotheca. Statues of Minerva, the goddess of wisdom, were placed inside the room along with busts of distinguished men of letters. As with home libraries today, this room and its contents were more for show than for actual reading.
Sacrarium
The sacrarium acted as a private chapel that served a similar function to the lararium, but only grander. Here, people worshipped, uttered prayers, kept statues, and offered sacrifices.
Exedrae
The exedrae featured permanently installed seating, as in a modern theater or auditorium. This space functioned mostly for entertainment purposes and sometimes as a lecture room for Romans in pursuit of knowledge.
Solarium
The solarium was another outdoor space with landscaping but only for the family’s personal use. You’d often find this terrace on the flat part of a roof, serving as a private garden for simply basking in the sun. The design showcased another natural outdoor space, with earth covering the ground and featuring green shrubs and vibrant flowers.
Cellae Servorum
The cellae servorum was a small room that served as the servants’ quarters. This space was either on the side of the atrium or the back of the villa.
In smaller roman houses, there may not have been enough space for a cellae servorum. Servants would bed down in hallways and attics on a heap of straw with a blanket on top.
Related Questions
Are there still roman villas standing today?
You can still find remnants of ancient roman villas today in parts of Europe where the Romans took up residence. Most villas are in North Italy, the bay of Naples, and outside Pompeii. But one may also find some ruins in Britain, specifically London, which was a Roman settlement in ancient times.
How important is Roman architecture in modern times?
Columns, domes, and arches (invented in ancient Roman times) are architectural structures that people still widely use in today’s modern world. Roman architecture greatly influenced many official US government buildings.A specific example of the influence of Roman architecture in today’s world is the famous and impressive Colosseum. The Colosseum, with its seating levels and oval shape, is the precursor for today’s sports arenas and stadiums. Centuries have passed since its construction, yet the Colosseum still dictates the look of stadiums all over the world.
Is the roman villa a popular style in today’s homes?
Architects today still refer to the look of roman villas, especially when designing an expansive home for a wealthy client. The roman style of architecture connotes luxury, wealth, and status, unmatched by any other. In today’s mansions, the application of columns and arches still inspires awe and wonder.
Summing It Up
Roman villas have come a long way since their appearance in the first century A.D. (120s-130s). Having played a role in showcasing wealth and power, people today still associate the Roman villa as the ultimate luxury. The storied trappings of only the rich and famous.
