The Plate (No. 5 - ii)

Aurelianus made use of the existing walls protecting the Castro Pretorio (the barracks of the Praetorian Guard) as part of the new walls of Rome. The view is taken from the green dot in the small 1748 map here below. In the description below the plate Vasi made reference to: 1) Porta Chiusa; 2) Via Tiburtina; 3) Porta Pia; 4) Via Nomentana; 5) Various villas; 6) Villa Patrizi. 1), 3) and 6) are shown in other pages.

Today

Two of the three sides of Castro Pretorio walls are still in (rather) good shape, although there is little sign of the towers which protected them. The barracks had a gate at the end of the main road of the castrum, Porta Decumana. When Aurelianus incorporated Castro Pretorio into the walls of Rome he closed the gate (the image here below shows on the right the site of Porta Decumana) and opened another gate, known today as Porta Chiusa.

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