Residential villas in Italy in the Augustan Age: The case-study of the Sabina Tiberina

This paper presents some observations on the characteristics and development of residential villas in the Augustan age, with particular reference to the Latium region, and, within it, to a case study represented by the Sabina Tiberina territory. In this context, the data concerning the villa of Cottanello, recently investigated by the Sapienza University of Rome and the National Research Council (CNR), could offer some new perspective to debate. The main aim of this paper is to try to verify whether there are or not typical elements of the Augustan phase, within the long tradition of the Roman villa.