“Costruire Ostia Nuova colle gloriose spoglie dell’antica”. Archeologia e assetto territoriale alla foce del Tevere nel primo ventennio del Novecento

The resumption of excavations at Ostia at the beginning of the 20th c. is traditionally attributed to Dante Vaglieri. This cliché in the archaeological literature, however, omits the context in which these works were carried out: the requalification of the Agro Romano, and then the construction of Ostia Nuova. This paper demonstrates the fundamental role of the development of the Roman littoral, promoted by the Comitato Pro Roma Marittima and its president, Paolo Orlando, during the excavations of the ancient city between 1905 and 1923. The extension of the Via Ostiense to the sea and the filling in of the "Fiume Morto" were decisive in the resumption of the excavations. The construction of Ostia Nuova allowed the excavations to continue during the First World War and then in the post-war period, when the treasury of the Kingdom of Italy was exhausted by the war effort. These links between archaeological excavations and public works had significant consequences for the exploration of the ancient city.