«Life and Forms» of Ancient Ostia in the line of an unbroken tradition. Vincenzo Fasolo’s archive and its contribution to history teaching at Rome’s Faculty of Architecture

Abstract

Ostia, Rome’s ancient emporium and port, was only systematically excavated in the early 20th century under Guido Calza, who had served as its superintendent there since 1912. This delay in excavation, compared to other ancient cities, linked its rediscovery to debates on contemporary city construction. The excavations had an immediate impact on architectural publications and education, particularly at the Rome’s School of Architecture. Due to its proximity, the site fostered a shared commitment among faculty members to integrate ancient architectural knowledge into new urban forms.

Vincenzo Fasolo, professor of History and Styles of Architecture since 1925, emphasized an interpretation of history as an “unbroken line” of “styles” and “forms” from antiquity to the present. Ostia became central to this vision, as it uniquely preserved an authentic “image” of Rome, a distinction already emphasized by Calza in 1912. Fasolo’s lectures featured detailed studies of Ostia’s buildings and urban environment, as documented in his own drawings, those pro­duced by his students, and a collection of publications (1911-1941) preserved in his personal archive at the Archivio Storico Capitolino in Rome.

This research examines unpublished materials from Fasolo’s archive, which reveal his method of using drawing as a tool to synthesize and reinterpret Ostia’s architectural and urban values. His approach mirrored the perspectives of Calza and Gustavo Giovannoni, forming a “History” of “Life and Forms” that bridged architecture and archaeology. Fasolo’s work demonstrates how Ostia influenced architectural education in the 1920s-1930s, during the years when his course was attended by notable students, such as Adalberto Libera, Mario Ridolfi, Luigi Moretti, and Ludovico Quaroni.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.20365/disegnarecon.34.2025.16