Description

The Casa in Via della Lungaretta, a medieval Roman house made of brick and other classical remnants, follows an ancient Roman vernacular style with its open front and a space for shops beneath it. In a Medieval city it would be typical for houses to be multifunctional as both residential and economic centers, as dealers and artisans would often have their shops in the houses they lived in, on the lower level. Here, they would display their products on the street on counters made of wood or built into the walls of the house. In such shops, one could buy food items such as fish, meat, vegetables, and bread, as well as household items including pieces of furniture, kitchen utensils, fabrics, etc. Given the difficulty of preserving food for long periods, during this time people had to buy items in small quantities on a daily basis, so every day there would be a consistent flow of traffic in these areas.

Creator

Julia Dietrich (2021)

Date

1300

Coverage

1300s

Source

Brentano, Robert. Rome before Avignon : A Social History of Thirteenth-century Rome. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990.

Frugoni, Chiara, and Frugoni, Arsenio. A Day in a Medieval City. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005.