Paestum: a greek city reshaped by the romans

Rediscovered in the 18th century and now constituted as an Archaeological Park under the aegis of the Italian Ministry of Culture, Paestum became early an archaeological legend for its monuments, giving an important contribution to the creation of a contemporary European feeling of a shared past rooted in the Greek-Roman antiquity. Located on the southern coast of Salerno Gulf, the city was founded by Greek settlers of Achaean origin at the beginning of the 6th century BC. In our presentation, we will focus on the early phases of the romanization of the city. The Romans continued to use the Greek sanctuaries, but under their rule, the site underwent decisive political, social and urban changes. By building their own monuments and rebalancing public and private spaces, the Romans reshaped the city, creating the conditions for its survival up to and beyond the end of antiquity. The Roman city is what modern archaeology brought to light and visitors from Europe and all over the world experience in our days.

The speaker of the presentation of the Paestum site will be Dr Marco Vasile. Graduated in Philosophy, since 2010 he has been working at the Archaeological Park of Paestum and Velia in the field of hospitality, communication and didactics.