Piazza di Porta Maggiore
Built in the years 40/30 BC
It was originally about 7 m (23 feet) high
Trapezoidal shape, due to the position between the two divergent roads, Via Labicana and Via Prenestina
It was discovered during the demolition, arranged in 1838 for Pope Gregory XVI Cappellari (1831/46), of the defensive towers built by Honorius (395/423) of Porta Maggiore, in order to restore the old structure of the time of Aurelian (271/275)
Marcus Virgilius Eurysaces was a baker, probably an enriched freedman
He was buried with his wife Atistia. The urn where her ashes were kept is now in the Museo delle Terme
In the upper part of the tomb is the “Frieze with stages of the baking process”
“The monumental complex responds well to the need for exposure of a person of humble origins. The formal sketchy language of the frieze that mimics that of continuous official reliefs, his didactic purpose, the emphasis on the protagonist, as well as the theme, make it a typical work of plebeian art” (Gian Luca Grassigli - TMG)
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