Lo scavo di via dei Piatti 10-11. Un nuovo polo monumentale d’epoca romana. Una proposta interpretativa alternativa

The area of via dei Piatti in Milan has preserved in its structure the memory of the ancient urban articulation of Roman times, when it was an area with a residential vocation. Inside this area stood out for monumentality the majestic complex of the 1St century A.D. whose remains were identified in via dei Piatti 11. It is possible to reconstruct this complex as a large rectangular square porticed, perhaps with a templar building inside and access from the side of the current via Torino. The exact size cannot be determined with certainty, but it can be estimated to be around 140 x 62 m. Several other cases of similar buildings can be pointed out in some cities in the Western Roman empire in the 1St century AD: these are sometimes truly grandiose complexes, often associated with imperial worship. There is no evidence that even in the building of via dei Piatti in Milan was practiced this worship, but certainly it was a building of great impact in the city.