ABSTRACT
The urban borderscape of the Roman Metropolis was defined by its vast dimensions, particularly along the consular roads to and from the city. Along these roads, an increasingly dense and vast funerary landscape developed from the fourth century bce onwards. The Via Appia offers a uniquely detailed view on this development. A close analysis of the remains of funerary monuments along the fifth and sixth miles outside the Servian Walls shows how this remote area began to develop a monumentalized necropolis from the first century bce onwards, and how this necropolis continued to grow until the early third century ce, and came to include several huge elite monuments besides many smaller and medium-sized tombs, though compared to locations closer to the city, tomb construction started later, and declined earlier.
