Spolia

Connected Sites: 32

Spolia is the re-use of earlier building material or decorative sculpture on new monuments. Only re-use after Antiquity is included.

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Connected Sites

Berat and Gjirokastra
Inscribed: 2005
3.55
216
7
Berat's Helveti Tekke Includes Five Stone Columns Which Were Taken From The Antique City Of Apollonia
Thessalonika
Inscribed: 1988
2.97
312
9
The Ottoman Heptapyrgion Fortress Shows Spolia With Greek Inscriptions As Decorative Elements; Hagios Demterios Was Renovated After The Great Fire Of 1917 Using Tombstones From The Jewish Cemetery
See En.Wikipedia.Org
Aachen Cathedral
Inscribed: 1978
3.73
431
19
Palatine Chapel: The Chapel Makes Use Of Ancient Spolia, Conceivably From Ravenna (Wiki)
Kairouan
Kairouan
Tunisia
Inscribed: 1988
3.05
181
4
Great Mosque Of Sidi-Uqba: There Are 414 Marble, Granite And Porphyry Columns In The Mosque. Almost All Were Taken From The Ruins Of Carthage. (Wiki)
Cordoba
Cordoba
Spain
Inscribed: 1984
4.18
483
9
Mosque–Cathedral Of Córdoba: The Building Is Most Notable For Its Arcaded Hypostyle Hall, With 856 Columns Of Jasper, Onyx, Marble, And Granite. These Were Made From Pieces Of The Roman Temple Which Had Occupied The Site Previously, As Well As Other Destroyed Roman Buildings, Such As The Mérida Amphitheatre. (Wiki)
Longobards in Italy
Inscribed: 2011
2.82
260
14
In Basilica Of San Salvatore And Clitunno Tempietto
See Www.Italialangobardorum.It
Syracuse
Inscribed: 2005
3.53
308
8
The Cathedral (Italian: Duomo) Was Built By Bishop Zosimo In The 7th Century Over The Great Temple Of Athena (5th Century Bc), On Ortygia Island. This Was A Doric Edifice With Six Columns On The Short Sides And 14 On The Long Sides: These Can Still Be Seen Incorporated In The Walls Of The Current Church. (Wiki)
Daphni, Hosios Loukas and Nea Moni of Chios
Inscribed: 1990
3.00
217
10
Daphni: The Ionic Columns Supporting The Narthex Of The Byzantine Church Were Reused From The Apollo Sanctuary That Stood On This Spot In Antiquity
Susa
Susa
Iran
Inscribed: 2015
2.40
41
4
Shush Castle - "The Structure Was Built By Local Craftsmen With Bricks Taken From Two Other Archaeological Sites, The Achaemenid Darius/Dariush Castle And The Elamite Choqazanbil Ziggurat" (Wiki)
Bolgar
Bolgar
Russia
Inscribed: 2014
2.26
42
5
The Church Of The Dormition Of The Virgin Was Built Between 1732 And 1734 In The Centre Of The Archaeological Site... During Its Construction Stone From The Ruined Buildings Of Bolgar Was Reused And The Wall Plinths Still Carry Arabic And Armenian Inscriptions. (Ab Ev)
Kasbah of Algiers
Inscribed: 1992
2.52
63
4
Some Capitals Of Columns In The Kasbah Were Recovered From The Roman Ruins Of The Icosium Site. (French Wiki)
Timgad
Timgad
Algeria
Inscribed: 1982
3.37
42
4
The Byzantine Reconquest Revived Some Activities In The City, Defended By A Fortress Built To The South, In 539, Reusing Blocks Removed From Roman Monuments. (Unesco Website)
Modena
Modena
Italy
Inscribed: 1997
2.97
280
11
First, The Building Is A Characteristic And Documented Example Of The Reuse Of Ancient Remains, Which Was Common Practice In The Middle Ages Before The Quarries Were Reopened In The 12th And Particularly The 13th Centuries. (Ab Ev) - Most Visible At Facade And Entrance Of The Cathedral
See Italiannotes.Com
Danube Limes
Danube Limes
Austria, Germany, Slovakia
Inscribed: 2021
2.05
261
6
"Certainly The First Post Roman Construction Phase Led To A Considerable Number Of Discoveries Of Inscriptions And Building Stones As Can Be Deducted From Their Frequent Use As Spolia In Romanesque Churches And Buildings, Sometimes In Prominent Visible Positions And Usually With A New Christian Meaning." (Nomination File, P. 101) In The Church Of St. Martin In Linz (Id No 13a) Roman Spolia Are Visible In The Interior And Exterior Walls. (Nomination File, P. 67) Component Part 25d (Traismauer – Kastell Hufeisenturm), "The So Called Reck Tower Or Hungerturm Belonging To The Northern Front Of The Fort Consists Of Antique Masonry, Up To The Second Floor, Which Contains Numerous Spolia." (Nomination File, P. 74)
Medina of Tunis
Inscribed: 1979
3.06
228
3
"Borrowing Some Of The Columns And Capitals Of Roman And Byzantine Monuments" (Wiki Fr)
Belfries
Belfries
Belgium, France
Inscribed: 1999
2.96
555
17
He Two First Floors Of The Douai Belfry Were Constructed With Materials From The Castle Of Cantin, Which Was Being Demolished At That Time, And Several Buildings In The Town. (Nomination File, P. 34)
Tower of Hercules
Inscribed: 2009
2.67
190
5
"[S]Tones Of The Tower Were Reused In (...) New Buildings (...), Such As The Fort Of The Old Town, The Collegiate Church Of Santa María Del Campo And The Church Of Santiago (...). [O]Ne Has The Feeling That The Surroundings Of The Roman Lighthouse Became A Makeshift Quarry From Which A Large Number Of Blocks Of Stone Of A Considerable Size From All Four Facades Of The Tower, Which Had Collapsed Taking With Them The Access Ramp To The Rotunda, Were Extracted." (Nomination File, P. 97) "The Looting Of Materials Continued Until 1557, When The Town Council Banned The Extraction Of Ashlars From The Tower, Under Threat Of Fines." (Nomination File, P. 177)
Venice and its Lagoon
Inscribed: 1987
4.51
828
18
Basilica San Marco: Many Of These Ornamental Elements Were Spolia Taken From Ancient Or Byzantine Buildings. Particularly In The Period Of The Latin Empire (1204–1261), Following The Fourth Crusade, The Venetians Pillaged The Churches, Palaces, And Public Monuments Of Constantinople And Stripped Them Of Polychrome Columns And Stones. Once In Venice, Some Of The Columns Were Sliced For Revetmets And Patere; Others Were Paired And Spread Across The Façades Or Used As Altars. Despoliation Continued In Later Centuries, Notably During The Venetian–Genoese Wars.Venetian Sculptors Also Integrated The Spoils With Local Productions, Copying The Byzantine Capitals And Friezes So Effectively That Some Of Their Work Can Only Be Distinguished With Difficulty From The Originals. (Wiki)
Selimiye Mosque
Inscribed: 2011
3.50
142
4
"... Surrounded By A Domevaulted Colonnade. The Six Columns On Each Side Are Reused From Ruins In Cyprus, Aydincik In The Vicinity Of Kapidagi Peninsula, And Syria." (Ab Ev)
Ravenna
Ravenna
Italy
Inscribed: 1996
4.15
345
8
The Basilica Of Sant'apollinare In Classe: "It Was Certainly Located Next To A Christian Cemetery, And Quite Possibly On Top Of A Pre-Existing Pagan One, As Some Of The Ancient Tombstones Were Re-Used In Its Construction."
See En.Wikipedia.Org
Wooden Hypostyle Mosques of Medieval Anatolia
Inscribed: 2023
2.49
56
4
"Stone Spolia (Repurposed Architectural Fragments) Form The Capitals Of Columns" (Ab Ev)
Val di Noto
Inscribed: 2002
3.37
247
11
Catania Cathedral: "(...) The Three Semicircular Apses, Composed Of Large Lava Stones, Most Of Them Recovered From Imperial Roman Buildings." The "Baroque Façade (...) Has Three Levels With Corinthian Columns In Granite, Perhaps Taken From The Roman Theatre Of The City."
See En.Wikipedia.Org
Nice
Nice
France
Inscribed: 2021
2.79
400
5
A Cathedral And A Baptistry Were Built On The Site Of The Roman Baths Of Cimiez, With Parts Of The Baths Being Reused (E.G. The Columns For The Baptistry).
See Fr.Wikipedia.Org
Plečnik's Ljubljana
Inscribed: 2021
3.00
322
7
"Various Materials And Elements From Nearby Structures Were Employed In The Construction Of The Gerber Passage, Including Stones Left Behind When The Old Cobblers' Bridge Was Replaced With A New One, And The Iron Fence That Once Lined The Central Core Of The Three Bridges." For The Construction Of The National Library, "Plecnik Had Part Of The Roman Wall Removed For The Construction, Which Met With General Opposition. He Therefore Had Part Of The Stones Symbolically Built Into The Façade And Added Several Stones Left From The Demolished Auersperg Palace." (Nomination File, P. 58, 102)
Ferrara
Ferrara
Italy
Inscribed: 1995
3.20
278
10
In The Center Of The Cathedral Stands The Main Altar, Consecrated In 1728. It Is The Work Of Celio Tirini, Who Reused Marble From Buildings In Ravenna, Mostly Deriving From The Ruins Of King Theodoric's Palace Of Ravenna.
See It.Wikipedia.Org
Quanzhou
Inscribed: 2021
3.40
65
4
"When Deji Gate Was Expanded At The End Of The 14th Century, Architectural Elements With Religious Adornments Were Taken From Various Structures And Graves In The Surrounding Area To Build The Foundation Of The New Wall." (Nomination File, P. 58)
Umm Al-Jimāl
Inscribed: 2024
2.85
29
4
"The Extent Of These Earliest Nabataean And Roman Settlements Cannot Be Confirmed As The Village And The Town Were Destroyed In The 3rd Century Ce, And The Building Material Was Used In Later Constructions." (Ab Ev)
Paris, Banks of the Seine
Inscribed: 1991
4.19
956
20
For The Construction Of The Pont De La Concorde, Cut Stones From The Demolition Of The Bastille Were Used.
See Fr.Wikipedia.Org
Val d'Orcia
Inscribed: 2004
3.23
238
11
Montalcino Cathedral: "The Bell Tower Dates From The Eighteenth Century. The Materials For Its Construction Were Taken From The Romanesque Church Of San Pietro In Asso."
See En.Wikipedia.Org
Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France
Inscribed: 1998
2.82
377
14
The Saint-Just Church In Valcabrère Was Built With Elements Coming From The Necropolis In Which It Was Situated. Sarcophagi And Bas-Reliefs Were Reused In The Construction. (Nomination File) - Many Elements Of The Miègeville Door In The Basilica Of Saint-Sernin In Toulouse Were Made From Sarcophagi Recovered From The Early Christian Cemetery That Preceded The Cathedral.
See Fr.Wikipedia.Org
Talayotic Menorca
Inscribed: 2023
2.93
50
4
Cornia Nou (Component C7): "In The Recent Past, Stone Was Extracted For The Construction Of The Monument To Fallen Soldiers, Located In Maó'S Plaça De S'Esplanada Square, After The Spanish Civil War." (Nomination File, P. 450)
Flemish Béguinages
Inscribed: 1998
2.78
434
13
The Oldest, Early Gothic Church Building Of The Béguinage Of Bruges Dates Back To 1245, When Countess Margaret Of Constantinople Had The Disused Chapel Of The Burgrave On The Burg Transferred To The Recently Founded Beguinage Ten Wijngaerde At The Request Of Bishop Walter Van Marvis. This Transfer Must Be Interpreted Quite Literally: Apart From The Contents (Furniture, Books, Liturgical Objects And Ornaments), The Building Materials Were Apparently Also Reused As Much As Possible.
See Nl.Wikipedia.Org