Space Syntax and buried cities: The case of the Roman town of Falerii Novi (Italy)

Abstract

This paper presents the results from the application of Space Syntax to the street network of the Roman town of Falerii Novi (Civita Castellana, Viterbo, Italy), documented for the most part through extensive magnetometric survey. Working with a combination of source data, predominantly geophysics, multiple scenarios were evaluated of the incomplete urban layout of the city. Three different types of Space Syntax analysis (axial analysis, segment analysis, visibility graph analysis) have been applied to each proposed scenario, focusing on the parameters of connectivity, integration, and choice. Results were confronted in order to analyze the system’s reaction to the changes in plan, verifying also the distinct outcomes of the tested hypotheses. The outcome of the application of Space Syntax was a better understanding of city layout, especially with regards to intramural connections between central and peripherical areas as well as choice routes, providing a useful tool capable of increasing our knowledge of the town’s structure and the ways in which it functioned especially when faced with a limited dataset.