The Tiber Island in ancient times was used for quarantines
The Tiber Island in ancient times was used for quarantines. It’s hard to be more isolated than that. The Tiber Island, a splendid and unique islet of the Tiber located right in the center of Rome, has always been a place linked to medicine to the sick and, in this case, to quarantines. Let’s find out why.
In reality there are numerous curiosities concerning this place.
The Tiber Island is the only urban island on the Tiber. About 300 meters long and 90 meters wide, it houses a real village with churches, hospitals, bars, restaurants and several houses, right in the center of Rome and in the middle of the river.
Legend has it that the island was formed in 510 BC. from the sheaves of wheat harvested in Campo Marzio, owned by King Tarquinio the Superb at the time of the revolt: studies however prove that the island has origins much earlier than the event. He hosted the temple of Aesculapius, god of medicine, whose cult was introduced in 292 BC. following a plague.
In the first half of the 1st century BC it was monumentalized in square work, parallel to the construction of the Fabricio and Cestio bridges. At that time it took the shape of a ship, the prow of which is still visible today, with blocks of travertine that cover the interior in peperino, and some decorations depicting Aesculapius with his snake and a bull’s head, probably used for moorings.
The Temple of Aesculapius was inaugurated in 289 BC. and stood in the southern part of the island, in the place now occupied by the church of San Bartolomeo. On the sides of the temple there was a portico for the reception of pilgrims and the sick. In the northern part there were some small sanctuaries linked to particular cults, now located between the foundations of the Fatebenefratelli Hospital. On the island there is also the church of San Giovanni Calibita.
On the Tiber Island there is also one of the three Roman offices of the Israelite Hospital. The site is operational and is located next to the basilica of San Bartolomeo, which explains another of the reasons why the island is also called “of the sick”. Due to its position it was also used for quarantines: the supposedly sick could therefore wait for the outcome of any contagion on the island, before eventually being able to resume normal life.
A legend tells that in 293 BC due to a serious pestilence the sages sailed from Rome to Epidaurus in Greece, to go to the temple of Aesculapius and here consult the oracle, they were given, by the priests of Epidaurus, a sacred serpent propitiator of health, which was embarked on the trireme, but the snake, while the ship was going up the Tiber, near the center of Rome, fled to take refuge on the Tiber island, and it was precisely as a result of this event that in addition to the temple dedicated to the God Aesculapius, buildings were built used to welcome sick people.
During the nineteenth century, the feast of watermelons was celebrated on 24 August. Sellers displayed their wares on the island; in the meantime some practiced a swimming competition, from Ponte Fabricio to Ponte Rotto to grab the watermelons: the games were banned in 1870 due to accidents due to the current of the river.
Above the ruins of the temple of Aesculapius, Emperor Otto III wanted to build a church in the 10th century dedicated to Saints Adalbert, Paolino and Bartolomeo, and which in 1180 kept the dedication only for the last saint.
On the island there is the restaurant Sora Lella, Elena Fabrizi, sister of Aldo Fabrizi, cook but also popular actress in some films by Carlo Verdone and several Italian comedies. The Fatebenefratelli hospital, located in front of the basilica of San Bartolomeo, was founded by the followers of San Giovanni di Dio in 1583, and later modernized by Cesare Bazzani between 1930 and 1934. On the right is the church of San Giovanni Calibita , built on the remains of the temple of Iuppiter Iurarius, and dedicated around 870.
The Tiber Island is also the smallest inhabited island in the world: it is connected to the two banks of the Tiber by the Ponte Cestio and Ponte Fabricio.
