1,500 strti. 0 strti.

Welcome to my new apartment. It’s been over three months now since I became a member of the sacravienses - residents of the Sacra Via. Now that all the worn-out furniture that used to clutter this apartment is gone, my MDC square feet of new bachelor pad is taking on a brand new look. I had managed to get some neighbourhood kids to help me transport my stuff from my old two-room columns of the temple of Faustina and Antoninus seen from the window in the stairwell place in the narrow side street. Word got around in no time that there was space to be sub-let between the Forum Pacis and the Horrea piperataria. Four students from Utica showed up one afternoon and we struck a deal. Each room is sub-let separately. CXX sestertii per room per month. No services. Maintenance remains the responsibility of the owner of the insula, who by the way does a reasonable job of keeping up the building. So not only have I doubled my living space and become the owner of a second-floor apartment - with the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina practically in leaping distance of my balcony - but by the same token more than doubled my income. My landlord, G. Popillius Laenas, the old snob, even greets me when we bump into each other in the Forum. Things could not get much better at this point. That rotting beam in the front room has been replaced. With the approach of winter, it was time to pick up the iron hearth-plates and brick oven in which I could build a fire. I had also spotted an ancient bronze hearth screen in a shop in the Subura and handed over a sizable down-payment. The rest of the sum owed securely tied up in a leather pouch, I picked up my purchase. The front room now looks quite smart. The screen, featuring the rape of the Sabine women in high relief, is now the focal point of the room, whether the fire is lit or not. It’s set against the wall facing the balcony, on the left as you enter the room. A small aperture in the wall perpendicular to the balcony draws the smoke out into the open air. I can honestly say that I’m now looking forward to spending cozy evenings at home!

Page background from Eos Development, plan of the apartment adapted from Arkadias. Columns through a window (Temple of Saturn, Forum, Rome, Italy), bronze relief (Piazza della Signoria, Florence, Italy) and avatar (Neptune, Piazza della Signoria, Florence, Italy) are personal photos.