The Logic of Form: The Viridarium of Ascalona

Abstract

In the study of ancient architectures in a ruined state, where the absence of a complete image and the lack of historical documentation complicate understanding, drawing facilitates the identification of cultural and design matrices.
The structure, known as the Church of Santa Maria in Viridis and located in the ancient city of Ascalona, is described in the reference literature as having originated as a Byzantine church equipped with a baptismal basin. The compositional cultural dimension and the requirements of worship direct the research towards a different assessment of the function of the architectural space. The form of the basin, reproduced from a survey that guarantees its metric accuracy, has been the subject of an in-depth geometrical analysis. This revealed a composition based on a classical canonical grid of measurements and proportional systems.
The element thus appears to speak a different language from the interpretations advanced so far. While its characteristics would make it a unique example as a baptismal font, it instead finds analogies with the fountains of classical-period gardens, the viridaria, a consideration that calls into question the historical depth of the site.