Capreae

vol. III p.1546-1548

Capreae

(Καπρέαι Strab. I 60. V 247. 248. Joseph. ant. XVIII 161ff. Plut. de exil. 9; αἱ Καπρίαι Strab. I 22. II 123. VI 258. Steph. Byz. s. ἡ Καπρίη. Hekatios in Steph. Byz. s. ἡ Καπρία. Dio Cass. LII 43. LVIII 5. LXXII 4; Einw. Caprensis, Καπριάτης, also Καπριήτης IGI 897 a), <50> more rarely Caprea (Καπρέα Ptol. III 1, 79), wrongly in Itin. marit. 516 Capraria, a small island on the coast in Campania near the gulf of Puteoli, now Capri. It was only separated from the peninsula at Sorrento by a three-mile wide strait (Tac. ann. IV 67), and like it, it is made out of chalk cliffs, which reach a height of 618m above sea level in Monte Solaro. It is 15 sq. km in size (circumference of eleven miles Plin. III 82); the edge is almost always a sheer face, <60> there is only one certain docking-point on the north edge (Suet. Tib. 40), it is famous because of its climate and its agricultural appeal, and despite a lack of water it is fertile. With regards to the first inhabitants (apart from the sirene who have been placed here, Serv. Aen. V 864, from him Mythogr. Vat. I 42. Isid. orig. XI 3, 30 and others), the myths name the Teleboians (Tac. loc. cit. Stat. silv. III 5, 10) under their king Telon (Verg. Aen. VII 735. Sil. Ital. VIII 543). <page break 1546/1547> The name comes from a Capreus qui in illis regionibus potens fuit, Serv. Aen. VII 735. Artifacts from the neolithic age (stone weapons, clay tools) have been found in 1882 in the grotta delle Felci on the south coast (Cerio in Feola 5. 6). In the historical ages, we find the island inhabited by Greeks, which, according to Strabon (V 248) had two πολίχνια (most likely referring to the modern Anacapri and Capri) in the most ancient time, <10> out of which one assimilated the other, to then fall to the power of the Neapolitans. Capri remained occupied by the Neapolitans (who celebrated ephebea there, Suet. Aug. 98) until Augustus, who swapped it from the city for the larger Ischia (Strab. loc. cit. Suet. Aug. 92. Cass. Dio LII 43) and often stopped off there (Suet. Aug. 98). Tiberius had no less than twelve villas built for himself there (Tac. loc. cit.), <20> out of which one is known to be a Villa Iovis (Suet. Tib. 65), which implies the rest of them were also likely named after gods, and Tiberius spent the last ten years of his life there (Tac. loc. cit. Suet. Tib. 40. 60. 62. 73. 74; Gai. 10; Vitell. 3. Joseph. ant. XVIII 161ff. Cass. Dio LII 43. LVIII 5. Auson. de mort. Caes. 3); the arx Tiberi principis in Plin. III 82 probably refers to all of his constructions; Suet. Tib. 74. Stat. silv. III 5, 100 names a pharos built by him. <30> After Tiberius’ death, the island seems to have been avoided by its imperial owners, it is only named as the place of exile for Crispina, Commodus’ wife and Lucilla, his sister (Cass. Dio LXXII 4). In the Roman times, the island did not have a place with city rights, the ἀγορανόμοι named in inscriptions (Kaibel IGI 896. 897. 897 a) probably belong to Naples. This continued existence of Greek culture is also shown by the inscriptions, <40> in which Greeks make up the majority (Kaibel IGI 896-902. 897a-901a); Latin CIL X 6806-6810. 8042, 60. 8059, 430. Ephem. epigr. VIII 669-674. A Βλαῖσος σπευδογελοίων ποιητὴς Καπριάτης is mentioned in Steph. Byz. s. Καπρίαι. A few mentions are also in Ovid. met. XV 709. Iuv. X 72. 93. Claud. de IV cons. Honor. 314; in Eutrop. 61.

The large number of ancient remains on Capri mostly belong to Tiberius’ villas. <50> The best preserved are those on the east side at S. Maria del Soccorso (see Alvino and Quaranta Le antiche rovine de Capri, Napoli 1835ff.), where people also believe they have rediscovered the foundations of the pharus; others in Aiano, Palazzo, Truglio (these three above the Marina grande), Castiglione, S. Michele, la Certosa, le Camerelle (these are ease of the hills and south of the modern city Capri), Capodimonte, Monticello, Timberino, Damecuta (these four on Anacapri). <60> At least in its foundations, the large steps (784 steps) are also ancient, which, up until the construction of the new roads, made up the sole link between Capri and Anacapri. cf. N. Hadrava Ragguagli di varii scavi e scoverte di antichità fatte nell’ isola di Capri, Napoli 1793. R. Mangoni Ricerche topografiche ed archeologiche sull’ isola di Capri, Nap. 1834. Beloch Campanien 278-292. <page break 1547/1548> R. Schoener Capri, Vienna 1892. Feola Rapporto sullo stato dei ruderi Augusto-Tiberiani (1830), edid. J. Cerio Napoli 1894. Further literature in Beloch and Feola loc. cit.

[Hülsen.]