Author Description

Anyone interested in Rome or in gardens or in the ancient history of Spain and Portugal should find much delight in this book. Of the hundreds, perhaps thousands of magnificent Roman villas that once dotted the Iberian countryside, only about 60 have enough remaining to identify the presence of a garden. This book brings together the archaeological findings on these gardens. Most of them were also visited, and site descriptions and photographs are included in this book. It was inspired by Professor Wilhelmina F. Jashemski, whose infectious enthusiasm for Roman civilization and gardens in particular captured the hearts and minds of many who would otherwise have never have given the subject a moment's thought. In the last years of her life, she led a group of scholars in an effort to write a comprehensive book to be called The Gardens of the Roman Empire. Like her book, The Gardens of Pompeii, it was to have two volumes. The first would have synthesis chapters on subjects such as water or sculpture or plants in the gardens, while the second volume would be a catalog of all known Roman gardens. The material in this present book was originally prepared to be part of that second volume. It was read and approved by her in the format presented here. After her death it was decided to rearrange the material alphabetically for scholars. The format of the present volume, however, is better suited for explorers, whether they are exploring with their imagination of tramping the plains of Lusitania.