evacguy
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- Ed Galea
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Back in September 2024 I visited Rome and the Corpo Nazionale dei Vigili del Fuoco (the national firebrigade). One of the places my hosts took me to see was not on the tourist circuit, but it should have been! It is the site of one of the garrison outposts of the Vigiles of the VII Cohort.
Augustus (first Roman emperor who ruled from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD), divided the city of Rome into fourteen regions, placed each of them under the control of seven cohorts, each composed of about 1000 men who were housed in barracks, called statio, and guard posts or detachments, known as excubitorium.
The Vigiles were the ancient Roman equivalent of firefighters and police. Their main role was that of firefighters, but they also maintained public order, particularly at night. The photographs are taken in the Trastevere district of Rome, just around the corner from my hotel. The site is an Excubitorium that was used to house a detachment of the Vigiles of the VII Cohort, the original building dates back to the 2nd century AD and is some 8m below the present street level. It is essentially the oldest fire brigade headquarters in the world.
The equipment of the Vigiles consisted of simple tools such as axes, crampons, hoes, saws, poles, ladders and ropes, but also centones, blankets soaked in water or vinegar used to smother flames, and siphones, a type of water pump with leather pipes. Horse drawn carts were used as a means of transportation, on which were mounted large barrels of water – essentially what we would call a fire engine!
Augustus (first Roman emperor who ruled from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD), divided the city of Rome into fourteen regions, placed each of them under the control of seven cohorts, each composed of about 1000 men who were housed in barracks, called statio, and guard posts or detachments, known as excubitorium.
The Vigiles were the ancient Roman equivalent of firefighters and police. Their main role was that of firefighters, but they also maintained public order, particularly at night. The photographs are taken in the Trastevere district of Rome, just around the corner from my hotel. The site is an Excubitorium that was used to house a detachment of the Vigiles of the VII Cohort, the original building dates back to the 2nd century AD and is some 8m below the present street level. It is essentially the oldest fire brigade headquarters in the world.
The equipment of the Vigiles consisted of simple tools such as axes, crampons, hoes, saws, poles, ladders and ropes, but also centones, blankets soaked in water or vinegar used to smother flames, and siphones, a type of water pump with leather pipes. Horse drawn carts were used as a means of transportation, on which were mounted large barrels of water – essentially what we would call a fire engine!
- ILCE-7M4
- FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM II
- 24.0 mm
- ƒ/8
- 1/30 sec
- ISO 200
- ILCE-7M4
- FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM II
- 24.0 mm
- ƒ/8
- 1/30 sec
- ISO 200
- ILCE-7M4
- FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM II
- 28.0 mm
- ƒ/8
- 1/30 sec
- ISO 250
- ILCE-7M4
- FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM II
- 28.0 mm
- ƒ/8
- 1/30 sec
- ISO 250
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