There is ample proof that we have in the ruins just described, the entrance gateway of the Porticus Octaviæ and the corner of the temple of Juno Regina. For Festus states that there were two Octavian porticoes, one built in honour of Octavia, the sister of Augustus, near the Theatre of Marcellus, and a second close to the Theatre of Pompeius, built by Q. Octavius, the conqueror of Perses. The site upon which the former was built had been previously occupied by the Porticus Metelli, built by Q. Metellus Macedonicus, proprætor in B.C. 146, and the Octavian portico was a complete restoration of this by Augustus.[86]
Pliny also mentions two statues of Apollo near the Porticus Octaviæ, which probably stood in the Temple of Apollo, known to have been situated outside the Porta Carmentalis between the Forum Olitorium and the Circus Flaminius. But the principal evidence is derived from the plan of Rome, now on the staircase of the Capitoline Museum, where the whole design of this portico is laid down, and the temples which it enclosed are named. We learn from this plan that the portico was in form an oblong space enclosed with colonnades, and that the ruins now remaining constituted the principal entrance to this court, and to the Temple of Juno Regina which it enclosed. The line of the Via di Pescaria corresponds to one of the shorter sides of the court, and in the centre of this side the gateway stood. In two points only the Capitoline map fails to correspond with the actually existing ruins. The antæ of the gateway are not represented, and the corner column of the Temple of Juno is omitted. The former of these two omissions may be explained by supposing that the plan was probably made before the restoration of the portico by Severus.
The excavations carried on in 1861 by Pellegrini and Contigliozzi, established the following limits for the Portico of Octavia.
The southern corner of the rectangle was occupied by a quadrifrontal archway, and this was situated near No. 4 in the Via della Catena di Pescaria. From this the south-western side of the portico ran nearly along the line of the street till it reached the gateway to which the present ruins belong, near the oratory of S. Angelo. The western corner of the portico was also formed by a quadrifrontal archway.
The north-western side passed through the church of S. Ambrogio a little below the high altar, and then skirted the Palazzo Righetti near the Piazza di S. Caterina de’ Funari, where it joined the north-eastern and shorter side. In this side there was a pediment with pillars corresponding to the gateway at the opposite end, but not containing the real entrance, which stood near the angle of the Palazzo Caraletti in the Via de’ Delphini. The eastern angle was near the Palazzo Capizucchi, and the south-eastern side passed close to the convent of monks of the order of Madre di Dio, attached to the church of S. Maria in Portico in the piazza di Campitelli.
The three Composite columns of marble, which still stand in the house, No. 11 in the Via di S. Angelo in Pescaria, belonged to the Temple of Juno, and stood at the western angle of that temple.
The remains of the Temple of Jupiter are hidden under the church of S. Maria in Portico, and the street which is now called Via della Tribuna dei Campitelli occupies the line of the interval between the two temples. A part of one of the side walls of the Temple of Jupiter rises a little above the ground at the corner of the church of S. Maria in Portico. The school or academy of Augustus was behind the temples, and stood near the centre of the Via della Tribuna di Campitelli. The back of this formed a part of the northern side of the portico.
The interior of the gateway has of late years been cleared of some of the buildings which have blocked it up, and the whole is now visible, with all the columns except one, which has been taken away to enlarge the church door.
A most interesting relic was found near the side door of the church of S. Angelo in Pescaria in April 1878, consisting of a pedestal of marble engraved with the title of Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi. This was evidently the pedestal of the sitting statue of Cornelia mentioned by Pliny in his ‘Natural History’ as having been placed in the Portico of Metellus. The statue was the work of Tisicrates.
Excavations which have been made in the repair of houses and for other objects during the six years since 1873, have confirmed the conclusions which have been stated as to the position of the Portico of Octavia, and the temples near it. Some of the columns of the north side of the portico were found along the row of houses in the Via di Pescaria, No. 25-34.