As soon as one went through the Porta Septimiana, a row of buildings appeared alongside the Via Septimiana. Left of the picture the Villa called Farnesina. This ancient villa might have belonged to Marcus Agrippa, Augustus’s son-in-law. In the XVIth century, a villa was built next to it, which was also called Farnesina. The slantwise building appearing in the centre is a wine warehouse, and those closer to the gate are corn lofts.





Walking up the Via Septimiana towards the valley of the Vatican, we see one of the great Palaces of Younger Agrippina Nero’s mother; A row of gardens, probably the gardens of Drusus, are along the road just before coming to the Palace. The Via Septimania is therefore going to cross at the top of the picture the Via Cornelia which links the valley of the Vatican to the Nero bridge, which you se on the right side of the picture.










This bird’s eye view, taken from the side of the Vatican shows you at the bottom of the picture, the situation of the palace of Agrippina, and the gardens of Drusus. In the centre, the Nero bridge and on the left the Ælius bridge and the Mausoleum of Hadrian.