6 The southward expansion of Aelia Capitolina in the later Roman period Doron Ben-Ami and Yana Tchekhanovets The excavations of the Roman remains in the Givati parking lot on the SE hill of ancient Jerusa- lem were fnally completed in 2015. They showed that during that period this area was occupied by a spacious peristyle building. As the perimeters of the structure happened to fall almost entirely within the Givati excavation area, its plan is known well enough. Together with related architec- tural remains, this structure provided a frsthand opportunity to study the cultural characteristics of setlement paterns on the hill during the late 3rd to early 4th c. 1 The establishment of the large peristyle building in this part of the city was the outcome of the well-planned development of Aelia Capitolina southward and into available space. This paper, which deals with the archaeological evidence from a secure context over a rather large area, clearly shows that it was not until after the earthquake of A.D. 363 that Jerusalem transformed itself to join the Byzantine cultural and religious sphere. A summary of various excavations The Givati parking lot excavations At the close of the 3rd c. a peristyle building was constructed on the SE hill, stretching from the top down towards the Tyropoeon valley (fg. 1). This spa- cious structure, occupying at least 2000 m 2 , demonstrates precise planning, refected particularly in its right angles. It featured multiple rooms surround- ing a large open area consisting of two adjacent courtyards, one of which is a peristyle. For topographic reasons, the structure had a lower foor in its W wing at the botom of the slope that was dedi- cated to household activities. The living foor was adorned with frescoes, stucco and mosaic foors. The abundance of Roman tiles found testifes to the large tiled roof. More than a hundred of these tiles bore the stamp of Legio X, constitut- ing the largest assemblage of that legion’s tiles found in a secure context in the city. The architectural richness of this build- ing and especially of the fnds unearthed within its collapse have already been the subject of several articles. 2 They atest to its clearly Roman character. Its violent 1 All dates are A.D. unless otherwise indicated. 2 Ben Ami and Tchekhanovets 2010a-b and 2013; Ben Ami, Tchekhanovets and Daniel 2013. Fig. 1. General plan of the Late Roman peristyle building, Givati excavations.