Italiano
In 1931 the Lungomare Duilio (the seafront road, on the eastern side of Ostia Lido) was prolonged (because of the city plan of 1916) and this allowed the use of the eastern beaches, close to the pine forest of Castelfusano and very beautiful from a landscape and naturalistic point of view.
In 1933 it was decided to build three bathing establishments in this area, reserved to high-end
customers. It was mandatory to preserve the views towards the sea on one side and towards the pine forest on the other.
Thus, one after the other, were built the bathing resorts Plinius, Rex and La Pineta to which, during the following years, were added more, smaller resorts (Duilio, Belsito, Lega Navale, the bathing resort for the employees of the Ministry of the Communications, the bathing resort for the employees of the Government of Rome).
The design of the Plinius, which was built in 1933, is by the architect Leopoldo Botti.
There are a large building, towards the seafront road, containing the ticket office on the ground floor and a big central room on the second floor, and a semi-circular sector with a restaurant towards the sea. The two blocks are connected by a pier.
The buildings are in masonry with a reinforced concrete structure, while the cabins are in wood and at the end of the summer they are dismantled and placed under the pier.
If some details still show traditionalist schemes, the volumes and the fronts are clearly inspired by naval models and plenty of marine details (portholes, balusters with horizontal rods, flagpoles), making evident the Botti’s attention to the new modernist concepts.
Lungomare Caio Duilio, 13
