<p>The Cispian hill was a low spur wedged between the *Viminal and *Oppian. According to Festus (476), it stood on that part of the *Esquiline facing the *Vicus Patricius. The Severan Marble Plan (Rodríguez Almeida, <i>Forma</i> pl. 11) shows dense urban development along the Vicus Patricius and the *Clivus Suburanus. It is likely that dense housing already covered the entire Cispian up to the *Servian Wall in the Augustan period, for in the Imperial period houses began to spread beyond the walls (Rodríguez Almeida). This is confirmed by the literary sources. In 88 B.C. Sulla’s forces were stoned from the roofs of houses just inside the *Porta Esquilina (App., <i>B Civ</i>. 1.58) and Varro states that private greed (<i>Ling.</i> 5.49: <i>avaritia</i>) had reduced the original size of the precincts of *Mefitis and *Iuno Lucina. In addition, housing remains from the Augustan period have been found: the Casa dei Paesaggi dell’Odissea (*Domus: Cispius), and walls under S. Maria Maggiore (Magi). The Berlin Model correctly shows dense urban development over the entire Cispian, but it ignores two open areas shown on this map: the *Forum Esquilinum and the *Horti Lolliani. Some features on the Cispian cannot be located, for example, the <i>lucus</i> or <i>lacus Poetelius</i> (Varro, <i>Ling.</i> 5.50).</p>