School leaders to say Buried remains of a luxurious, mid-Imperial Roman mansion were discovered by accident (“scoperti casualmente”) in the basement of the students’ gymnasium under the State Scientific Lyceum of Rome C. Cavour.C. Cavour State Science High School).
Adventurous teenagers have come across this archaeological find many times to findbut regardless, the faculty of Cavour only made its presence known to the Roman Special Superintendency six years ago. Now, after a €210,000 ($242,698) restoration, this mid-2nd century AD slice of ancient Roman life—once prime real estate within walking distance of Rome’s legendary Colosseum—is finally presented to the general public.
Claudia Marino, a history and Latin teacher at the high school who first brought the discovery to the attention of local authorities, said she did not take claims of a buried Roman villa seriously until she heard the story from student activists who occupied the building during a 2021 protest.
“When it was over, a group of students told me that there really was something under the school,” Marino said he said London Times. He was inclined to take these idealistic naysayers seriously, given that the find was located in the heart of ancient Rome—the elite neighborhood Octavian had called home before he built his imperial palace on the Palatine Hill as Rome’s first emperor.
“We take our students to open classes on Palatine Hill so they know (what they’re talking about),” Marino said.
The host has been identified
Marino and archaeologist Filippo Coarelli of the University of Perugia in Italy were last week able to tell the public exactly who or what this vast Roman residence was. homecomplete with decorative mosaics and frescoes.
Fabius Gallus, Roman senator he believed having once had a controlling interest in part of Rome’s water supply, apparently occupied the house in the 2nd century AD. A shadowy figure named Umbria Albina of the Umbrian family is also said to inhabit the domus.
In 1895, archaeologists excavating the nearby historic Via degli Annibaldi actually discovered the first engraved Roman plumbing, or fistulabearing the names of ancient inhabitants, according to To the Special Supervisor of the Cultural Heritage project of Rome, Cantieri Narranti. But their report to the city at the turn of the century remained obscure until more domus were discovered.
More to discover
While city officials with Cantieri Narranti described the find as remarkably “well-preserved,” their archaeological team noted that more work needs to be done to fully restore this luxurious ancient home. Located near the Esquiline Hill, the residence may one day provide more insight into the historically prominent neighborhood that housed famous Roman figures, including Cicero and Pompey.
The Cantieri Narranti team: “The rooms, which now seem almost completely buried, still retain figurative paintings and stucco decorations to the point of metaphors” noted In the announcement they translated through Google.
“The magnificent preservation of the paintings in these rooms necessitates their removal to reveal all the decorative apparatus and allow it to be explored,” the city’s heritage project says.
Excavators have so far uncovered frescoes with floral patterns and figures inside the arched doorways, as well as stucco decorations on the ceilings. home. According to Live Science, archaeologists found in one room, a series of colorful mosaics of large tiles “in the style in vogue among elite Romans at this period”.
Cantieri Narranti researchers also found graffiti dating back to the mid-20th century from the 1940s or 1950s, which may have been written by students, locals or tourists. But regardless, the labels help confirm rumors that this ancient house was long forgotten and rediscovered before coming to the attention of academic archaeologists in recent years.
Cantieri Narranti said his main goals for the site now include “preserving the monument and making it accessible,” which he plans to do “in collaboration with the teachers and students of the Liceo Cavour.”
