SCIENCE IN BRIEF Rome’s new metro keeps digging up archaeological marvels; plus a roundup of other science news from around the world
For archaeologists, the excavation of Rome’s newest subway line has been the gift that keeps on giving.
Two years after a second-century military barracks was found during the excavation of the Amba Aradam station, archaeologists presented the remains of a richly decorated domus, or house, that they believe belonged to the commander of the military post.
Even after the discovery of the military complex, “we didn’t imagine that we’d find a house with a central courtyard”, a fountain and at least 14 rooms, says Simona Morretta, the state archaeologist responsible for the site. One of the rooms appears to have been heated.
The foundation of another structure was also excavated at the same level, some 40 feet below the surface. Archaeologists believe it was probably used as a warehouse.
Morretta says the domus was remarkably well-preserved. “The decorations were mainly intact, both the patterned mosaic floors and the frescoed walls,” she says.
The walls of the domus had been levelled at a height of 5 feet and the rooms filled in with dirt, suggesting that it had been intentionally buried during the third century, just before the Roman Emperor Aurelian began building the protective walls that would encircle the city, in 271 AD.
The excavation also unearthed rare wooden artefacts, such as wood forms used to build foundations. “You normally don’t find wood remains in Rome,” Morretta notes, but with the subway lines travelling at nearly 100 feet below ground, archaeologists have been able to excavate deeper than usual.
As of now, 21 of 24 stations of the new route, Line C, which links the city centre to an area east of Rome, are operational. The San Giovanni station, which will showcase some of the artefacts found during its construction, is expected to open soon.
The domus and the warehouse will be removed from the site and temporarily preserved in special containers while construction on the Amba Aradam station continues. The ruins will eventually be returned to the site to form the centrepiece – visible to passengers – of the modern station, which is scheduled to open in 2022.