Discoveries and news in Rome

During the preparatory work for the 2025 Jubilee, fascinating remains of an ancient laundry (fullonica) were discovered in Piazza Pia, right next to the Vatican. The laundry room, covering an area of ​​500 square meters, was a place of intense activity related to cleaning clothes, dating back to the second half of the 2nd century CE. This extraordinary find not only adds a new dimension to the knowledge of Roman architecture but also provides insight into the everyday life of the Romans.

The discovery occurred during excavations in Wroxeter, western England. The mosaic depicts a fish and a sea scene, which is made of green, blue, yellow and red cubes.

Archaeologists have discovered 57 ancient Roman settlements and created a map of the hidden empire in Spain. New Roman settlements were discovered in Spain. A research team from the University of Cadiz explored the central Guadalete River valley in hopes of finding ancient settlements. The team made extensive use of ground-scanning cameras and LiDAR technology to discover 57 new Roman-era settlements.

Researchers managed to recreate perfumes whose recipe can be found in ancient sources, including: Natural History¹. They were called “Telinum” and were a mixture of flowers, fruit, olive oil and gladiator sweat. It is possible that Julius Caesar himself could have used such perfumes.

Scientists managed to understand the hidden meaning of the Latin words “hic et ubique”, meaning “here and now”, carved in large numbers on the walls in Pompeii. In their opinion, they served as an expression of prosperity and wishes of happiness. These words often appear with names, which were intended to express good words about a given person.

Ancient letters were discovered in the animal cemetery in the south of Egypt, in Barnis, which were probably written by Roman centurions in the 1st century CE.

A new type of amphora was discovered in the wreck of a Roman ship found off the coast of Majorca. The vessel remains are located 65 meters from the shore, near the capital of Majorca – Palma.

A new exhibition has been opened in the Archaeological Park of Pompeii, where you can see four plaster casts of the bodies of the victims of Vesuvius up close. As park director Gabriel Zuchtriegel says: “The casts of the victims show us the agony of the people who died during the eruption of Vesuvius in 79”.

An ancient construction site was discovered in Pompeii. The discovery took place in the domus in Regio IX (insula 10). The finds include: construction tools, stacked tiles, bricks and lime.

In December 2023, 13 terracotta figurines were discovered in Pompeii, which are approximately 15 cm high. They depict human figures, a walnut, an almond, a rooster’s head and, among others, pine cone. The objects were discovered in a vertical position on a horizontal surface, probably a shelf, which in turn hung 2 meters above the ground.