Discoveries and news in Rome

In 2015, divers discovered a more than 2,000-year-old Roman shipwreck off the coast of Sardinia that carried terracotta tiles produced around Rome. The product was probably to be used in the construction of the villa of a Roman aristocrat or wealthy merchant. According to scientists, the goods were to be transported either to Spain or to the western part of Sardinia.

The University of Ankara will rebuild the 2000-year-old Roman port in Urla, one of the oldest buildings in the Aegean region. The port will have boats, catapults, a warehouse and the same instruments as in Roman times. When the project is completed, tourists visiting the place will be able, for example, to sail Roman boats on the sea. The project is being developed with the support of the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

During a conference held on December 11, 2015 in Amsterdam, archaeologist Nico Roymans of the Free University of Amsterdam announced that his team had managed to confirm the location of the place where the Roman commander Julius Caesar massacred two Germanic tribes in 55 BCE.

In southwestern Hungary, in Kaposvár, a rare gold Roman coin (aureus) was discovered showing Emperor Volusianus who co-ruled with his father Trebonianus Gallus for only two years; then they were killed by their own soldiers. The object is dated 251-253 CE.

In 2015, in Cambridge, southern England, archaeologists discovered the remains of a horse, more than 2,000 years old. The animal’s almost intact skeleton reveals that it was suffering from a broken leg that was already beginning to heal. Scientists speculate that the animal may have been used to work in quarries that provided building material for a nearby settlement.

A transatlantic investigation allowed the Italian authorities to recover in 2015 a priceless collection of frescoes and other artifacts that were illegally exported to the United States more than 50 years ago. Among the recovered treasures there are three frescoes from Pompeii – a city covered with volcanic ash on Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE.

The aura of secrecy widens around the tombstone excavated in 2015 in the west of England during construction work in Cirencester. According to scientists, the skeleton underneath the tombstone has no connection with the stone slab. The tombstone was made of limestone and was found in front of the grave where the skeleton was lying.

Treasure hunt enthusiast in 2015 found a 2,000-year-old figurine depicting the Roman god of commerce, Mercury, near Selby in Yorkshire, England. It is officially the thousandth archaeological find in Yorkshire this year.

The remains of one of the most prestigious seaside villas from Roman times were reopened to the public in 2015. The monument is located on an uninhabited island – Giannutri – near the Tuscan coast and has been inaccessible to the public for over 15 years.

The ancient underground tunnel (connecting the Colosseum with the gladiators’ school) and the gladiatorial barracks will probably be renovated thanks to a grant from Kuwait (information for 2015). Generations of gladiators lived and trained in Ludus Magnus, the largest such structure in Rome, which was located just a few hundred meters from the amphitheatre. The remains of the building are still visible – squeezed between two crowded streets, in the shadow of the Colosseum, often covered with rubbish.