by A five-year treasure trove was discovered on the side of Rome’s Palatine Hill last week when archaeologists discovered a junior banquet room from the first or second century BC, containing a large, intact and brightly colored wall mosaic.
Estimated to be around 2300 years old, the work is part of an aristocratic mansion, located next to the Roman Forum, which has been excavated since 2018.
Almost five meters long (16.4 feet) and with illustrations of vines, lotus leaves, tridents, trumpets, helmets and mythological sea creatures, the mosaic scene was painstakingly created using mother of pearl, shells, corals, shards of precious glass and flecks of marble. . The piece is framed by colorful crystal, spongy travertine, and exotic, ancient Egyptian blue tiles.
What makes this discovery “unmatched,” said archaeologist Alfonsina Russo, head of the Colosseum Archaeological Park in charge of the site, is not only the incredible preservation of the mosaic, but its decoration with scenes celebrating battles probably funded naval and land. — and won — by an extremely rich aristocratic patron who commemorated the victory on their walls.
The team working on the project was surprised by the complexity of the mosaic’s triumphal display. They show a walled coastal town with watchtowers and loggias — which Russo said could be an ideal or a real-life setting — sitting atop a cliff designed with pieces of travertine rock. There are also scenes of sailing ships with raised sails, as well as depictions of mythical sea monsters swallowing enemy ships.
Archaeologists are trying to determine whether the delicate – and expensive, at the time – coral branches came from the Mediterranean or the Red Sea (the closest and most common oceans used by the Romans to harvest materials). The rare bluish glass paste in the design probably came from the ancient Egyptian city of Alexandria, according to the team.
“This banquet hall, which is 25 square meters (270 square feet), is just one space within a ‘domus’ (the Latin word for house) on several floors,” Russo told CNN in an interview. “In ancient times, when powerful noble families lived on the Palatine Hill, it was customary to use rich decorative elements as a symbol to show opulence and high social status.”
The room, considered a “jewel” by Russo, was an outdoor banquet hall overlooking a garden, used in the summer to entertain guests.
Such an elaborate space would also be used to entertain guests with water games, which were very popular among the aristocracy at the time. “We have found lead pipes within the decorated walls, built to carry water within basins or to make a fountain spout to create water games,” said Russo.
Marco Rossi, professor of Roman antiquities and head of the mosaic laboratory at Rome’s Università degli Studi di Roma Tre pointed out that these summer banquet rooms were not only somewhere where hosts and guests could go to relax but also used by the owner of the mansion as a landmark. of his wealth and rank.
“Mosaics are usually found on floors, but this runs across the entire front wall and is extremely well preserved,” Rossi said of the piece. “It is not destroyed by the weight of the debris – as can happen to some mosaics on the ground – and despite being delicate, it is not as chipped as the ancients.”
An entire wall mosaic is extremely rare to find, Rossi said, especially because these pieces are more delicate than those for the floor that was designed to be walked on and withstand pressure.
The location of the mansion also helped preserve the wall, according to the scientists. Located on the side of Rome’s famous Palatine Hill and later covered by centuries of mud and clay as the earth moved, the structure and the treasures within are protected from air and light by layers of earth.
Although this new discovery still has many secrets to reveal – why the property was abandoned and how long ago, for example – Russo believes there is one mystery that archaeologists may be able to solve: The identity of its owner, probably a Roman senator.
“The person was so wealthy that they could afford to import such precious features from all over the empire to decorate this great house,” Russo said. “We have so far found nothing to indicate their identity, but we believe that further research may enable us to locate the noble family.”
Russo and her team aim to open the space to the public in early January. “We (will) continue to dig the other layers and areas of this evocative place (to try to find out more),” she said. “It really is an incredible expression of Roman luxury.”
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