18 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Luxurious Ancient Roman Home With Magnificent Mosaic Wall uncovered between the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill

Archaeologists have uncovered a luxurious Roman home between Rome’s Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum, boasting an “unparalleled” mosaic featuring shells, marble, and precious glass.

The discovery was unveiled by the Italian Culture Ministry on Tuesday. Officials said that the ancient structure, which dates to the late Republican age, was built in at least three phases between the second half of the second century BC and the end of the first century BC.

The Domus is located in the area of the so-called Horrea Agrippiana warehouse complex along the Vicus Tuscus, a trading street that linked the Roman Forum to the river port on the Tiber.

Distributed around an atrium/garden, the domus features the specus aestivus as its main room, a banquet hall imitating a cave used during the summer season. Originally, it was adorned with spectacular water displays through lead pipes embedded in decorated walls.

What makes this discovery unique is the discovery of an extraordinary mosaic wall covering called “rustic” in this room, which is unparalleled due to the complexity of the depicted scenes and chronology.

The domus features an extraordinary mosaic. Photo Ministero della Cultura.
The domus features an extraordinary mosaic. Photo Ministero della Cultura.

The mosaic, crafted with sea-shells, Egyptian blue tesserae, precious glass, marble fragments, and colored stones, suggests the domus owner was a high-status nobleman or soldier, reports The Heritage Daily.

Three large ships ride waves in the mosaic towards a coastal city, its walls dotted with small towers and porticoes in a scene suggesting the owner of the more than 2,000-year-old home, or domus, had been victorious in battle.

The four niches, which are separated by pilaster strips and embellished with vases that sprout vines and lotus leaves, depict stacks of weapons with Celtic trumpet horns (carnyx), ship prows with tridents, and helmets with triremes, perhaps hint at the domus owner’s dual victory—both at sea and on land.

Alfonsina Russo, director of the Colosseum Archaeological Park, said the excavations will conclude early next year, adding: “We will work intensely to make this place, among the most evocative of ancient Rome, accessible to the public as soon as possible.”

Archaeologists also discovered “of the highest quality” white stucco carvings in an adjacent reception room, featuring detailed architectural renderings and vague “figures.”

The discoveries are the culmination of a lengthy excavation set to conclude in early 2024. Alfonsina Russo, head of the Colosseum Archaeological Park, the body that oversees many of ancient Rome’s key monuments, said that authorities would “work intensively to make this place, one of the most evocative in ancient Rome, accessible to the public as soon as possible.”

Reiterating Russo’s commitment, the ministry noted that the domus will join an expanding series of “new and diversified visitor routes opened in recent years that make up the varied cultural offerings of the Colosseum Archaeological Park.”

Cover Photo: Ministry of Culture handout

Italian Culture Ministry

Related Articles

A 3,400-year-old Pyramid from the Scythian-Saka period found in Karaganda region of Kazakhstan

2 November 2023

2 November 2023

A pyramid belonging to the Scythian-Saka period was found in the Karaganda region of Kazakhstan. Experts announced that the Karajartas...

The 11-meter giant statue of the island of Naxos “Dionysus of Apollonas”

22 March 2023

22 March 2023

One of the two ancient marble quarries, thought to have begun the sculpture, the greatest art of antiquity, is located...

The inhabitants of Pınarbaşı Höyük in central Turkey may be the ancestors of the Boncuklu Höyük and Çatalhöyük neolithic human communities

27 July 2022

27 July 2022

The Department of Excavations and Researchs, which is affiliated with the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Turkey, attracted...

Human history in one click: Database with 2,400 prehistoric sites

10 August 2023

10 August 2023

The role of culture in human spread: Digital data collection contains 150 years of research. Human history in one click:...

Bronze Age Ceremonial Sword Found in Håre in Vestfyn will be on Display Soon

13 March 2021

13 March 2021

Archaeologists excavating the village of Håre on the island of Funen in Denmark have discovered an ornate Bronze Age sword...

Unique Gold Artefacts of Thracian Horseman Found in Bulgaria

23 August 2024

23 August 2024

The Topolovgrad Municipality posted on its Facebook page on Wednesday that during excavations at the site of a Thracian warrior’s...

Uncovering a Rare Enamelled Roman Brooch in Scotland

6 March 2025

6 March 2025

Recent research by GUARD Archaeology highlights a rare enamelled Roman brooch, suggesting its potential use in a “foundation offerings ritual”...

The oldest grave in northern Germany 10,500 years old

14 October 2022

14 October 2022

Archaeologists have discovered the oldest known human remains in northern Germany in a 10,500-year-old cremation grave in Lüchow, Schleswig-Holstein. The...

Archaeologists Unearth Exceptionally Preserved Roman Wicker Well in Norfolk, England

4 July 2025

4 July 2025

A team of archaeologists from Oxford Archaeology has uncovered a remarkably intact Roman-era well in Norfolk, England, revealing new insights...

Archaeologists Discovered Over 500 Ancient Coins and A Gold Template for Making jewelry in Bulgaria

17 August 2024

17 August 2024

In Plovdiv, in southern Bulgaria, archaeologists have discovered over 500 ancient coins and a gold template for making jewelry from...

Huge Ancient Roman Public Baths in ‘Excellent’ State Discovered in Augusta Emerita

23 July 2023

23 July 2023

In Mérida, Spain, archaeologists have discovered a “massive” Roman bathing site in “excellent” condition. The discovery was found in the...

A Fig Dating Back Over 2,000 Years has been Discovered in North Dublin – A First of Its Kind for Ireland

28 November 2024

28 November 2024

The discovery of a fig dating back 2,000 years during an archaeological excavation of Drumanagh in north Dublin, has been...

Remains of a Roman stylobate found in Montenegro

19 July 2023

19 July 2023

In ancient Rhizon (Risan) in Montenegro, remains of a Roman stylobate (a shared base for multiple columns) were uncovered. In...

Remains of 240 people found beneath Ocky White department store in Wales

13 October 2022

13 October 2022

Archaeologists found skeletal remains of over more than 240 people, from beneath a former department store in Pembrokeshire in Wales,...

Archeological study shows unearthed Byzantine warrior had gold-threaded jaw

30 September 2021

30 September 2021

A Byzantine warrior who was beheaded after the Ottomans captured his fort in the 14th century had a jaw threaded...