Entrances leading to different rooms in the ancient dwellingCantieri Narranti
Posted on 06/11/2026 10:24:39 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
In January 2021, students at a high school across the street from the Colosseum came up with a bold plan. Angered by plans to extend remote learning to prevent the spread of Covid-19, the teenagers occupied their school, spending several nights camped out in the building in protest.
When the demonstration ended, participants told Claudia Marino, a history and Latin teacher at the school, that they'd stumbled upon something significant. Marino and her colleagues investigated the tip, following the students' directions to a locked door in the basement.
"We found the key, entered, and we were in an old, disused boiler room," Marino tells the London Times' Tom Kington. "Beyond that were ancient Roman walls." When they climbed through an opening, they found themselves in an ancient villa adorned with frescoes and decorative stucco.
Marino brought the discovery to the attention of the Special Superintendency of Rome, a government agency tasked with preserving the Italian capital's cultural heritage. Excavations at the site began in September 2025, and archaeologists presented their findings to the public on May 28...
When archaeologists surveyed the site, they were surprised to find that the villa's rooms, almost all of which are underground, were incredibly well preserved, Valentina Lupia reports for the Italian newspaper La Repubblica. One room features a mosaic crafted with large tiles of varying shapes, a style that was popular at the time. Another space is decorated with floral designs and depictions of human figures.
(Excerpt) Read more at smithsonianmag.com ...
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Entrances leading to different rooms in the ancient dwellingCantieri Narranti
[from Daily Galaxy] View of the entrance corridor of the Domus Liceo Cavour.Credit: Italian Ministry of Culture
I hope they give the kids credit. Kind of reminds me of when a boy threw a rock into a cave and heard pottery crash and discovered he Dead Sea Scrolls, a secret library buried there for nearly two thousand years.
Now known as the Domus Liceo Cavour (House of the Cavour High School), is offering experts a remarkable glimpse of Roman life...
The house is impressively preserved despite its age. Archaeologists documented decorative stucco along the vaulted ceilings, floral wall frescos, and even a detailed mosaic featuring irregularly shaped tiles that were popular with wealthy Romans at the time. An inscription left during the first excavation project in the 19th century reports the home likely belonged to someone in the Umbrius family. Although not much is known about them, they possibly originated in Samnium, an area in south-central Italy near Pompeii.Credit: Cantieri Narranti / Special Superintendency of Rome
Sounds like the Basilica San Clemente, about 5 minutes up the hill from the Colosseum. 3 levels of history.
The school building itself, constructed between 1865 and 1885 as the headquarters for a Catholic missionary congregation, sits less than a thousand feet from the Colosseum. Historical records show that when the building's foundation was laid, workers reported discovering a corner of the ancient home to local authorities. Then the trail went cold. No further official mention of the Roman villa exists.
But the villa was never entirely forgotten. Graffiti scrawled on its walls bears dates from the 1940s and 1950s, years before the building became a school in 1962. More recent spray paint, almost certainly left by students in the decades since, proves the secret was an open one, at least among teenagers bold enough to go looking.
- Students discover long-lost Roman villa under high school gym
Tim Newcomb | Popular Mechanics | June 9, 2026
Thanks for the link!
Very cool.
It’s the center of ancient Rome. How could they NOT find ancient ruins?
There is marble from the Colosseum all over Rome.
Meaning the Colosseum was a ruin for two hundreds years.
Whenever some Rome resident was doing work on their house they would go over to the Colosseum and remove the marble and anything else they could. It was cheaper then buying newly quarried marble/materials.
This was told to me by the guy who gave us the tour of the site. He said there is marble today in peoples houses in Rome that came from ancient Roman buildings like Nero’s palace.
They recycled !
Indeed, just got back from Italy and heard the same stories from the guides. Apparently it was common practice.
That was my favorite part of our trip two years ago.
We went to Florence, Sorrento and Rome.
I believe 90% of Ancient Rome is buried, and not yet excavated
Way cool.
Stayed in Sorrento for 3 nights. took a car tour of the Amalfi coast one day. Walked down to the water for the “famous” sunset photos. Had a boat tour to Capri cancelled du to rain and rough seas unfortunately but it gave us more time to explore Sorrento. Went from Rome to Venice to Firenze to Sorrento. Got to see Tuscany, Siena, Pompeii as well, total whirlwind.
Like my grandfather used to say, “one man’s crumbling walls is another’s treasure”....
When you go back next time you can pick your favorite one or two spots and just go there.
Capri is very beautiful, but also very expensive, crowded and touristy. Kind of like Positono. By far the most expensive touristy spot on the coast.
Thinking of flying in to Naples, pick up where we left off with Capri perhaps then fly down to Sicily for a week.
Neat story, and neat find.
Sparkin’ up a blunt in da boiler room. OG.
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