Ancient objects found near Rome’s Baths of Caracalla

Rome, Jan 24 (EFE).- In an attempt to find the first section of one of the oldest avenues in Rome, a team of archaeologists on Tuesday announced they had stumbled upon several ancient objects that were buried in front of the Baths of Caracalla.

Among the recovered objects is a marble bust of a male dating to the 2nd century AD, a rare coin from the year 700, a bronze ring with a monogram from the 6th century, as well as other everyday objects.

The project sought to locate the first section of the Appian Way, one of the main roads of Ancient Rome, which some historical documents set at eight meters deep in front of the Baths of Caracalla.

The Baths of Caracalla (circa AD 212 – 217) were one of the Ancient city’s largest public baths, which were built by order of Emperor Caracalla. They collected filtered water from two of the mountains near Rome.

The discovered objects were found inside buildings from various periods of the city’s history: the oldest dates back to the reign of Emperor Hadrian, in the early 2nd century, while the most recent belongs to the modern age.

The items are to be included as part of the Via Appia’s candidacy for UNESCO World Heritage status, which will be submitted to the UN body in the upcoming months, according to Rome’s superintendent, Daniela Porro.

The first archaeological work at the site began in 2018 with cartographic and geological studies, and excavations started later, in July 2022. EFE

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