Latest news with #SuperintendenceofArchaeology
Miami Herald
24-03-2025
- Science
- Miami Herald
1,700-year-old tombs — with links to a gladiator — unearthed in Italy. Take a look
Sifting through the stony dirt of southern Italy, a team of archaeologists expected to find some ancient Roman ruins, but the 1,700-year-old burial ground that reemerged hid a few surprises. Researchers in Campania began excavating a vast cemetery, or necropolis, on the edge of Liternum Archaeological Park as part of ongoing work at the site, the Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the Metropolitan Area of Naples said in a March 21 news release. Archaeologists soon uncovered a stone mausoleum separated from the rest of the burial ground by a wall, officials said. A photo shows the blue-tinged mausoleum, which had nooks along its sides for holding funeral urns. The ancient mausoleum was likely isolated for a ceremonial reason, but archaeologists don't know what that reasoning might have been. Outside the mausoleum's walls were about 20 burials in a variety of styles, officials said. Photos show a few of these graves. One tomb has a skeleton placed on a layer of tile. Another is covered by an A-frame-like structure made of tiles. Inside the tombs, archaeologists found some vases, lamps and coins, officials said. The most important artifact found so far was an epitaph, or tombstone, with an inscription referencing a gladiator, archaeologists said. The find is still being analyzed and offers a glimpse into the role of gladiators in ancient Roman society. Based on the grave styles and artifacts, archaeologists concluded the burial ground was used from 2,100 years ago until 1,700 years ago. The ancient Roman settlement of Liternum was found in 194 B.C. and thrived for about 400 years before rapidly declining and being abandoned. Today, Liternum Archaeological Park is on the outskirts of Naples and a roughly 130-mile drive southeast from Rome. Google Translate was used to translate the news release from the Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the Metropolitan Area of Naples.
Miami Herald
18-03-2025
- Science
- Miami Herald
2,900-year-old settlement found submerged in Italy lake. See its treasures
Nearly three millennia ago in central Italy, people of the Iron Age lived in wooden homes. Today, those homes sit on the bottom of Lake Bolsena. Gran Carro di Bolsena, a Villanovan complex dating to the ninth century B.C., lies just offshore and has been studied for decades, according to Italian officials. The site is known by a large monumental elliptical complex made of stones, called the Aiola, and may have been linked to the use of hot springs, officials said. Ancient artifacts have also been found, including a molded statuette discovered in 2024 that still has the fingerprints of its maker 2,900 years later. Now, the site is undergoing preparations to open to the public, including divers, snorkelers and passengers of glass-bottom boats, according to a March 18 news release from the Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the province of Viterbo and Southern Etruria. As part of the restoration process, research divers armed with metal detectors recently hit the water to see what was buried below the silt and sediment. Officials said the water was particularly cold this time of year, less than 50 degrees Fahrenheit, and visibility is poor, but a collaborative research team sped up the investigation at the site. Metal detectors pointed researchers to areas below the superficial sand, according to the release. Researchers found multiple ceramic vases, metal rings, chains, spoked wheels, pieces used for spinning, needles, fibulae (a brooch or clasp) and more as they cleaned away the sediment layer by layer, officials said. Removing the artifacts protects them from theft or damage as the site opens to more people, officials said, and paves the way for more restoration to take place. The research team will begin mapping the Aiola with divers in the coming weeks, according to the release. Videos of divers working on the site were posted by officials to Youtube on March 9. Bolsena Lake is in west-central Italy, about an 80-mile drive northwest from Rome. Google Translate was used to translate the news release from the Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the province of Viterbo and Southern Etruria.
Miami Herald
24-02-2025
- General
- Miami Herald
Underground river hid traces of 2,000-year-old cult — until now. See finds in Italy
In a cave in southern Italy, archaeologists sifted through a muddy riverbed normally submerged by the turquoise waters of an underground river. A dull brown artifact caught their attention — and revealed traces of cult activity 2,000 years ago. The Pertosa-Auletta Caves are a popular tourist site with two claims to fame: Italy's only navigable underground river and Europe's only preserved remains of an underground Bronze Age village. As part of the site's ongoing research, a team of archaeologists spent a few weeks excavating a new section roughly 130 feet from the cave entrance, the Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape of Salerno and Avellino said in a Jan. 31 Facebook post. The underground river was temporarily dammed to allow for the archaeological work, officials said. Photos show how the cave entrance normally looks and how it looked during the excavations. In the muddy riverbed, archaeologists uncovered traces of a Hellenistic, or Greek, cult site dating between 2,000 to 2,400 years old, Italy's Central Institute for Archaeology said in a Feb. 19 news release. A photo, shared by Pertosa-Auletta Caves in a Feb. 20 Facebook post, shows a brown bowl-shaped incense burner linked to the cult activities. Much about the ancient cult site remains unknown. Archaeologists plan to continue analyzing their finds. The team also found another section of the Bronze Age pile-dwelling village and took wood samples for further laboratory analysis, the institute said. Excavations ended in mid-February and will resume in 2026. The Pertosa-Auletta Caves are in Salerno Province of southern Italy and a roughly 210-mile drive southeast from Rome. Google Translate was used to translate the news release from Italy's Central Institute for Archaeology and Facebook posts from Pertosa-Auletta Caves and the Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape of Salerno and Avellino.
