An intact tomb containing what appears to be that of a family has been found in Rome during a construction project. Its extraordinary content will provide insight into Roman burial rites as well as the environment of the 4th century BC. This discovery happened through sheer luck and came as a surprise to all involved.
Death and burial in the Roman world
The Romans took burial very seriously and they considered funerals to be very important for the transition of the deceased from life to death. They believe in the afterlife and that the souls of the deceased go to the underworld. The dead are respected by their families and communities. People regularly visit graves and offer food and drink to the deceased.
The athlete’s mausoleum emphasizes how the Romans took burial very seriously. (La Repubblica)
The athlete’s grave
The tomb was discovered accidentally during the construction of an aqueduct in the eastern suburbs of Rome, the New York Times reported. While digging, a tiller discovered what looked like a grave. An archaeologist is always present – a legal requirement on every major construction project in Italy. To his great joy, he immediately realized the importance of the find and work on the aqueduct was halted. Before this discovery, it was believed that the locality did not have any archaeological interest.
While digging, a tiller discovered what looked like a grave. (La Repubblica)
A preliminary investigation by a team led by Stefano Musco, the excavation’s scientific director, found that the tomb had been dug deep into volcanic rock. Musco claimed that what makes the tomb special is that “it remains intact and has never been violated,” The New York Times reported. If the excavator digs a few inches to the side, the tomb remains undiscovered.
The tomb contained the remains of four people – three men and one woman – who were most likely related. It contained many funerary items, including black-glazed ceramics, such as plates and vases of the highest quality. This seems to indicate that the people buried in the tomb were of high social status. Dishes containing many bones of domesticated animals, such as goats, may be buried with the dead as offerings.
According to the ANSA website, this discovery is called the “Athletes’ Tomb” because two bronze swords were discovered, which were used to scrape sweat off the bodies of athletes after training. exercise in ancient times. However, it is likely that the men whose remains were discovered were not athletes because they were over 35 years old, which was considered old at the time.
‘The Roman Athlete’ (c. 1640) by Aniello Falcone. (Public domain)
The discovery of a coin found with a skeleton has shown that the tomb has been dated. The head of the Goddess Minerva on one side of the coin allowed experts to confidently date the tomb to between 335-312 BC.
Archaeologists have begun removing remains and pottery, and they will be sent to a laboratory in Rome. DNA testing can help us understand the remains and their relationship to each other.
The tomb contained the remains of 4 people, 3 men and 1 woman, most likely they were related to each other. (La Repubblica)
Perhaps the most important discovery was ancient pollen and plants found in a tomb sealed away from the world for millennia. These samples will be used to understand the environment in Rome in the 4th century BC and provide insights into burial customs from this period.
This remarkable discovery is being mapped using a laser scanner, which means it could be studied in depth later. Once the tomb was empty, it was sealed. Aqueduct construction continues in other areas, but the project team is taking extra care to ensure that they identify any graves or other finds.
The discoveries at the ‘Athletes’ Tomb’ will be investigated for years to come. They will be used to recreate the funeral rites and rituals of 4th century BC Rome as well as something about the people of that time, how they lived and died. This, along with plant samples, could help experts better understand Roman society, its beliefs and even its environment.
Some funerary items were found in a tomb near Rome. (Romano D’Agostino, Extraordinary Director of Rome)
