Metro C: Historical heritage

Parking area of the Monte Compatri/Pantano station

Within the context of this site, archaeological excavations have unearthed prehistoric tombs and ritual pits. Eneolithic necropolis.

Granite Storage Area

The excavations have revealed a complex system of archaeological remains:

- An ancient road layout
- An extensive system of agricultural interventions consisting of canals, cultivation trenches, and drainage systems
- A series of facilities related to the extraction of construction materials
- A limestone quarry
- A series of inspection wells and underground tunnels

The findings can be dated from the 4th century BC to the 5th century AD.

Torrenova Station Area

Giardinetti Station Area

Shaft 6.2

Torre Spaccata Station Area

Some masonry structures related to a Roman villa have been discovered.

Shaft 5.5

Centocelle Park Station Area

The investigations carried out have allowed the identification of 2 rooms with a funeral purpose, one of which can be recognized as a columbarium, a type of burial chamber composed of niches where urns with the ashes of the deceased were kept. All the structures show reticulated masonry, and the interior walls of the rooms were supposed to be covered with colored plaster, as evidenced by the numerous fragments found. The urns, placed inside the niches, in some cases contained only funeral items, while in others, there were also bone remains. Furthermore, the remains of an ancient road layout have been found.

Shaft 5.4

A relic of the ancient Aqua Alexandrina aqueduct has been discovered.

Teano Station Area and Compensation Works Area via Norma

An area of approximately 10,000 square meters was investigated, revealing Roman-era irrigation canals and cultivation ditches.

Shaft 5.2

TBM shaft Malatesta

The archaeological excavations covered an area of approximately 15,000 square meters and revealed the remains of a series of hydraulic structures and an ancient Roman-era furnace.

Pigneto Station Area

The initial preliminary investigations had revealed the presence of an ancient tuff and pozzolana quarry across the entire area intended for the construction of the station, later used as a landfill with a significant quantity of ancient materials dating between the 1st and 3rd centuries AD. The excavations covered an area of approximately 3,800 square meters, reaching a depth of about 8 meters, and uncovered around 20,000 diagnostic artifacts and approximately 2,000 artifacts suitable for further study.

Shaft 4.2

The section of the ancient Via Labicana into Old Casilina Street.

Lodi Station Area

Caves and cavities related to mining activities and an ancient cement cistern from the Imperial era were found. The areas between Via Casilina Vecchia and Porta Metronia, along the T4 and T3 sections, were extensively investigated up to the gardens of Via Sannio adjacent to Porta Asinaria and Piazzale Ipponio. The vast amount of data gathered from the excavations has allowed for the progressive reconstruction of the geomorphological layout and the settlement development of the territory from prehistoric times to the urbanization works of the early 20th century. A landscape deeply marked by human intervention in relation to the control and management of the territory's water resources.

San Giovanni Station Area

The construction of San Giovanni Station allowed for the realization of one of the most significant urban archaeological excavations carried out in Rome, both in terms of the complexity of the explored stratigraphy and the richness of the acquired data. Archaeological excavations covered an area of approximately 3,000 square meters to a depth of about 20 meters and revealed the remains of a large agricultural estate from the early Imperial period. The most important find was related to a large water basin from the Imperial era; no other basin found in the Roman countryside has comparable dimensions. The tank, lined with hydraulic mortar, could hold more than 4 million liters of water. In the 1st century, it was added to the water lifting and distribution structures of an agricultural system that had been active since the 3rd century BC. The basin measured approximately 35 meters by 70 meters.

Shaft 3.3 - via Sannio gardens

The archaeological excavation of Well 3.3, located in the gardens of Via Sannio, was carried out by archaeologists appointed by Metro C ScpA under the scientific direction of the Special Superintendency for the Colosseum, the National Roman Museum, and the Central Archaeological Area of Rome. This excavation provided new and important data to reconstruct the topography of the area, especially regarding the earliest phases, which are difficult to document through surface tests, given the depth of the evidence and the presence of the water table. It significantly expanded the knowledge about the occupation and utilization of the area starting from prehistoric times.

In Roman times, the area was delimited by two road systems, one exiting from Porta Asinaria (Via Asinaria) and the other from a posterula (a small hidden entrance gate) located to the west (possibly Via Tuscolana), and crossed by the ditch known as Acqua Mariana since the medieval period. On the Lateran Hill, two domus from the late 1st to 2nd century are known, documented in the area of the basilica and demolished in the Severan era to build the castra ova equitum singularium, a barracks dismantled by Constantine for the construction of the basilica dedicated to the Savior.

The construction of a terracing wall in opus listatum with a NE-SW orientation, 0.60 meters wide, can be attributed to the time of Septimius Severus. This wall, flanked to the southeast by a masonry canalization, seems to serve as a terracing structure with a height difference of about 1.50 meters between the upper walkway (Mura side) and the lower pavement (Sannio side). The construction of the terracing wall in opus listatum is preceded by a sequence of garden levels dating between the late Flavian period and the Antonine era. The oldest level is characterized by the presence of a trench that crosses the entire excavation area and is filled with three rows of almost 300 perforated amphorae. The "garden of amphorae" overlays structures related to a portico, for which at least three phases of use have been identified between the mid-1st century AD and the Flavian period. Inside the well, the anthropized soil, documented to a total depth of 16 meters, dates from the Republican era to the contemporary age.

The first 4.50 meters of fill are attributed to the 20th century, connected to the construction of the Appio-Tuscolano neighborhood, below which layers dating from the second half of the 17th to the 19th century are found, related to the agricultural use of the area outside the Aurelian Walls (thickness: about 2.50 meters). Between the 7th and the 16th century, no activities are documented in the construction area. During this period, there is knowledge of the existence of a ditch called Acqua Mariana, the first evidence of which dates back to the pontificate of Callistus II (1119-1124), an existing watercourse already in a pre-anthropogenic phase.

For the earlier period, it was possible to reveal the NW bank of the pre-anthropogenic era paleoditch and the two tuff block walls from the early 3rd century BC. An interesting fact concerns the construction, in the second half of the 3rd century, of a lateral collection basin next to the river. This arrangement is related to what has been documented in the excavation of the San Giovanni station.

Shaft Q15 - Largo Amba Aradam

In this area, the archaeological excavation, carried out in archaeological mode to a depth of 10 meters from the current ground level, revealed a contemporaneous stratigraphy spanning the modern, early medieval, and late antique periods, down to the foundation level of a Trajanic-era building (late 1st to early 2nd century AD), consisting of three rooms. The building, probably around the mid-3rd century AD, was severely damaged by a violent fire that led to its collapse. The significance of this discovery lies primarily in its possible interpretation, which suggests that these rooms are related to the military complex (barracks) uncovered just outside the Aurelian Walls, in connection with the Amba Aradam - Ipponio Station excavations. The rooms at Largo Amba Aradam, one of which includes an underfloor heating system (suspensurae), could be representative chambers of the barracks or thermal rooms.

Amba Aradam Station Area

In this site, important archaeological discoveries have been made. An ancient Roman barracks dating back to the 2nd century AD, consisting of over thirty rooms arranged along a corridor and adorned with wall frescoes and mosaic floors, was found at a depth of approximately nine meters.

During the archaeological excavations, a vast archaeological complex was uncovered, which, due to its unity and preservation, can be considered one of the most significant archaeological findings in recent years. The archaeological investigations covered an area of about 1,750 square meters. The excavations revealed an ancient Roman barracks dating back to the 2nd century AD, with over thirty rooms arranged along a corridor and decorated with wall frescoes and mosaic floors. This discovery was made at a depth of approximately nine meters.

In the western half of the station building, a large residential complex, likely of a military nature, was found, consisting of two levels (referred to as the "barracks" and the "Commander's Domus"). In the eastern half, there was a large garden area, arranged on terraces sloping down toward the Acqua Crabra ditch. Dating back to the time of Emperor Hadrian, the barracks were abandoned, leveled, and partially buried during the construction of the Aurelian Walls.

Shaft 3.2 Celimontana square

At a depth of 16-17 meters from the current ground level, a Republican-era aqueduct made of squared tufa blocks was uncovered, connected to a large basin dating back to the 3rd century BC. Additionally, a burial site with accompanying artifacts from the late 10th to early 9th century BC was discovered.

Fori Imperiali Station Area

The station is located in an area that has undergone significant urban transformations, even in modern times. However, archaeological investigations, in this case as well, have led to unexpected findings of particular importance for understanding the history of the area. These findings have allowed for a more precise delineation of the extent of the Velia hill, which was demolished in 1932, and the extent of the archaeological remains spared from demolition, preserved behind the Muñoz wall and on the Colosseum Square. The excavations have uncovered structures and a large quantity of well-preserved materials. The decision to place most of the station's structure in the excavated part of the Velia significantly minimizes interference with the archaeological stratigraphy in this crucial area of ancient Rome. In this case as well, the Ministry of Culture - Colosseum Archaeological Park has requested the dismantling and proper preservation of the findings, as well as the development of a museum exhibition project for the station, which includes the repositioning of some of the artifacts inside the station.