An "exceptional discovery", in the words of Alfonsina Russo, director of the Coliseum Archaeological Park. During excavations in the area of the old Roman Forum, archaeologists discovered a sarcophagus in a room under the old Capitol. A sarcophagus which, according to ancient texts, could be that of Romulus, the mythological founder of Rome.
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The excavation was launched after an in-depth study of Giacomo Boni's documents dated 1899. The archaeologist mentioned in particular the discovery of the Lapis Niger, a stele made of volcanic tuff that the writer Varron had described around 30 BCE. According to Varron, the altar marked the tomb of Romulus, mythical founder of the city in - 750 and first king of the city. Following the directions of Giacomo Boni, archaeologists set out to find a "heron", a traditional building of Greco-Roman culture, which was to be erected above the tomb of Romulus.
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All these clues led to a new excavation and the (re) discovery of an underground chamber, under Capitoline Hill, the religious center of the ancient city. Archaeologists have found a 40-foot-long sarcophagus and a circular stone, "probably an altar". Both carved out of the same volcanic rock as that of Capitoline Hill. The sarcophagus is said to date from the 6th century BC.
The entrance to the underground chamber, right in the center of the Roman Forum. Parco archeologico del Colosseo
"It is not a coincidence that the Lapis Niger, the black stone described as a funeral place because linked to the death of Romulus, is in the axis of the underground chamber", specifies the Archaeological Park of the Colosseum in a press release published Monday. Another ancient source confirms the attribution: according to a commentary by the poet Horace attributed to Varron, Romulus had been buried behind the "rostra", one of the galleries reserved for public speeches by orators of the Republic. However, the underground chamber was indeed sought and discovered behind the tribune whose location is known.
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It is an extraordinary discovery [...] The Forum continues to generate incredible new treasures
Alfonsina Russo, director of the Coliseum Archaeological Park at the Italian agency ANSAAccording to Roman myth, the twin brothers Romulus and Rémus, children of the god Mars and the priestess Rhéa Silvia, were separated from their mother on the orders of their grandfather, King Numitor. Abandoned in a basket entrusted to the Tiber, they are taken in by a wolf who nurses them. As adults, they decide to found a city in the place where they spent their childhood. But a fratricidal struggle to determine who will rule the city and how it will be baptized leads Romulus to kill his brother.