Rare Peek at Riches of Past in Rome

[Kosmo]

ROME

[Ludovicus]

ROME — For decades now, excavations in the Roman Forum and on the Palatine Hill have yielded grand halls and imperial residences with fanciful frescoes and graceful stucco reliefs. Often, after the initial news media fanfare that usually accompanies such finds and their restoration, many of the ancient habitats have returned to the obscurity from which they emerged. There just aren’t enough custodians to monitor these important archaeological sites, and so they are off limits to the public.

 

But this summer — except in August, when it’s too hot — Rome’s archaeological authority has reallocated money so that it can provide staffs for five monuments in the ancient heart of Rome that are usually closed. The initiative will also allow nighttime visits to the Colosseum and offer free after-hours concerts in the museums that house the state’s collection of ancient Roman art...

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/04/arts/des...04forum.html?em

 

Thanks, Kosmo, for this fascinating story of Rome's "found again" treasures! I've been in the church of Sts. Comas and Damian which eventually incorporated the "Temple of Romulus." I never realized that there was a Roman era bronze door preserved on the lower forum level. Likewise, the House of Gryphons is a treasure that I never knew existed.

 

for more in Sts. Comas and Damian:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santi_Cosma_e_Damiano

Edited July 5, 2009 by Ludovicus

[caesar novus]

It sounds like almost everything new is open on tuesdays only; can anyone point out any exceptions? Please post some pictures... my only visit to Rome will be cursed with a Naples sidetrip on the tuesday (when their museum is closed!).

 

On a good day, she said, only about a quarter of the approximately 80 security guards assigned to the area are on the job (holidays, illness and days off account for the absences)

The Italian gov't should sponsor and unionize plumbers and barbers. So for a haircut or a faucet repair you will end up hiring 4 people in order for 1 to appear, and stimulate the phoney-balony economy. Well, maybe better than the Greek national museum guards, who shut down the entire museum during normal hours the first time I arrived, for a union meeting or something.

[Fulvia]

Any student sponsorship programs available?