The Tombs of the Via Latina ( it, Tombe di Via Latina) are

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

tomb A tomb ( grc-gre, τύμβος ''tumbos'') is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called ''immureme ...

s, mainly from the 2nd century AD, that are found along a short stretch of the

Via Latina The Via Latina (Latin for "Latin Road") was a Roman road of Italy, running southeast from Rome for about 200 kilometers. Route It led from the Porta Latina in the Aurelian walls of Rome to the pass of Mount Algidus; it was important in the ear ...

, an ancient Roman road close to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. They are now part of an archaeological park and can be visited.

History

The tombs were discovered in 1857–58 by Lorenzo Fortunati, a teacher who dabbled in archaeology and made money by selling some of the items he found. A series of excavations supported by Pope Pius IX subsequently uncovered various tombs along a short stretch of the road about 6 km southeast of the center of Rome. The area was subsequently expropriated from the

Barberini family The House of Barberini are a family of the Italian nobility that rose to prominence in 17th century Rome. Their influence peaked with the election of Cardinal Maffeo Barberini to the papal throne in 1623, as Pope Urban VIII. Their urban palace ...

by the Italian State in 1879. In 1900, further excavations were initiated under the supervision of

Rodolfo Lanciani Rodolfo Amedeo Lanciani (1 January 1845 – 22 May 1929) was an Italian archaeologist, a pioneering student of ancient Roman topography. Among his many excavations was that of the House of the Vestals in the Roman Forum. Lanciani earned LL.D. ...

The Archaeological Park

The park extends for a short distance of 450 meters. In addition to the tombs, part of the original basalt surface of the Via Latina is also visible. The tombs are very well preserved. Among the most notable is the ''Barberini'' tomb ( it, Sepolcro Barberini), named after the former landowners. It has two floors above an underground burial chamber, and is constructed in red and yellow bricks, typical of Roman construction in the area in the mid 2nd century AD. The Barberini sarcophagus with reliefs representing the myths of

Protesilaus In Greek mythology, Protesilaus (; Ancient Greek: Πρωτεσίλᾱος ''Prōtesilāos'') was a hero in the '' Iliad'' who was venerated at cult sites in Thessaly and Thrace. Protesilaus was the son of Iphiclus, a "lord of many sheep"; ...

and Laodamia was discovered here, and is now on display in the Vatican Museum. The tomb was used as a barn in the 8th century, when part of the roof was demolished. The ''Tomb of the Valerii'' ( it, Sepolcro dei Valeri), which dates from the second half of the 2nd century AD, is a notable two-story brick structure. Its name is arbitrary and does not relate to the original occupants of the tomb. The part above ground has been almost entirely reconstructed and is noteworthy for a portico with two columns at the front. Beyond the entrance there is an area open to the sky from where two symmetrical staircases lead to the two underground burial chambers, which were originally richly decorated with slabs of marble. Only the underground part of the ''Tomb of the Pancratii'' ( it, Sepolcro dei Pancrazi) survives, and the tomb is now covered with a modern building. The name comes from an inscription referring to the funerary

collegium A (plural ), or college, was any association in ancient Rome that acted as a legal entity. Following the passage of the ''Lex Julia'' during the reign of Julius Caesar as Consul and Dictator of the Roman Republic (49–44 BC), and their rea ...

of the ''Pancratii'', inscribed on a large marble sarcophagus that remains ''in situ''; seven other sarcophagi found here are now in the Vatican Museum. The tomb, dated to the reign of Hadrian (AD 117–138), contains good examples of stucco work and frescoes. The fresco decoration of the underground vault include

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but slightly less than one-thousandth t ...

in flight with the eagle, the

Judgement of Paris Judgement (or US spelling judgment) is also known as ''adjudication'', which means the evaluation of evidence to make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. The term has at least five distinct uses. Aristotle ...

References

External links

* {{Monuments of Rome Ancient Roman buildings and structures in Rome Ancient Roman tombs and cemeteries in Rome Rome Q. VIII Tuscolano