Rome. Rome yesterday inaugurated two Metro stations – one of these under the Colosseum – that combine the modernity of high-tech transportation with artifacts from an ancient era.
Commuters and tourists entering the station next to the iconic amphitheater can see displays of ceramic vases and plates, stone wells and suspended cubes, as well as the ruins of a cold pool and thermal bath from a 1st-century dwelling. Displays show the excavation process, serving both to delight archeology enthusiasts and to justify why it has taken so long for the station to open.
The multibillion-euro C Metro line has been in development for two decades but has been delayed by bureaucratic and funding delays and, crucially, by archaeological excavations required, given the underground ruins of imperial and medieval Roman civilizations in its path.
“The challenge was to build it under a large amount of groundwater and at the same time preserve all the archaeological finds that we found during the excavation, and this while preserving everything above,” said Marco Cervone, construction manager of the consortium making the Metro line, led by WeBuild.
The total cost of the 31 stations on the line, of which three quarters are already operating, will reach around 7 billion euros (about 148 billion pesos) and will be completed in 2035, according to the press office of the municipal company that has contracted the works.
Yesterday Rome inaugurated another station, Porta Metronia, located one stop away from the one next to the Colosseum and also at a depth of 30 meters.
It has a military barracks of almost 80 meters that dates back to the beginning of the 2nd century, found at a depth between 7 and 12 meters, according to Simona Moretta, scientific director of the excavation.
“The certainty that it was a military building is given by the fact that the entrances to the rooms do not face each other, but are out of phase, so that the soldiers could leave the rooms and line up without colliding in the hallway,” the archaeologist explained to journalists.
He added that the soldiers would have been part of the emperor’s guard or stationed there for the security of the city.
There is also a house with well-preserved frescoes and mosaics. A museum will open inside the station in the future, Moretta said.
Three millennia of history
Digging near the center of Rome means coming into contact with three millennia of civilizations built on top of each other. So far, the consortium building Line C has found more than 500,000 artifacts, according to WeBuild.
To work in the delicate archaeological area, the company has used techniques that include freezing the ground to stabilize it, as well as so-called sacrificial diaphragms: concrete walls built perpendicular to the perimeter walls that are demolished as the excavation progresses.