Though archaeologists are still studying the head, they suspect it was once part of a towering set of columns known as Porticus Trisigmentata.
Roberto Gualtieri/FacebookThe statue has an “intense expression,” though archaeologists are still discussing its identity.
Rome is home to some of the world’s most incredible archaeological treasures. And archaeologists in the center of the city have just stumbled upon yet another one: a colossal statue head made of marble that was seemingly hidden underground for centuries.
The head, found near Trajan’s Forum, is still being studied by researchers. But it’s possible that it was once part of a massive set of columns that loomed over the ancient city.
The Marble Statue Head Found In Rome
Roberto Gualtieri/FacebookThe statue head was discovered during excavations of Via Alessandrina as part of a project to restore Rome’s ancient sites.
According to a Facebook post from Roberto Gualtieri, Rome’s mayor, the giant marble statue head was uncovered during excavations of the city’s Via Alessandrina funded by Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR).
The statue was found near Trajan’s Forum, which was constructed by the Roman emperor Trajan between 105 and 112 C.E. following the conquest of Dacia. Made of marble, it has a “male face… a thick head, and an intense expression,” and it seemingly spent centuries hidden underground.
It’s still uncertain who the statue is meant to depict. Gualtieri noted that “[a]rchaeologists are working to reveal its identity,” but it seems likely that the statue is connected to some prominent figure, possibly an emperor or deity.
Roberto Gualtieri/FacebookThe statue was found in a medieval layer of the soil surrounded by other ancient objects.
Whomever it depicts, what is certain is that the statue connects to the larger imperial history of the ancient Roman Empire.
A Discovery In The ‘Heart Of Imperial Rome’
Though archaeologists don’t know much yet about the statue head’s identity, they do have a good sense of the history of the place where it was located. The statue head was found near Trajan’s Forum, or, as Gualtieri described it, the “heart of imperial Rome.”
Public DomainA reconstruction of how Trajan’s Forum may have looked in antiquity.
Designed by Apollodorus of Damascus and funded from the spoils of the Dacian Wars, Trajan’s Forum was originally almost 1,000 feet long and roughly 600 feet wide. It included a plaza, a basilica, two libraries, and Trajan’s Column, a towering column with a bas-relief that tells the story of the Dacian Wars. Trajan’s successor, Hadrian, also later added a temple known as the Temple of Trajan to honor Trajan’s memory.
The statue head was found near a part of Trajan’s Forum known as Porticus Trisigmentata. In antiquity, this was an impressive set of monolithic columns that towered nearly 40 feet above Rome.
Bgabel/Wikimedia CommonsTrajan’s Forum as seen in the 21st century.
Though Rome looks much different today than it did 2,000 years ago, the city is hoping to restore some of its most ancient areas. The statue head was found during a larger archaeological project called Caput Mundi, which seeks to remove modern-day roads that cut through the Forums of Augustus, Trajan, and Nerva and restore what was once the center of ancient Rome — and the ancient world — for people to experience.
The statue head is part of the city’s astounding heritage and a sign that even a place as picked over as Rome still holds ancient treasures.
“Rome never ceases to amaze,” Gualtieri remarked. “Beneath our feet, each day, pulses a millennia-old history that continues to move the world.”
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