Scientists discovered in Rome and the amazing ancient aqueduct.
The aqueduct was discovered during the construction of the continuation line of the Rome metro. Despite the fact that the discovery was made in December of 2016, officially it was declared only on April 2.
On April 5, the scientists presented a report on the research findings.
According to the head of the research team Simone Moretta, a 32-meter-long section of a conduit most likely represents part of the Aqua Appia, the oldest Roman aqueduct was built around 312 BC, the height of the aqueduct is about two meters, it consists of stone blocks of the same size, stacked in five rows. The find was made at a depth of 17-18 metres under Piazza Celimontana, situated to the South-East of the Colosseum.
The discovery was made with the installation of concrete blocks, which represent one of the structural elements in the construction of subway tunnels. The installation depth of the units has allowed scientists to discover and document not only the layers of geological formations, but also to detect artifacts belonging to different historical epochs -10 century BC to 19th century ad
Scientists have also found that once the aqueduct ceased to be used for delivery to the Rome water, residents began to use it as a sewer. In addition, the study of soil helped to find out what kind of food the Romans ate and what animals were bred as livestock: they were wild boars, swans, pheasants, and even some species of large marine fish.
The remains of the aqueduct is now scheduled to be disassembled and subsequently re-assemble on the surface to demonstrate to the public. The construction continued the line of Rome’s metro is constantly suspended. This is due to problems with funding and with the permanent archaeological findings requires further study by scholars. It is expected that some of these finds will be exhibited in the metro Museum, which is scheduled to open on one of the stations of line C.
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