ROME (AP) — Authorities on Tuesday unveiled what is believed to be the largest complex of frescoes and mosaics from ancient Rome, depicting the 1st century A.D. maritime city as the largest bath complex in the world.
Mayor Robert Gualtieri unveiled the newly restored “Painted City” fresco and “Great Mosaic” that were discovered in an underground gallery during 1990s excavations of the Baths of Trajan on Oppio Hill near the Colosseum.
The works are opening to the public for the first time, initially in small groups of 15 people, and with a trial period of weekend access starting this month. The goal is to determine how delicate works react to increased humidity and climatic influences before allowing more general access.
Gualtieri said the mural, which depicts a bird’s eye view of the walled port city, is the largest wall fresco of its kind since ancient Rome and should therefore be open to the public.
“They are truly unique in the world, both in terms of artistic beauty and historical and documentary significance,” he said at the opening.
Rome’s cultural director, Claudio Parisi Presicce, said the grandeur of the port city depicted in the fresco, with its buildings, theater and temple, public squares and towers, was particularly well preserved.
“We don’t know which city we are talking about, but it must have been a particularly famous city,” he said.
The mosaic, in turn, is about 15 meters (yards) high and features intricately decorated columns, architectural elements and figures on four different levels. The upper levels appear almost like a theatrical stage, and below are sketches of another image of the port city, only recently discovered during restoration.
The Baths of Trajan, consecrated by Emperor Trajan in 109 AD, covered an area of more than six hectares and at that time were the largest bath complex in the world. They incorporated the earlier Domus Aurea bath complex and were designed along a different trajectory to make better use of the water temperature and optimize the thermal experience for users.
The complex, now open to the public, includes a large semicircular “library” on the upper level, which archaeologists believe was part of a bath complex and allowed visitors not only to exercise and bathe, but also to participate in cultural events.