Italian Officials Unveil 1,800-Year-Old Roman Villa Beneath Cavour High School

Q: Whose 1,800-year-old luxury villa did students uncover beneath their school near the Colosseum?

The villa has not been definitively assigned to a single owner, but archaeologists say it most likely belonged to members of Rome’s elite, with the strongest candidates being the Roman senator **L. Fabius Gallus** and **Umbria Albina**, or possibly another member of the **Umbrius family**. That identification comes from inscriptions found on ancient lead water pipes linked to the property, including evidence first noted in the late 19th century and reconsidered during the recent excavation. Archaeologist Filippo Coarelli has pointed in particular to the Umbrius connection, while other reporting ties the domus to both Gallus and Umbria Albina. So, the short answer is that students uncovered a luxury Roman house believed to have belonged to **wealthy aristocratic owners—most plausibly L. Fabius Gallus and Umbria Albina, or the Umbrius family**—rather than an owner whose identity is fully settled.

Q: How did students convince their teacher to unlock a door to a lost Roman mansion?

They convinced her through persistence, a student protest that gave them unusual access to the building, and a credible, firsthand claim that there was something real beneath the school. For years, students at Cavour High School repeated rumors that ancient ruins lay under the campus, especially near the gym. History and Latin teacher Claudia Marino initially brushed those stories aside. That changed after a multi-day student occupation in January 2021, when students protesting extended remote learning explored parts of the school they normally could not reach. Afterward, some students told Marino they had found something significant and insisted that “there really is something under the school.” Their confidence mattered because they were already familiar with Rome’s archaeology from outdoor lessons, and Marino later said she was more inclined to take these “idealistic protestors” seriously. Marino eventually followed up on their claims. She went into the basement with colleagues and, according to accounts of the discovery, located a locked iron door and found the key. When they opened it, they saw ancient Roman walls and the entrance to what is now identified as an upscale second-century Roman domus. Later evidence showed the site had been entered decades earlier: graffiti inside the villa dated to the 1940s and 1950s. But the recent breakthrough happened because students kept pressing the issue until a teacher decided to test the rumor herself.

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 26

Vaulted rooms, faded frescoes and decorative plasterwork have been unveiled beneath Rome's Cavour High School, where archaeologists excavated an upscale Roman domus near the Colosseum.
Work began in January 2026 after school staff alerted Rome's Special Superintendency to accidental finds and long-circulating reports pushed by students who insisted ruins lay under the gym.
Claudia Marino, a history and Latin teacher, said she only believed the rumors after students led her to a basement iron door opening onto ancient Roman walls and the buried villa.
Graffiti dated 1940 and 1950 shows the site had been accessed decades earlier, and officials now plan to open the villa to the public with students serving as guides.

Sources

Fox News5h ago

Ancient Roman Villa Unveiled Beneath Rome's Cavour High School After Student Discoveries

Asharq Al-awsat - English5h ago

Students Discover 1,800-Year-Old Roman Villa Beneath School Gym

The Times5h ago

Ancient text charred by Vesuvius read for first time in 2,000 years

4 Sources

A Roman mansion was hidden under a school for centuries. What secrets of the elite does it hold?

Whose 1,800-year-old luxury villa did students uncover beneath their school near the Colosseum?

How did students convince their teacher to unlock a door to a lost Roman mansion?

Unearthing Rome’s Hidden Villa: The Domus Liceo Cavour Discovery and Its Role in Modern Heritage, Education, and Preservation

Overview

A remarkable second-century Roman villa was recently unveiled beneath Rome’s Liceo Cavour high school, thanks to the curiosity of students who explored tunnels under their school and discovered the ancient structure. After reporting their find to a teacher, Claudia Marino, archaeologists were contacted and a professional investigation began, led by Filippo Coarelli from the University of Perugia. This rediscovery not only brought the domus back into public awareness but also highlighted the unique connection between modern education and Rome’s ancient heritage, as the school now sits atop a significant piece of the city’s rich archaeological history.

...