Roman mosaic floor found under Italy vineyard

[Still Waters]

A Roman mosaic floor has been discovered under a vineyard in northern Italy after decades of searching.

Surveyors in the commune of Negrar di Valpolicella north of Verona published images of the well-preserved tiles buried under metres of earth.

According to officials, scholars first found evidence of a Roman villa there more than a century ago.

Technicians are still gently excavating the site to see the full extent of the ancient building.

Images posted online show the pristine mosaic as well as foundations of the villa.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-52818746

[jethrofloyd]

Archaeologists have discovered a perfectly preserved mosaic from a villa over 1,700 years old

https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/negrar-mosaic-floor-italy-discovery-scli-intl/index.html

Quote

 

A beautiful and remarkably well preserved mosaic floor from ancient Rome has been discovered by archaeologists in northern Italy.

The stunning discovery, made in the township of Negrar, north of Verona, comes almost a century after the remains of an ancient villa were found on the site.

Pictures of the floor posted by the town's officials show its intricate patterns and colorful detail, much of which has been preserved perfectly through centuries.

 

 

[Ozymandias]

Isn't it extraordinary that something as beautiful as this could be left to slowly disappear over a period of centuries. The only thing I can think of is that the location was abandoned and/or became unusable as a habitation site and transporting or removing that mosaic floor elsewhere was not practicable. Otherwise, if the floor continued to be known about and building a dwelling remained feasible or desirable in that place, then surely someone would have wanted to incorporate that floor into their dwelling.