US EditionHuge Roman 'jigsaw' reveals 2,000-year-old wall paintings
- Archaeologists at a site in Southwark, London, uncovered thousands of Roman fresco fragments in 2021 during redevelopment works.
- The fragments resulted from the demolition of a high-status Roman building before AD 200, whose wall plaster was dumped into a pit and shattered.
- Mola experts, including senior specialist Han Li, spent three months reconstructing the delicate pieces, revealing vivid yellow panel designs with birds, fruit, flowers, lyres, and rare Greek alphabet graffiti.
- The collection comprises one of the largest assemblages of Roman painted plaster uncovered in London, includes the earliest known example of a painter’s signature discovered in Britain, and contains a fragment depicting a tearful woman styled with a hairstyle dating to the Flavian era .
- This discovery sheds light on the wealth and taste of Roman London’s wealthy suburb, indicating an early thriving settlement and ongoing archaeological work to explore each piece further.
55 Articles
55 Articles
Archaeology breakthrough as huge Roman 'puzzle' reveals ancient 2,000-year-old wall paintings
Archaeology experts have successfully reconstructed elaborate Roman wall paintings from thousands of plaster fragments discovered in Southwark, revealing artwork unseen for over 1,800 years.The shattered pieces, initially found in a large pit during excavations, have been painstakingly assembled over three months to expose frescoes that once covered approximately 20 interior walls of a Roman villa.Archaeologists from the Museum of London Archaeo…
Archaeologists describe it as »the most difficult puzzle in the world«. In laborious fine work, they have composed the interior painting of an ancient villa. Now they hope to discover even the name of the artist.
Archaeologists in London have reassembled Roman murals from thousands of fragments.The murals were almost 2,000 years old and were once part of a luxurious villa in the old Londinium.
Archaeologists Reconstruct 2,000-Year-Old Roman Frescoes From Thousands of Fragments
Archaeologists reconstructed Roman frescoes dating back 2,000 years. Credit: Carole Raddato / CC BY-SA 2.0 Archaeologists have successfully reconstructed ancient Roman frescoes nearly 2,000 years old using thousands of tiny fragments unearthed during a 2021 excavation in Southwark, near London Bridge and Borough Market. The discovery, described as one of the most significant in the capital’s Roman history, marks the first time such a large and d…
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