Secret ‘Sphinx’ chamber found under Palace of Emperor Nero lost for 2,000 years
A GRAND palace built by Roman Emperor Nero nearly 2,000 years has been keeping an underground secret. Archaeologists working on restorations at the ancient building found a large hidden chamber that has walls decorated with real and mythical creatures. The creatures were drawn in red hues and there is evidence of gilding. Around 2,000 years […]
A GRAND palace built by Roman Emperor Nero nearly 2,000 years has been keeping an underground secret.
Archaeologists working on restorations at the ancient building found a large hidden chamber that has walls decorated with real and mythical creatures.
The creatures were drawn in red hues and there is evidence of gilding.
Around 2,000 years ago the hidden chamber was likely very grand and golden.
The wall murals are full of centaurs, depictions of the goat-legged god Pan, birds and sea creatures.
A warrior fighting off a panther also features but the drawing that drew in experts the most was a “silent and solitary sphinx” above a sacred stone.
This sphinx is why the chamber is now being referred to as the Sphinx Room.
The ancient palace, commonly known as the Domus Aurea or “Golden House”, is thought to have been built shortly after the Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD.
It had 300 rooms that sprawled across 300 acres of Rome’s hilly landscape.
Emperor Nero was known for being a cruel tyrant who lived extravagantly, brutally murdered his mother and did nothing as Rome burnt.
His huge palace was not to the taste of the emperors who came after him, following his death by assisted suicide in 68 AD.
Nero killed himself when he learnt he had been condemned to death as a public enemy.
He was the first Roman emperor to die in this way.
After his death, pains were made to obliterate evidence of the grand Domus Aurea palace as it was considered too extravagant and distasteful.
Famous structures like the Colosseum were built over it and other parts were filled in with dirt.
The Sphinx Room was discovered in a section of the palace on Oppian Hill.
Excavations of the vast palace are ongoing and can be fairly tricky because of the way in which it was destroyed.
The Sphinx Room itself was discovered by accident when archaeologists turned on the bright lights they needed to work in a different section of the palace.
They noticed that the light flooded into an opening in the corner of the room and the hidden chamber was revealed.
Unfortunately, the chamber has been infilled with dirt and there are no plans to excavate it at the moment as removing all this material could destabilise the entire complex.
The room still provides a valuable snapshot into the life of Nero the tyrant.
Parco archeologico del Colosseo director Alfonsina Russo said in a translated statement: “In the darkness for almost twenty centuries, the Sphinx Room … tells us about the atmosphere from the years of the principality of Nero.”
A brief history of the Roman Empire
Here's what you need to know...
- The Roman Empire began shortly after the founding of the Roman Republic in the 6th century BC and reigned for around a thousand years until the fall of the last Western emperor in 476 AD
- During this time, the Romans ruled over many countries in Europe and parts of Africa and the Middle East
- At its height, 90 million people lived in the Roman Empire
- It evolved from a monarchy to a democratic republic to a military dictatorship and then was finally ruled by emperors
- One of the most well-known Roman leaders is Julius Caesar, famously assassinated in 44BC, who is largely credited for his military mind and laying the foundations for the Roman Empire
- The spread of the Roman Empire has had a lasting impact on our lives today with Latin, straight roads, underfloor heating and the spread of Christianity all being attributed to the Romans
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A Bible-era temple where the ’10 commandments’ slabs may have once rested has been uncovered near Jerusalem.
And, a model that took 35 years to build is thought to be the most accurate depiction of Ancient Rome.
What do you make of the Roman chamber discovery? Let us know in the comments…
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