The Trevi Fountain is famous worldwide. Less renown is the fascinating archaeological stratification that extends beneath the Trevi district, of which the underground archaeological area of Vicus Caprarius – the City of Water is a evocative example.
- Marvel at relics dating back to the Imperial Age
- See an ancient building complex buried 9 meters beneath the modern streets of the city
- Go beneath the Trevi district and explore the depths of Roman history
- Enjoy the multimedia video
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| Important information | Meeting Point: Vicolo del Puttarello,25 (Trevi Fountain area) Go directly to the entrance and show your smartphone voucher.
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Further information
The archaeological surveys carried out between 1999 and 2001 during the renovation of the former Cinema Trevi, by the Archaeological Authority of Rome (under the scientific direction of Claudio Moccheggiani Carpano), brought to light a building complex from the imperial age representing a remarkable testimony of ancient Rome’s urban fabric.
The availability proffered by the Cremonini Group, owner of the property and contractor of the renovation work, has permitted a complete restoration and an attentive enhancement of the archaeological site that extends over an area of around 350 square meters between Via San Vincenzo and Vicolo Puttarello.
The term “City of Water”, used commonly to define the archaeological area of Vicus Caprarius, is due to the element that without doubt characterises the area and the site.
The water that flows from the Trevi fountain, a monumental Baroque exhibition of the Virgin Aqueduct (whose excavations brought to light an imposing distribution tank, the castellum aquae) and the water, which filters through the ancient masonry of the Archaeological area, continuing to supply the pipes in lead and the pools of a luxurious residence. The wall structures found, characterised by the screen in opus latericium and conserved until a height of about eight meters, are attributed to an insula, a blockhouse divided into several independent units that were transformed, in the middle of the fourth century, into a stately domus. But it is not just the imposing structures of the Virgin Aqueduct and the residential environments that make the visit of the archaeological area unique. In the three sections of the antiquarium, the findings discovered during excavations have been collected: precious coverings in polychrome marbles, refined decorations (including the famous head of Alessandro helios), so-called spatheia, African amphorae for transporting oil, a marvellous “treasure trove” made up of over 800 coins, all give testimony to the different stages of use and life of the structures brought to light.
