Domus Romana di Palazzo Venturelli

A Roman house survives beneath Palazzo Venturelli in Amelia. Black-and-white mosaic floors and a travertine opening for a well or cistern preserve part of the domestic world of ancient Ameria.

Why it matters

The remains connect Roman residential architecture with the Renaissance palace built above it. Reused ancient walls reveal the physical continuity between different phases of the town.

What to notice

Two adjoining rooms preserve mosaic pavements. One includes a travertine base with a moulded frame around the opening of a well or cistern; the room has been interpreted as a possible atrium. The other has a white mosaic field with a black meander enclosing floral motifs. The restrained palette contrasts with the elaborate arrangement of the patterns.

Context and history

The house originated in the first century BC, with the surviving mosaic floors dated to the first and second centuries AD. Palazzo Venturelli was built in the later sixteenth century using Roman structures as foundations. Its painted noble-floor rooms represent a later domestic culture above the archaeological remains of the earlier residence.