Researchers indicate that a villa buried after the eruption in 79 AD aligns with records of the death of the Roman emperor in 14 AD.
The first villa in Somma Vesuviana discovered beneath the ruins of another villa built there in the second century AD. (Photo: 2024 Advanced Global Research Institute, University of Tokyo).
Archaeologists state that the ruins of a Roman villa near Mount Vesuvius, discovered beneath another villa constructed above it, may be the site where Augustus, the first Roman emperor, took his last breath.
The earlier villa, as revealed by excavations, appears to have been destroyed in the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, while the latter villa was built in the second century.
Mariko Muramatsu, an archaeologist at the University of Tokyo and the head of the excavation project, noted that this site corresponds with the writings of Roman historians Tacitus, Suetonius, and Cassius Dio, who recorded that Augustus died in 14 AD at his family villa near Nola.
Researchers hope further excavations will confirm that the original villa was indeed the place where Augustus passed away in 14 AD.
| Gaius Octavius, also known as Caesar Augustus, is regarded as the greatest Roman emperor for transforming the nation into a wealthy and powerful state. His name is also the origin of the month August. Emperor Augustus (born 63 BC – died 14 AD) is remembered for replacing the Roman Republic with a monarchy. During Emperor Augustus’s reign, the people lived in an era of peace and prosperity. |
