Ancient Roman ruins of Nero's Theatre discovered under hotel garden Archaeologists had been excavating deep under the walled garden of the Palazzo della Rovere since 2020 as part of planned renovations on the frescoed Renaissance building

...The palazzo takes up a city block along the broad Via della Conciliazione leading to Saint Peter's Square near the Vatican.

It is home to an ancient Vatican chivalric order that leases the space to a hotel to raise money for Christians in the Holy Land.

Officials hailed the findings from the excavation as "exceptional", given they provide a rare look at a stratum of Roman history from the Roman Empire through to the fifteenth century AD.

Among the discoveries are 10th century AD glass coloured goblets and pottery pieces that are unusual because so little is known about this period in Rome ...