A new museum in Rome: the Horti Lamiani Nymphaeum

If you’re familiar with Rome, you’ll know that the Piazza Vittorio Emanuele square in the Esquiline/Esquilino district, not far from the big train/bus hub at Termini, has just been reopened after a drawn-out series of works that have lasted for 2 years. Was it because of Roman remains that the renovation went on for so long? Not quite.

The story of a “new” discovery

But that’s exactly what happened at one corner of the city’s biggest square. Infact, it’s what went on in the underground levels of what Romans know as the “palazzo Enpam”, which houses the offices for the Health fund of healthcare professionals.

When the piazza and the surrounding buildings were created around 1880, there was talk of the amount of Roman remains found in the area, but at the time nobody really cared for saving them, apart from a few sensational findings. The focus was on equipping the newly appointed capital of Italy with modern residences, offices, and infrastructures so the precious vestiges were destroyed, or buried once more.

Now some of those ruins have been unearthed for good, and the organization owning the property (Enpam, indeed) has decided to turn part of their headquarters into a museum.

Introducing the Museo Ninfeo

With the name of Museo Ninfeo, Enpam has established a new underground archaeological site which is built around the ruins that were underneath the palazzo in the first place: the archaeological dig is the Nymphaeum (hence the name of the new museum) of the Horti Lamiani, a lavish complex with gardens (the “horti”), temples and an opulent mansion that were originally built by consul Lucius Aelius Lamia (“lamiani”).

A close collaborator and friend to emperor Tiberius, Lamia bequeathed the property to the emperor himself – the area became owned by the empire and Caligula was even buried here for a short time after his death.

For 10 years after the establishing of their headquarters on Piazza Vittorio Emanuele, the heads of Enpam had 35 archaeologists and 8 conservators work on the underground site with architects, engineers and other experts. The museum itself is the remains of a square, one of the central parts of the Nymphaeum and the Horti, along with the objects and art found there.

How to visit the Museo Ninfeo

Visits to the newly opened museum, which is a few minutes away from our very own Via Mecenate, will start on November 20, and can be booked on this page.

Tours are available at different prices, with an audioguide or with an archaeologist on site to explain the different phases of the dig. Visitors will only be allowed in over the weekends, with a mandatory booking, and they will have to produce their vaccine certificate (Green Pass, for those who are acquainted with the Italian Covid lingo).

At this time, only visits in Italian have been planned, but we recommend you write at the email address provided on this page and ask for tours in your own language.