Thousands Of Years Of History Stacked Underground

Added: 2026-05-20

[00:00:00]There is an entire ancient city buried beneath Rome. Rome is famous for its ruins. But what many people don't realize is that there are layers of ancient cities beneath the modern one.

[00:00:11]Over thousands of years, floods, fires, and rebuilding gradually raised the ground level. As new buildings were constructed, the older ones were buried below. Today, archaeologists can explore underground streets, temples, and houses from ancient Roman times hidden beneath the modern city. One example is the Basilica of San Clemente where visitors can descend through multiple layers of history. The top layer is a medieval church. Below that is a 4th century basilica and beneath that lies a first century Roman building and temple complex. Walking downward through these levels is like traveling backward through time. In some places, the original Roman streets are more than 30 feet below modern ground level. Rome isn't just a city. It's a stack of cities built on top of each other across more than 2,000 years of