Excavations
The American University of Rome (AUR) launched the Aventinus Minor Project (AMP) in partnership with St. Stephen’s School, an international high school in Rome, and the Istituto Santa Margherita, the convalescent home housed in the convent of Santa Balbina, which owns the excavation site. Our work can only happen through our collaboration with the Soprintendenza Speciale di Roma and the Ministero della Cultura. Through these partnerships, AMP is committed to being culturally responsible, academically rigorous, and community-minded stewards of the archaeological site and the surrounding neighborhood.
The Aventinus Minor Project was founded in 2019 to excavate an extension of the extant Servian Walls on the Aventinus Minor Hill, which was only partially uncovered in the 1980s. The majority of the site was still unexcavated, which presented a unique opportunity, especially in the densely populated city of Rome, to study a potentially intact stratigraphy sequence of 2,500 years. Read on to discover our progress, theories, and discoveries.
2020
Under COVID-19 restrictions, AMP conducted a remote research season, conducting preliminary archival, cartographic, and topographical research on the Aventinus Minor Hill with AUR’s Scientific Director, Dr. Giulia Facchin. Under the direction of Site and Remote Sensing Supervisor Dr. Piermatteo Barone, the students created a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) database of the results, combining historical maps with archaeological reconstructions and modern georeferenced maps. The database was expanded to include ancient road systems, wall circuits, water infrastructure, housing, and religious buildings. This was compiled through known literary, archaeological, and epigraphic evidence, and was supplemented with metadata, including photos, coordinates, and bibliographies.
With the data we analyzed, we were confident that we would be able to find the continuation of the Servian Walls. The 1980s excavation by the Soprintendenza concluded when the portion of the wall they were tracking abruptly ended, with what appeared to be a cut mark. However, because there was no archival evidence of the wall’s removal, we wrapped the 2020 season eager to find its extension in upcoming seasons.
Community Involvement
In 2020, AMP conducted a one-week online summer school course at St. Stephen’s School for dozens of high school students, parents, and local community members. The course, taught by AUR professor Elizabeth Wueste and St. Stephen’s teacher Inge Weustink, covered introductory lectures on archaeology and archaeological technology, as well as the myths, history, and archaeology of the Aventinus Minor Hill.
In the 2021 season, AMP conducted its first on-site activities, producing a comprehensive non-invasive geophysical survey of the site in preparation for excavation. A team of AUR Archaeology and Classics undergraduate students and Sustainable Cultural Heritage graduate students mapped, documented, and drew the site. They employed a combination of technologies, including Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), GPS mapping, drone photography, 3D photogrammetric modelling, and GIS database mapping.
We were excited to find that the GPR data revealed an anomaly extending along the same path as the previously discovered Servian Walls, which indicated that we could possibly find the wall itself when we started excavating. The data also identified other areas to investigate across the site, but our goal for the 2022 excavation was to start by finding the remainder of the Servian Walls.
Community Involvement
St. Stephen’s students came on-site daily to participate in our non-invasive survey, helping us draw, do 3D photogrammetry, and use the GPR. At the close of the summer season, the AMP team presented the results of their research to the local community in a series of lectures and posters, presented in both Italian and English.
AMP also hosted a community cultural heritage exhibition dedicated to the San Saba neighborhood in the winter of 2021. The final exhibition was held in the auditorium of St. Stephen’s, grounding the research within the very location we’re studying.
Additionally, we completed community service and neighborhood clean-up projects to weed, clean up trash, and clear the sidewalks around the site and the secondary school with students from AUR and St. Stephen’s.
2021
2022
Area I
During the 2022 season, AMP excavated Area I, intending to uncover the continuation of the Servian Wall in line with the section partially excavated in the 1980s. Our GPR survey the year prior detected a large anomaly 30 cm deep in this area, which we were hopeful could be the Servian Wall.
However, following excavation, the object detected by the GPR turned out to be a modern pile of trash and construction debris, which contained inclusions of contemporary (20th century) material. Below the contemporary layers, we discovered Early Modern finds from the 16th to 17th centuries, and below that, the soil became more organic, which may indicate the known agricultural activity in the area. There was still no clear evidence of the Wall or its removal. The excavation was halted without evidence of the Servian Wall or the Late Antique or Medieval layers found in the 1980s.
Area II
AMP also excavated Area II in 2022, following a GPR anomaly identified in 2021. As we approached the indicated anomaly, we encountered a thick layer of hard, red clay, which may have triggered the GPR due to its density and thickness. Further down, we encountered three distinct sections: in the west, there was a deep fill of rubble; in the center, a stack of reused concrete; and to the east, a mix of clay and compact soil. This stack of reused concrete, which ran below the rubble to the west and hard clay to the east, was revealed to be an unmortared wall.
The goals for Area II shifted as the GPR data did not unearth what we expected. However, with this wall uncovered, our goal moving into 2023 was to discover the purpose and date of the wall. We theorized it might have separated two agricultural fields or served as a barrier for an animal pen. However, further expansion to Area II would be required to understand this architectural feature.
Community Involvement
Throughout our excavation season, we collaborated with students from St. Stephen’s and residents from the Istituto Santa Margherita on site. The students helped us clean and analyze finds, and we hosted presentations and tours of the site for them and the residents. We brought artifacts to the Istituto for residents who could not make it to the site and presented them to ensure everyone was included in learning about the site’s special history.
At the end of the dig season, we hosted Open Site days with presentations in English and Italian, welcoming the local community and introducing the archeological finds and mysteries that had been hidden in the Basilica Santa Balbina garden.
2023
Area II
AMP’s goal for Area II was to investigate the unmortared rubble wall uncovered in 2022. The wall continued toward the southern end of the trench but ended abruptly. We encountered alternating layers of packed earth and rubble that sloped towards the south, where the Servian Wall would have been. We believe these may have been ramps used to extract building materials from the Servian Wall, a process known as spoliation, potentially during the Renaissance. We continued digging until we came upon a piece of a column, a section of wall with hydraulic plaster, and five blocks of tufa and mortar conglomerate, massive enough to suggest a monumental structure, which we’ve dated to the first century CE.
We wanted to continue searching for further evidence of the structure through archival research and, possibly, the expansion of Area II. However, not long after the season, we consulted with an architect, the Soprintendenza Speciale di Roma, and the Istituto Santa Margherita and decided it was not structurally feasible to dig deeper. We hired a geologist to core around the site at depths approaching 10 meters deep, and the samples obtained suggested an absence of major human activity. Therefore, we chose to close the area.
Area III
From our 2021 GPR results, we knew there was yet another anomaly 3-4 m below the earth, so we opened up Area III. In this new location, we aimed to explore the historical context of the extramural region.
We excavated and revealed a Late Antique Roman lime kiln, used for burning marble and other materials to make lime, an important component of Roman concrete. Perhaps dating to the 5th to 6th centuries CE, it is possible that the kiln was tied to the creation of the nearby church of Santa Balbina, which was constructed in 499 CE.
North of the kiln were the remnants of a Late Antique or early medieval wall, perhaps 4th-7th century CE, surrounded by a series of beaten earth surfaces. The wall had been damaged, likely by agricultural activity such as plowing, and could have been built to support terracing, as evidenced by the presence of drainage holes.
Lastly, we excavated a large Renaissance-era spoliation trench parallel to the wall, raising questions about what they were looking for and what they took. Because this trench split Area III into two disparate sections, it was challenging to create a confident narrative about the site. We knew that the 2024 AMP session would continue excavating this area.
Community Involvement
In 2023, we collaborated with St. Stephen’s students on the conservation and identification of ceramics and marbles, human bioarchaeology, and stereo-photogrammetry—the making of 3D models via photographs and drone technology. Older students assisted with sifting, cleaning materials, and organizing small finds. These on-site activities enabled the high school students to engage with the archaeological materials and think critically about gleaning information from materials in an archaeological context.
We also collaborated with IC Borgoncini, a public middle school in Roma West, to connect our project with the broader Roman community. We visited the students on their campus and sponsored their field trip to the excavation site to teach them about our archaeological project, osteology, and photogrammetry.
For the Istituto Santa Margherita, we created a ceramics and materials exhibition to present to the residents to help them better understand the material culture of their garden. Specific artifacts were selected to demonstrate the overall context of the site and its complex history.
Lastly, as in 2022, we held an Open Site day at the end of the season to present our finds to the local community.
2024
Area III
In 2024, our goals in the Area III excavation were to date the partial wall, uncover the beaten earth surface, and explore why a spoliation trench would have been built here.
At the lowest courses of the kiln, we found perhaps the oldest feature in Area III, a cistern dating potentially to the late Republican period. Cisterns were water reservoirs to supply noble households, agricultural systems, and bathhouses. In the case of Area III, it is possible that it was used by a household of upper status, considering the later use of this area by nobility. Over time, the cistern eventually connected to a system for transporting water, as evidenced by the presence of hydraulic mortar. It has a distinctly triangular door, which was common with other sewers in the later Imperial period. We also discovered an intersection of waterways with hydraulic concrete connected to the cistern. These waterways are evidence of the expansion of the water system for the Aventine Minor Hill and may imply a connection with an aqueduct. The cistern was finally repurposed as a lime kiln, which we had excavated the prior year.
Our excavation on the south side of the wall uncovered the beginning of many battuti, areas of compact beaten earth that have been packed down into surfaces from years of use. We dug a small sondage, a test pit, which revealed over 20 battuti. These layers of beaten earth were likely used from the 1st to 3rd century BCE as a road system. By the end of the season, we still had not reached the end of the batutti, but from the many layers we had uncovered, it is evident that this potential road was heavily used over centuries.
Beneath the Renaissance spoliation trench we found in 2023 lay three foundation layers. The most ancient layer is a foundation for a platform made of soil and mortar. Built into the layers of this platform are three steps, and on the second highest step were three non-load-bearing pillars made with opus latericium (brick work). Their small size and unsubstantial bases suggest they were likely decorative. Because of the spoliation damage, we lack evidence of the original size and purpose of the platform and pillars. However, they have allowed us to theorize about the area’s possible uses during the late Imperial period. We ended the season with many questions to be answered.
Community Involvement
St. Stephen’s students attended activities and lectures on material conservation, stratigraphy, and GIS. Juniors and seniors worked directly with us, helping us sift, wash pottery, dust frescos, and sort and label special finds.
In 2024, due to renovations at the Instituto Santa Margherita Convalescent Home and Santa Balbina Church, the residents were relocated, and AMP was not able to include them in this season's community program.
However, the project expanded its community reach to the IC Leonardo da Vinci, who sent sections of their fifth-grade class to tour the Area III excavation site. Tours, led by AMP staff and AUR students, included a history of the Aventine Hill, excavation and conservation techniques, and a presentation of interesting finds from the 2024 season.
In 2025, we processed and researched our finds from the past three excavation seasons. The study season produced a rough draft of a monograph to be published on the Aventinus Minor Project, with sections on stratigraphy, ceramics, special finds, architecture, dating, and community archaeology. The creation of a monograph not only allows us to disseminate what we have found, but it also helps us plan for what comes next. The finds processed in 2025 can be seen in greater detail in our Virtual Museum.
Community Involvement
In 2025, St. Stephen’s ninth-grade students researched selected special finds from the past three years of excavation in their City of Rome course. By analyzing the archaeological material and researching similar pieces, the students drew conclusions about their finds with the guidance of AMP professionals and AUR students. At the end of their course, they created a museum-style exhibition, both online and in-person, of their discoveries to present their work to the greater St. Stephen’s community. This student-led research not only provided valuable data for the Aventinus Minor Project but also gave students a unique opportunity to learn archeological research and museum curation skills.
