Casina Vignola Boccapaduli in Rome becomes new cultural info point

The 16th-century Casina Vignola Boccapaduli in Rome's Piazza di Porta Capena has been restored and converted into a cultural info point and ticket office for the Civic Museums system and the Appia Antica Archaeological Park. Originally built in a vineyard near the Baths of Caracalla, the building was purchased in 1538 by Prospero Boccapaduli. It was demolished in the late 19th century to make way for the Passeggiata Archeologica and reconstructed about 300 meters away in 1911 by architect Pietro Guidi. The recent restoration, supervised by the Sovrintendenza Capitolina ai Beni Culturali and funded with Jubilee funds, transformed the ground-floor travertine portico into a visitor space with thermal and acoustic glazing and a new climate control system. The project is part of the larger Centro Archeologico Monumentale (CArMe) plan, which aims to create a pedestrian ring connecting the Roman Forum, Colosseum, Celio, Palatine, Baths of Caracalla, Circus Maximus, and Campidoglio. The new info point will also serve as a starting point for pedestrian and cycling routes along the Appia Antica.