Museo Ninfeo Opens in Rome's Piazza Vittorio, Showcasing Horti Lamiani

A new archaeological museum, the Museo Ninfeo, has opened under the Enpam headquarters in Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II, Rome. The museum brings to light the Horti Lamiani, among the most beautiful ancient Roman gardens, which once housed imperial residences. The project is a collaboration between the Soprintendenza Speciale di Roma and Enpam (Ente Nazionale di Previdenza e Assistenza dei Medici e degli Odontoiatri). Discoveries from five years of excavation—involving 12 archaeologists and 6 restorers, with 30,000 cubic meters of earth moved—include artifacts from the Julio-Claudian period: a curved marble staircase, frescoes, decorations, everyday objects, and a water system bearing Emperor Claudius' name. From the Severan period, a monumental architectural structure—an imperial residence of Alexander Severus—was found, featuring a nymphaeum square with sculptural groups, herms, and flower vases. The museum displays 3,000 objects, including amphorae, pottery, animal bones (lion, deer, ostrich, bear), and marine fauna. Soprintendente Daniela Porro called it an exceptional scientific result. Mirella Serlorenzi, scientific director, emphasized the multidisciplinary research. Minister of Culture Dario Franceschini praised it as a model of preventive archaeology and dedicated the museum to doctors who died in the pandemic. The museum opens free on October 30–31, then Saturdays and Sundays from November 6, with audio guide €10, guided tour €13, free for doctors and dentists.