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TOP: ROBERT PRATTA/REUTERS. BOTTOM: JEAN-PHILIPPE KSIAZEK/AFP/GETTY IMAGES❯
LATE IN THE FIRST CENTURY
A.D., a fire struck a
neighborhood in the Roman
city of Vienne, 20 miles south of
Lyon, France. The fire baked the
buildings’ bricks and spread so quickly
that inhabitants abandoned their
belongings. Several other fires struck
the area over the following centuries.
Two millennia later, the same spot was
selected for a housing development. As
mandated by the French government,
the land underwent archaeological
inspection in April by a private
company, Archeodunum, which found
structures several meters below grade.
The intensity of the first
conflagration had preserved many
aspects of the neighborhood, since
fired brick doesn't crumble and heat
treatment protects iron from corrosion.
Archaeologists found ancient streets,
mosaics, shops and multistory houses.
Personal belongings like wine jugs and
a wooden chest containing a Roman
soldier’s armor were also unearthed.
“This is an exceptional chance to
analyze the houses of rich and poor
alike, and study the architecture
of multistory buildings,” says
Archeodunum archaeologist Benjamin
Clément. JONATHON KEATSRoman
Neighborhood,
Frozen in Time
Archaeologists excavate the ruins of an ancient
Roman neighborhood (top and right) unearthed
during construction of a housing development in
Vienne, France. Wine jugs, mosaics and personal
items are among the discoveries.