The restoration of the Teatro Nuovo lead to a rescue excavation in the stalls area of the theatre. At least two building phases were identified dating to the Republican period. The earliest dates to the mid 3rd century B.C. and therefore must be associated with the setting up of the Latin colony in 241B.C. The later Republican structures consist of two large, parallel walls on a NE/SW orientation, one of which is a dry-stone retaining wall built with large stones. In the early Imperial period these structures were encompassed within an L shaped, plastered construction which also acted as a retaining wall for the slope. The great difference in height, caused by the slopes to the NE and SW, was overcome in the late Imperial period by the dumping of demolition debris from earlier Imperial buildings in the vicinity. Within the various layers of fill were large quantities of stucco, painted plaster (some with decorative motifs), an antefix and a small, decorative theatrical mask made of limestone.
In late antiquity (5th century A.D.), a small channel was built within this fill. Made of opus caementicium with an internal parament in brick, it was covered by tiles placed in “a cappuccina” mode. This construction re-used building materials from earlier periods which came from the robbing of a bath complex. Only a few remains, including a cess pit full of pottery from the 13-14th centuries, can be attributed to the medieval convent that was sited here.
During the 1800s, when the Teatro Nuovo was constructed, the convent was demolished and this brought to light substantial Roman walls, which can be attributed to a bath complex. These were encompassed in the new building and are still visible today. (Liliana Costamagna)