Palazzo Valentini Rome
Descend beneath the modern city into Roman residences hidden beside Trajan’s Forum.
Request a ProposalBeneath Palazzo Valentini, only a few steps from Trajan’s Column, lies an archaeological world invisible from the street above.
Excavations beginning in 2005 revealed two large residences of the Imperial period, private thermal spaces and remains associated with a monumental public building. 1
Today the site combines the surviving archaeology with projections, lighting and digital reconstruction to help visitors understand the spaces as they may once have appeared. 2
Two Roman Houses Rediscovered
The archaeological remains beneath Palazzo Valentini belong to substantial residences occupied during the Roman Imperial period.
Their scale, decorative features and location close to the political centre of Rome suggest occupants of considerable social status.
Tourism Rome describes them as two sumptuous patrician dwellings dating to the fourth century AD. 3
Three Different Layers of Ancient Life
Reception Rooms
Spaces where the owners of the residences received guests and displayed their status.
The Baths
A thermal sector preserved within one of the residences, revealing the sophistication of elite domestic life.
Public Building
Archaeological remains interpreted as possibly belonging to a public building connected with the imperial complex nearby.
The official site identifies these as the three principal archaeological zones encountered during the visit. 4
Seeing What the Ruins Alone Cannot Show
Palazzo Valentini is distinctive because the archaeological remains are accompanied by an immersive multimedia reconstruction.
Light, projections, animation and computer graphics reveal walls, decoration and spatial relationships that are difficult to perceive from the surviving structures alone.
The multimedia project was developed with the involvement of Piero Angela, Paco Lanciano and a team of specialists. 5
The Private World of Imperial Rome
Many archaeological itineraries in Rome focus on public monuments: temples, forums, basilicas and imperial architecture.
Palazzo Valentini offers another perspective.
Here the emphasis is on domestic life: how wealthy Romans organised their houses, received guests, decorated their rooms and incorporated private bathing facilities into an elite urban residence.
An Exceptional Position in Ancient Rome
Palazzo Valentini stands in the immediate vicinity of Trajan’s Forum and Trajan’s Column, within one of the most important monumental districts of Imperial Rome.
The location makes it particularly useful for understanding the relationship between monumental public architecture and the private residences that existed around Rome’s political centre.
Reservation Is Required
The Domus Romane operate through scheduled admission times rather than unrestricted circulation.
The official visitor information currently requires the date and time of the visit to be reserved in advance, subject to availability. 6
The multimedia sequence forms part of the experience, so Palazzo Valentini should not be presented as a conventional museum where guests simply enter and explore independently.
How We Would Include Palazzo Valentini
Palazzo Valentini works best as one part of a broader private archaeological itinerary.
A private guide can introduce the historical context before the timed multimedia visit and then connect what guests have seen with nearby monuments.
Depending on interests and available time, the experience can be combined with Trajan’s Forum, the Imperial Forums, the Capitoline area or other underground sites.
What You’ll Discover
- The Domus Romane beneath Palazzo Valentini
- Two elite residences of Imperial Rome
- Ancient reception rooms
- Private thermal facilities
- Mosaics and decorative remains
- Immersive multimedia reconstruction
- The domestic life of wealthy Romans
- The relationship with Trajan’s monumental district
- Archaeology beneath modern Rome
- A different perspective on Imperial Rome
Discover the homes hidden beneath Imperial Rome.
Explore Roman domestic life, archaeology and immersive reconstruction beneath one of the most historically important areas of the modern city.
Request a Proposal