Archaeological Park of Pompeii Announces Discovery of Intact Chariot in Civita Giuliana North of Pompeii

The Archaeological Park of Pompeii and the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Torre Annunziata announced on Friday, February 26, 2021 the discovery of a large four-wheeled ceremonial chariot. The findings included the chariots iron elements, the beautiful bronze and tin decorations, the mineralized wooden remains, and the imprints of the organic elements (from the ropes to the remains of floral decorations), was found almost intact in the portico in front of the stable where the remains of 3 horses had already been discovered in 2018 — including a harnessed horse.

The discovery is an extraordinary find, which emerged intact from the excavation of the suburban villa in Civita Giuliana, north of Pompeii, beyond the walls of the ancient city, as part of the joint activity, launched in 2017 and in light of the Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2019, aimed at combating illegal activities by illegal immigrants in the area.

From the moment the chariot was identified, the excavation of the chariot has proved to be particularly complex due to the fragility of the materials involved and the difficult working conditions; as a result, it was necessary to proceed by means of a micro-excavation conducted by the restorers of the Park, who are specialized in the treatment of wood and metals. At the same time, whenever a void was discovered, plaster was poured in as part of an attempt to preserve the imprint of the organic material that was no longer present. Consequently, it has been possible to preserve the shaft and platform of the chariot, as well as the imprints of ropes, thus revealing the chariot in all of its complexity. Given the extreme fragility of the chariot and the risk of possible illegal operations and damage caused by news leaks, the team has worked every weekend since mid-January, both to guarantee its conservation but also to send a strong signal of the Park’s action to protect the heritage, alongside the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Torre Annunziata and officers of the Naples Carabinieri Headquarters for the Protection of Cultural Heritage, assisted by investigators of the Carabinieri Group Command of Torre Annunziata. This collaboration also led to the participation of Park technicians in the ongoing trial of the alleged illegal excavators, who have struck this villa severely in recent years. With the in situ micro-excavation completed, the various elements of the chariot have been transported to the laboratory of the Archaeological Park of Pompeii, where the restorers are working to complete the removal of volcanic material which still engulfs certain metal elements, and to begin the lengthy restoration and reconstruction of the chariot.

The ongoing excavation project has a dual objective: firstly, to cooperate with the investigations of the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Torre Annunziata, in order to bring an end to the looting of cultural heritage by perpetrators who had dug several tunnels in the area in order to intercept archaeological treasures, and secondly, to reveal one of the most significant villas of the Vesuvian area and to protect it from further looting.

Pompeii was an ancient city located in what is now the comune of Pompei near Naples in the Campania region of Italy. Pompeii was buried and largely preserved under 13 to 20 feet of volcanic ash and pumice in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79.

The historical significance Pompeii is due to the ash preserving Roman life the instant the city was buried.

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Pompei is a city in southern Italy’s Campania region near the active volcano at Vesuvius. Pompei is known for its ancient city, Pompeii, which was buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius 79 A.D.

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THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL PARK AND THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE OFTORRE ANNUNZIATA announce the discovery of AN EXTRAORDINARY FIND,WHICH HAS EMERGED INTACT FROM THE CIVITA GIULIANA EXCAVATIONTHE FOUR-WHEELED PROCESSIONAL CHARIOT [PDF]