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Imagine locating an important, fantastic archeological site in the USA and briefly allowing the public to see it, then no longer allowing entrance to the site. Unthinkable, no?
Well in the entire area in and around Naples, Italy, astounding archeological finds are literally everywhere and the government agency which supervises and protects these treasures often does not have enough "treasure" to afford to provide upkeep, protection and regular public visitation.
Such is the case reported recently where an elaborate and extensive underground necropolis used to inter Roman sailors was discovered in 2003. Workers in a small hamlet near the tip of Monte di Procida peninsula discovered the extensive burial chambers while digging and making repairs to a central square in the town. The necropolis, which dates from the first century B.C., was in remarkably good condition with decorative frescos still adorning the walls and ceilings of the winding tunnels which contain mausoleum-like niches into which urns with the remains of mariners from the Roman fleet were placed.
Known as the Praetoria Classis Misenensis, the fleet was founded by Caesar Augustus in 27 B.C. The classes of ships included a group named for the number of rows of oars that were used to power it. A large number of triremes (three row) warships with three rows of oars were home ported on Cape Miseno at the ancient Porto Julius. The port was not far from the hamlet above near Monte di Procida, where the necropolis is located. The map below shows the general location of the necropolis on the peninsula to the West of Naples.
After the initial discovery, archeologists surveying the site were astounded to find skeletal remains of a Roman soldier clutching a sword as a way of payment into the beyond. Scientific studies of the ancient burial chambers were made in 2003 but little public visitation was permitted. Eventually a philanthropic European Foundation funded construction of an entry stairwell and weathertight entrance to the site some 6 to 8 meters below street level. Before this proper covering, trash and debris was regularly thrown down into the hole above the inaccessible necropolis below. The steel and glass protective covering over the entry resembles a subway entrance. It creates a weather resistant covering and allows passersby to look through glass panes down into a small section of the necropolis, but the entryway has remained padlocked.
A group of volunteers, "Rebirth of the (funeral) Chapel" has called for better care for the amazing site and attempted to get some immediate action in the month of November 2009 when a ruptured storm drain line broke, flooding the necropolis after record breaking weeks of rain. After getting it somewhat cleaned up they were able to get the Directorate of Archaeology to permit a special opening for visits on the evening of December 6th, Epiphany, which they named "Christmas Together, 2009." Some 200 visitors turned out, but the only illumination down in the chambers below was a battery powered spotlight hung from the overhead.
Public visitation was short lived with visitation halted and the entrance once again locked December 18th, a mere 12 days later. It now remains closed with tourists and other interested visitors forced to track down a telephone number where a special visit might be arranged. And might is the keyword. Other astounding Roman ruins on the peninsula are also difficult to visit.
These include the huge " Piscina Mirabilis" ( click for photos) an unbelievable, massive deep rectangular cistern almost as large as a football field which received water from a Roman aqueduct brought all the way from near Mt. Vesuvius to supply the Roman fleet. Roman baths, temples and other ruins at the nearby Baia Archeological Museum all require special arrangements to be seen. It is all about a lack of money in the poorer southern half of Italy, and a lack of real motivation to make accessible and promote these incredible sites to tourists from around the world. Take a look at the photos below of the Necropolis. The fresco on the domed ceiling is the Greek Moon Goddess Selene with a sliver of the moon and a star for her headdress. Selene is linked with "illumination" and may have offered spiritual "light" inside the pitch dark necropolis.
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