Archaeologists believe they have found a bathhouse that once belonged to the Roman lawyer and statesman Cicero.
The remains of the ancient baths were found beneath the water in the sunken city of Baiae, on the coast of the Bay of Naples.
Divers discovered an ornate mosaic 10 feet (three metres) below the waves, in an area which was once home to the harbour of Portus Julius.
This is the location where ancient sources claim Cicero had his villa, which slipped into the sea sometime around the fourth century AD.
Located 150 miles south of the capital, Baiae was once a thriving spa town where Rome’s richest and most powerful citizens would come to escape the summer heat and enjoy the area’s mineral-rich waters.
In a post on Facebook, the Phlegraean Fields Archaeological Park wrote: ‘The hypothesis, currently being explored, is that we may be looking at the Baths of Cicero’s villa, known from sources.’
The mosaic floor would have once sat on an advanced Roman heating system, turning the room into a sauna, or laconicum.
Archaeologists found that the network of tubes and pillars which pumped the hot air evenly through the bath was still intact after almost two millennia underwater.
Archaeologists believe they may have found the lost villa of Roman statesman and lawyer Cicero, around 2,000 years after it was lost
Cicero (pictured) is remembered as Rome’s greatest orator and lawyer, rising to prominence for his defence of the Roman Republic during the civil wars, which would give culminate in the assassination of Julius Caesar
Dating back to the second century BC, Baiae was already a popular holiday destination for the Roman elite, with the poet Livy praising the waters’ healing properties.
By the first century BC, Baiae had become the ancient equivalent of Monte Carlo and was a renowned hub of pleasure and vice.
Characters such as Julius Caesar, Augustus, and Nero flocked to the town to flaunt their wealth, have affairs, and host decadent, non-stop parties.
Baiae was soon so synonymous with indulgence and sin that the poet Sextus Propertius described it as a ‘vortex of luxury’ and a ‘harbour of vice’.
In one notorious episode, the mad emperor Caligula ordered a three-mile (5 km) floating bridge to be built so he could ride his horse across the bay.
However, the town began to sink beneath the water as a process called volcanic bradyseism, where volcanic activity causes the land to rise or fall, pushed the bay below sea level.
By the fourth century AD, much of the city was 13 to 20 feet (4-6 metres) underwater, leaving behind one of the country’s best preserved archaeological parks.
Following its discovery in the 1940s, archaeologists have been slowly excavating more of the lost ruins of the Roman Empire’s Sin City.
Divers uncovered the remains of an ornate mosaic 10 feet beneath the water in the sunken Roman city of Baiae
Dating back to the second century BC, Baiae was already a popular holiday destination for the Roman elite, with the poet Livy praising the waters’ healing properties. It soon became the premier party destination for the Roman elite. Pictured: Artist’s impression of Baiae
These mosaics would have once been the floor of a heating system used to pump air into a type of Roman sauna called a laconicum
In 2023, divers discovered an intact mosaic floor, supported by small brick pillars and surrounded by ceramic fragments.
The baths form part of a wider network of rooms, pools, and service corridors that served the Roman elite.
Having now completed their documentation of the site, archaeologists believe these are the remains of Cicero’s long-lost villa.
Marcus Tullius Cicero, born in 106 BC, was a famous scholar and lawyer from the last days of the Roman Republic.
During his life, he vainly fought to uphold Rome’s republican values as the city plunged into civil war from which the Empire would be born.
Following the assassination of Julius Caesar, Cicero attempted to use Caesar’s adopted son, Octavian, to hold onto power.
However, Octavian turned on Cicero and had him executed in December of 43 BC.
Contemporary sources note that Cicero had a villa in Baiae where he would holiday while not in Rome, but the exact location has since been lost to time.
The researchers also found fragments of paintings and ceramics, which could reveal whether this really is Cicero’s lost villa
Contemporary sources say that Cicero had a villa in Baiae, but the villa, along with the rest of the city, was lost when volcanic activity caused it to sink in the Bay of Naples during the fourth century
Researchers called the work ‘tantalising’ but say that more investigation will be needed to say for certain whether this truly is Cicero’s villa.
The researchers wrote: ‘Of particular note are the ceramic materials recovered during the excavation—and currently being studied—which appear to offer important insights into both the construction and destruction of the site.
Work on restoring the bath complex, particularly the mosaic floors and fragments of paintings, will commence in the autumn.
A member of the research team added: ‘The discovery not only highlights the daily life of the Roman elite but also enhances our understanding of the social and cultural structure of that era.’
