Archaeologists excavating the ancient Roman city of Altino in northern Italy have uncovered the first monumental remains of its long-lost forum, shedding new light on the prosperous settlement whose stones were later stripped away to help build Venice.
The discoveries were made during excavations at the Altino Archaeological Park, where researchers unearthed part of the city’s monumental centre, including commercial buildings known as tabernae, sections of the main theatre, and part of the Via Annia — a major Roman road that once linked Padua with Aquileia.
The excavation campaign began in October 2025 and marks the first systematic exploration of a 26-hectare area representing roughly a third of the buried Roman city. Until now, the layout of the sector had only been identified through aerial geophysical surveys carried out around two decades ago.
Archaeologists say the findings offer rare insight into both the rise and decline of one of northern Italy’s wealthiest Roman urban centres.
Altino flourished as a major commercial hub during the Roman period thanks to its strategic position near the Venetian Lagoon. However, between the 5th and 7th centuries AD, repeated barbarian invasions forced its inhabitants to flee to the nearby lagoon islands, where the earliest settlements that would eventually become Venice began to emerge.
The newly uncovered remains suggest that, after its abandonment, Altino effectively became a quarry for the growing lagoon city.
According to a statement released by Italy’s Ministry of Culture, the evidence reveals that many of the forum’s public buildings were systematically dismantled during the medieval period, with valuable construction materials transported across the lagoon for reuse in Venice.
Marianna Bressan, director of the National Archaeological Museums of Venice, described the process as a “surgical plundering” of the ancient city.
“The inhabitants dismantled the structures of Altino to transport stones, bricks and marbles to the lagoon and reuse them in the construction of the first Venetian palaces,” she explained.
Among the most significant discoveries are the remains of the cavea — the seating area of the city’s principal theatre — alongside sections of shops and paved urban streets connected to the Via Annia, an important Roman transport route established in the 2nd century BC.
So far, archaeologists have investigated approximately 602 square metres of the site, but researchers believe the unexplored area could contain substantial additional remains linked to Altino’s civic and commercial heart.
The excavation area had never previously been examined through traditional archaeological methods. Instead, its existence was known only through non-invasive geophysical imaging, which allowed scientists to detect buried structures beneath the soil without excavation.
The new fieldwork, carried out in collaboration with the University of Padua, is being hailed as the beginning of a new phase of archaeological research at the site.
Massimo Osanna, Italy’s Director General of Museums, said the project highlights the importance of scientific research in preserving cultural heritage.
“This campaign inaugurates a new phase of studies at the site,” he said, adding that archaeological knowledge remains “the principal tool for safeguarding heritage”.
Altino occupies a very special place in Venice’s long history. Although it is often overlooked by the lagoon city that went to replace it, the historians now realize that Altino was one of the main cities that were the largest centres whose people, wealth and materials had contributed to Venice’s origin.
The new discoveries also have reinforced the link between the two cities and indicate how the decline of one helped to propel the rise of the other.
The excavations finished their first phase on Thursday as part of a public open day event where they took place for the public to visit the site and view the remains before the artefacts are transferred for laboratory analysis and conservation.
Researchers hope further excavations will lead to other structures associated with the forum and provide a clearer picture of daily life in one of Roman Italy’s most important lagoon cities before its disappearance in the early medieval period.
Sources : Ministry of Culture
