Rome Opens Two Metro C Stations with Ancient Artifacts

Rome opened two new subway stations on Tuesday, blending cutting-edge urban transit with the ancient history buried beneath its historic center. The stations, part of the long-delayed Metro C line, include one located deep below the Colosseum and another at Porta Metronia, just one stop away. Both sites at about 30 meters, or 100 feet, underground now display artifacts unearthed during construction, offering commuters and tourists a direct window into the city's layered past.

The Colosseum station features exhibits of ceramic vases and plates, stone wells with suspended buckets, and remnants of a first-century dwelling, including a cold plunge pool and thermal bath. Interactive screens detail the excavation process, highlighting the archaeological hurdles that extended the project's timeline. Construction on the multibillion-euro Metro C line began nearly two decades ago but faced repeated setbacks from bureaucratic red tape, funding shortages, and the need to excavate and preserve ruins from imperial Roman and medieval periods.

"The challenge was building it under such a large amount of groundwater and at the same time preserving all the archaeological finds that we found...