More on Nero's Dining Room
This story will of course develop as more tidbits about the excavation emerge. To my mind, it’s another occasion to take what would otherwise be an intrinsically interesting and significant find and then turn it into a media circus by associating the discovery with a deliciously fascinating historical figure and a specious architectural commission. (Cf. the claims of having found the Lupercal Cave a while back.)
Here’s Suetonius on Nero’s Golden House: “There were dining-rooms with fretted ceils of ivory, whose panels could turn and shower down flowers and were fitted with pipes for sprinkling the guests with perfumes. The main banquet hall was circular and constantly revolved day and night, like the heavens.”
Mind you, by Suetonius’ day in the 2nd century Nero was dead & gone and the Domus Aurea had been backfilled for the most part—later emperors avoided any architectural associations with the notorious Nero (I’m oversimplifying here…).
The Italian version of the news item is not terribly informative. An AP story tells us that only the foundation of a circular room has been discovered.
So…yeah…
