At the end of 2007, the “Surgeon's Domus” in Piazza Ferrari in Rimini, in the city’s historic centre; since then, the domus has been open to the public and many schools have taken their pupils on school trips to this fantastic archaeological site.
You’ll be able to visit the splendid ‘mini Pompeii’ at night too and explore it by moonlight; for fans of this sort of thing, this is an unmissable and perhaps once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so anyone wishing to take part in this fantastic event will only be able to do so on the magical New Year’s Eve.
During the visit, you will be able to admire over 700 square metres of archaeological site, where excavations have unearthed a great many of the instruments used by surgeons in their work around the third century AD.
As it was discovered in Piazza Ferrari, it has emerged that the domus forms an integral part of the museum situated next door, to which it is connected via a passageway that was unknown prior to 2007.
A transparent floor, made of paving stones, has been installed inside the domus; this was done to allow visitors to look down and see what the ground they are now walking on used to look like.
The Surgeon’s House is an archaeological site dating from the second century AD. It covers an area of 700 square metres and is situated in the centre of Rimini. It overlooked the sea and was the home of a Greek surgeon, as can be deduced from the discovery of many objects typical of Greece, which were not yet present in Italy, such as the terracotta foot used to treat rheumatism.
A barbarian invasion from the sea set the entire house ablaze; the surgeon was forced to flee, leaving behind all his valuable instruments, which were essential to his work. These instruments have been recovered and are on display in the museum next door, alongside other artefacts such as statues, terracotta vases, coins and various containers used to store herbal medicines.
Outside the house, in fact, there was access to the garden where the surgeon grew the various medicinal herbs used to treat the sick or those wounded in war; we can deduce this from the various amputation instruments that have been found. In the museum, you can see reconstructions of the typical rooms of that era where patients were treated.
The black-and-white mosaics are particularly fascinating; their colour gives an indication of the social class to which they belonged – indeed, colourful mosaics were found only in noble residences. A few metres away from it, another dwelling was discovered, containing several burials dating from later periods. These domus were fairly well-equipped and comfortable, fitted with heating, cooling and drainage systems.
For further information: Tel. 0541 21482.
musei@comune.rimini.it
