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Pompeii excavation reveals colourful scene

The site features paintings of bulls, as well as garden scenes of delicate birds, trees and snakes.

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Massimo Osanna shows a fresco in a house discovered during excavation works in Pompeii

Archaeologists have uncovered a new treasure in the ruins of Pompeii: a richly painted garden scene in the shrine area of a home that had been buried following the explosion of Mount Vesuvius in 79AD.

The ANSA news agency said it was given exclusive access to the site, known as a lararium.

An archaeologist works behind a wall bearing frescos of animals in a house discovered during excavation works in Pompeii
Part of the colourful discovery (Ciro Fusco/ANSA via AP)

In ancient Roman times, lararia were altar spaces at the entrances of homes of the well-to-do where offerings and prayers were made to the gods.

Photos of the site show blood-red walls and paintings of bulls, as well as garden scenes of delicate birds, trees and snakes.

A fresco of a bird
A fresco of a bird (Ciro Fusco/ANSA via AP)

ANSA quoted the head of the Pompeii archaeological site, Massimo Osanna, describing the discovery as a “marvellous and enigmatic room that now must be studied at length”.

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