The Imperial Residence of Maxsentius

The imposing residential villa located between the third and fourth mile of the Via Appia Antica which has been attributed to Emperor Maxsentius (306/312 AD) adversary of Constantine the Great in the battle of Ponte Milvio on October 28th, 312, is one of the most exquisite and impressive archaeological complexes of the Roman countryside.  Composed of three separate buildings, the family mausoleum, the circus, and the remains of the Imperial palace, closed from the outside but connected to each other through internal pathways. The most well-known monument in the complex is the circus, the only Roman circus well-conserved in all its architectural components that still preserves its central median strip or spina. Following an important restoration project completed by the city’s Sovrintendenza, it is now possible to visit the mausoleum of the dynasty of Emperor Maxentius known as the “Tomb of Romulus” after the emperor’s young son who is presumably buried there.  The remains of the apse of the Aula Palatina, this also recently restored, still dominate the extraordinary landscape of the park of the Appia Antica, signalling from a distance what remains of this imposing imperial palace.