<title>GPR time slice images of the Villa of Emperor Trajanus, Arcinazzo, Italy (AD 52-117)</title>

Abstract

The villa of the Roman Emperor Marcus Ulpius Trajanus (AD52-117) was built in Arcinazzo Italy, approximately 55 km northeast of Rome. Today, the only remains left standing at the site are public building entrances comprising a small portion of the entire site. As part of an ongoing study to rescue this national archaeological treasure, an extensive grid system was laid out and high-resolution GPR surveys using sub-meter profile spacings were conducted. Amplitude time slice analysis indicates that many structural foundations of the villa are still well preserved below the ground surface. Time slices below 40 ns in one area reveal several large mushroom shaped structures enclosed within a large building over 100 meters in length. These rounded structures are believed to be dipping pools within the bathhouse to the villa. At a location west of the bathhouse, a large oval shaped anomaly 45 meters along its major axis was discovered. Several intermediate time slices show a very faint overlapping oval reflection with a different orientation. The fainter anomaly may indicate the initial construction geometry was adjusted soon after construction began on the site for a garden pond or outdoor pooi area. The data are also examined using fast animation of the radar time slices . In this dynamic display of the datasets, several other information such as overlying topsoil depths across the site, and the relationship of structural anomalies at different levels, can be easily visualized when compared to normal static displays of radar data.