The eagle eye of archaeologists in the sky of Italy; Drones reveal the secret of the lost city

According to “Heritage Daily”; The use of advanced drone technology has once again pushed the boundaries of archeology and revealed the remains of an auditorium and a huge public square at the ancient site of Fioccaglia in southern Italy. These findings, which are the result of thermal and multispectral sensor data analysis, prove that this area was more than a simple way station, a dynamic and strategic city on the edge of the legendary Appian Way.

The research team of “University of Salento” led by Professor “Giuseppe Ceraudo” succeeded in drawing the regular and checkered structure of the streets, which is one of the features of Roman urban planning, by carefully mapping the underground layers of the earth. The most outstanding achievement of this exploration is the identification of a magnificent theater of which there was no trace before. The existence of this building next to the city’s central square, which was considered the main center of commercial and civil activities, indicates the flourishing of cultural and social life in this area.

This ancient site, which some researchers consider to be the “Forum Aemilii” (Forum Aemilii) belonging to the second century BC, has played a decisive role in the expansion of Roman culture in southern Italy. The city’s location at the crossroads of major imperial roads made it a key logistics center. Italian heritage officials have described the drone footage as a “radiography” of the area’s buried history, paving the way for targeted excavation and protection of the UNESCO World Heritage site.