Roman House (Domus) and Bishop's Palace Mosaic floors

A clear example of the passing of time in Aquileia is the site of the Roman House (Domus) and Bishop's Palace, recently redeveloped and inaugurated in 2017. A visit to this archaeological site will take you on an exciting journey backward in time to discover the secrets of the ancient city of Aquileia.
The site features the layers of three different epochs. As you enter, the first section you meet corresponds to the mosaic floors and masonry of the bishop's palace of the 5th century. This was the residence of the powerful bishops of Aquileia, whose role had hugely grown in importance in the previous centuries.
As you walk further, you will admire the vestiges of a Roman house of the 1st century, with its frescoed walls still visible, quite a rare occurrence considering that the city's archaeological remains are usually found on the horizontal level.
The site ends with a marvellous hall with an apse belonging to a Roman house of the 4th century, supposedly a portion of the bishop's residence. If you had walked in this area in the middle of the 4th century, you'd have met an elegant room of 100 square metres, with an apse whose walls and ceiling were entirely fresco-painted with beautiful patterns of vine shoots, leaves, grapes and birds highlighted by a bright red backdrop.
These later constructions offer an insight into the life of an originally extramural neighbourhood, which later became the seat of the earliest Christian district of the city in the 4th century.