ROME, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- From the mighty Roman Empire to the Renaissance and beyond, Italy's history in terms of art, architecture, and culture is among the richest and most varied in the world. Sometimes it can still show its face unexpectedly.
In the latest case, construction workers building an apartment complex on the site of an old theater in northern Italy uncovered an urn containing around 300 solid gold coins dating to the fifth century B.C.
The find earned worldwide headlines, but less flashy finds are uncovered regularly in Italy: almost any time new phone cables are buried somewhere in the country, or the foundation of a building is excavated, or a road is widened, art and archeology experts are ready to rush to the scene to determine the condition and importance of any potential finds.
In the case of portable objects like the coins, the objects are taken away to be studied and restored at an appropriate facility. Though the fate of the latest find will not be determined for weeks or months, reports are that they could allow the nearby historical museum in Como to expand.
Less portable architectural finds like ancient roads, monuments, or buildings are evaluated, and if they are important enough they are either restored or in many cases covered up again to be preserved for the future.
That is a far cry from previous generations, where graves, historical buildings, and monuments were often opened and sacked by freelance bandits long before archaeologists could arrive to preserve them. Today, many of the world's most important museums include artifacts illustrating Roman or Italian art, culture, or history in their collections. Most of those items were in one way or another smuggled outside the country.
That rarely happens now. And while the constant awareness of potential historical finds at every turn adds to the cost and lengthens the timing of major infrastructure projects in Italy, expert observers told Xinhua that the country is now one of the world's leaders in terms of identifying and protecting its cultural riches.
"Mostly through necessity, Italy has become part of the vanguard in terms of the use of technology, methods, and planning to make sure important artifacts are not damaged or destroyed or lost," Barbara Grassi, the head of scientific management at the excavation in Como, where the coins were uncovered, said in an interview.
Grassi said the use of cutting-edge practices have become such commonplace in Italy that at times officials from other parts of the world with similar historical situations travel to Italy to observe the strategies used.
"There are still some abuses, but I must say that Italy is doing a better job today than ever before," she said.
According to Stefano Della Torre, director of the department of architecture, construction engineering, and environment at Milan's Polytechnic University, simple knowledge of historical eras can help avoid problems.
For example, Della Torre said, the newest parts of underground metro networks in big cities are built very deep below the surface because it is known that the most ancient ruins are located at a certain depth.
"By digging deeper with this kind of project, most of the problems are sidestepped and if something important is uncovered as part of the project, then the plan can be adjusted to either avoid it or to display it in one of the metro stops," Della Torre told Xinhua.
