Galley Slaves

Buried, so to speak, by news of the tsunami and the inauguration was a fascinating story in the Washington Post about the recent discovery of the ruins of Nero's palace in Rome. According to correspondent Daniel Williams, frescoes of "naked men harvesting grapes and making wine" were found on a giant arch marking an entrance to Nero's infamous Domus Aurea, the "Golden House." The Romans themselves actually hid the palace from view after Nero's suicide so as to wipe away any trace of the tyrant's rule. (It is located forty feet below the Trajan Baths while Nero's artificial lake was paved over by the Colosseum.) Archaelogists are unsure what the newly uncovered halls and grottoes will lead to but one Abner Ravenwood was certain he would at last find the Well of Souls.