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(Feb. 17, 2015) Villa Of Ben-Hur's Rival Has Been Identified
2/17/2015 6:39:24 PM
Archaeologists investigating the Tuscan island of Elba have identified the remains of the villa belonging to the real-life individual that inspired one of the principal characters in the epic tale of Ben-Hur. Overlooking Portoferraio's bay, the once magnificent 1st-century B.C. estate, known as Villa Le Grotte (the Caves) because of the shape of its vaulted facades facing the sea, has long been believed to have been owned by Marcus Valerius Messalla Corvinus, portrayed as Ben-Hur in the Hollywood blockbuster starring Charlton Heston. While Ben-Hur was a fictional villain, dreamed up in Lew Wallace's 1880 novel and immortalized in the 1959 MGM movie, the Messalla character was based on a real-world historical figure. This photo shows the remains of a swimming pool once encircled by a colonnaded porch reveal the magnificence of the site. Unfortunately little has remained of the villa's original decorations. Startling evidence about Le Grotte's owner came when archaeologists led by Franco Cambi, professor of methodology of archaeological research at the University of Siena, excavated the area just below the villa. "We were looking for ancient furnaces used in the production of iron, but we ended up with a surprising finding," Cambi told Discovery News. The now ruined villa has long been associated to Messalla's patrician family but no evidence was ever found to confirm the speculation. It is known that the poet Ovid, of whom Messalla was patron, went to visit Messalla's son on Elba prior to his exile on the Black Sea. However, in his account Ovid doesn't provide any detail about the place he was staying. Along with the remains of a large collapsed building, the archaeologists found five dolia -- large earthenware vases -- complete with their covers. Each vase could hold between 1,300 and 1,500 liters of wine.
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