Rare Find

Archaeologists in Rome have announced the discovery of the imperial scepter and other important objects that once belonged to the Roman emperor Maxentius. The find includes many of the objects that would have signified his status as well as the first lances and javelins ever found large;y intact.

Excavation under Rome's Palatine Hill near the Colosseum turned up items including three lances and four javelins that experts said are striking for their completeness — digs usually turn up only fragments — and the fact that they are the only known artifacts of their kind.

Some of the objects, which accompanied the emperor during his public appearances, are believed to be the base for the emperor's standards — rectangular or triangular flags, officials said.

An imperial scepter with a carved flower and a globe, and a number of glass spheres, believed to be a symbolic representation of the earth, also were discovered.

The discovery was announced Wednesday by Italy's Culture Minister Francesco Rutelli during a visit to New York.

The items, inside wooden boxes and wrapped in linen and silk, were found buried at a sanctuary last year and have since been restored and analyzed. The depth of the burial allows experts to date them to the early 4th century A.D., ministry officials said.

"These artifacts clearly belonged to the emperor, especially the scepter, which is very elaborated, it's not an item you would let someone else have," Clementina Panella, the archaeologist who made the discovery, said Friday.

"As far as we know, there are no similar findings," said Angelo Bottini, the state's top official for archaeology in Rome. "Similar representations are only on coins and paintings, but we never saw them for real," he said. Bottini added that the artifacts will be shown to the public in February.

It is believed that the objects were buried by those loyal to Maxentius after he was killed. Maxentius died while retreating from a major defeat by the troops of Constantine at the battle of the Milvian Bridge. This is the battle, incidentally, where tradition says that Constantine fought under the sign of the cross.