Older than Rome: Archaeologists have made a unique discovery beneath a city in Italy.

Italian archaeologists have uncovered a large burial site that predates the arrival of the Romans, located beneath the Alpine city of Trento. It is believed that over 200 tombs were created even before the founding of the city of Rome, although scholars currently date them to between 900 and 700 BC. Archaeologists think that flooding in the region helped preserve the ancient necropolis, which contains numerous burial artifacts found within the tombs, as reported by Popular Mechanics.

Well-preserved tombs, complete with stelae over 2 meters tall that served as gravestones, have been lying beneath the city of Trento in Italy for nearly 3000 years.

If it weren't for some restoration work on one of the many historical buildings in the city, this burial site might have gone undiscovered. However, after a group of workers made the initial find, archaeologists began further excavations of the ancient necropolis, which is dated between 900 and 700 BC.

Scientists have already uncovered more than 200 tombs, some of which are still filled with burial inventory, and they believe this may just be the beginning, as there could be even more graves yet to be found.

This significant burial site was established long before the Romans arrived in the Alps, providing new insights into burial rituals of the time as well as the commercial interactions between the inhabitants of ancient Trento and their neighbors.

According to archaeologist Franco Marzatico, the Alpine peoples were not isolated from other cultures and maintained close ties, particularly with the Etruscans.

Researchers believe that the area of modern Trento once featured a wide riverbed and a smaller network of streams interwoven with each other, separated by temporary sandy shoals. Archaeologists think that the necropolis was created in a drier part of the ancient city. At some point, flooding submerged this location, preserving the tombs, which are now situated about 8 meters below the current level of the city.

The layout of the burial site indicates that over time, ancillary graves formed around the main tombs. Inside them, archaeologists have discovered ashes and calcined fragments of bones that were once in perishable containers placed above the burial items wrapped in fabric.

The discovered metal weapons and intricate decorative artifacts demonstrate the connections between the local inhabitants and other peoples living to the south.

According to archaeologists, the Iron Age was a period of profound transformations from a historical and cultural perspective throughout the Mediterranean, including the Alps. Great civilizations such as the Etruscans, Phoenicians, Greeks, and Celts flourished. One of the most significant events of this period was the founding of the city of Rome in 753 BC. It is possible that the uncovered necropolis was established even before the founding of Rome.