Roman Ruins

Explore 1000+ Roman Ruins By Type and Country

Roman ruins form a visible record of the architectural, engineering, and urban legacy of the Roman Empire. Distributed across Europe, North Africa, and the Near East, these remains include public buildings, infrastructure, and domestic structures that reflect regional variations and shared construction techniques.

This page presents a searchable overview of over 1,000 Roman archaeological sites, including theatres, amphitheatres, temples, baths, aqueducts, forums, city walls, and bridges. The material is organized by type and region. Each site is linked to a dedicated article containing historical context and a summary of surviving remains, where available.

Particular attention is given to well-preserved examples of ancient Roman ruins. Together, these ruins contribute to a broader understanding of Roman imperial infrastructure, civic life, and architectural development.

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For each country, you will find a list of ruins along with key information: The name of the site, the country it is located in and a generated weighted score that balances both the quality and frequency of visits.

This helps offer a more accurate picture of each site’s historical appeal and present-day interest.

In addition to the data, links are included to dedicated country-specific articles that offer deeper insights into the sites, their historical significance, and what remains visible today. Where available, you can also explore further resources, detailed pages on individual sites or maps related to each region.

Complete Overview of All Sites

Use the search bar above the table to quickly find specific Roman ruins. You can search by country (e.g. Italy), site name (e.g. Pompeii), or type (e.g. amphitheatre, bath, aqueduct). The table updates instantly as you type.

Why So Many Roman Ruins Survive

Roman ruins have survived in such abundance due to a combination of durable construction, historical circumstance, and later reuse. Roman builders used extremely robust materials, notably opus caementicium (Roman concrete) and stone. Structures like Rome’s Pantheon and certain aqueducts are still intact after two millennia. Roman concrete, mixed with volcanic ash and lime, exhibited self-healing properties: cracks could recalcify over time, making structures long-lived. Stone masonry, from marble and limestone to brick-faced concrete, gave Roman buildings a resilience that has outlasted many modern edifices. Standardized engineering and design also played a role. The Romans constructed thousands of similar roads, forts, and civic buildings across the empire; even if only a fraction survive, their sheer number ensures many remain visible today. Their cities were often laid out in regular plans with durable infrastructure, meaning the “footprint” of Roman urbanism is still detectable in many modern towns.

Natural burial and benign neglect have preserved numerous sites. When cities were abandoned or destroyed, they were sometimes buried by sand, soil, or volcanic ash, shielding structures from weathering. The North African city of Leptis Magna (in modern Libya), for instance, lay buried under sand dunes for centuries, resulting in well-preserved ruins when excavated. Pompeii and Herculaneum, engulfed by Vesuvius’s eruption in AD 79, are famous examples where entire buildings, mosaics, and even organic materials were sealed in ash and thus protected from later looting or erosion. In other cases, geographic remoteness or later decline left sites untouched. For example, Volubilis in Morocco became an isolated agricultural outpost and was never built over in medieval times, allowing its forum, arches, and mosaic-floored villas to survive with a high degree of authenticity.

Adaptive reuse of Roman structures has also ensured their survival. Many “near-complete” Roman buildings persisted because they were repurposed in post-Roman times. Temples, basilicas, and city walls were not always torn down; instead, they found new life as churches, forts, or civic buildings. In Rome, the Pantheon’s conversion to a church in the 7th century spared it from the fate of many pagan temples. Likewise, Maison Carrée in Nîmes and Temple of Bacchus in Baalbek (Heliopolis) – among the best-preserved Roman temples – survived partly due to later use or incorporation into fortifications. According to archaeologists, Baalbek’s Temple of Bacchus was so intact because it served as a fortified residence for local lords in the 11th–12th centuries. Even Roman city walls often remained useful: the Aurelian Walls of Rome and the fortifications of Londinium (London) were retained and refurbished across the ages. In London, segments of the original 3rd-century wall still stand up to 4 m high near the Tower, with medieval masonry continuing above.

Finally, systematic archaeological excavation and preservation efforts in the last two centuries have brought many ruins to light and protected them. Scholars and engineers in the 18th–20th centuries (and continuing today) excavated sites like Timgad, Ephesus, and Jerash, ensuring that ruins once buried or collapsed are now conserved for study and public display. National heritage laws and UNESCO designations help safeguard these sites from modern development. 

Most Common Types of Roman Ruins Around the World

Roman ruins encompass a broad typology of structures, reflecting the standardized yet diverse nature of Roman architecture. Below are the most common types of Roman remains found worldwide, each illustrated with notable examples:

Temples

Roman temples are among the most recognizable ruins. Typically built on a podium with a columned portico and inner cella (shrine chamber), they were often the focal points of forums or sanctuaries. Remains of many Roman temples survive (especially in Rome itself), though relatively few are still standing roofed structures. Those that do were usually converted to other uses, which helped preserve them. One celebrated example is the Maison Carrée in Nîmes, France, a small Corinthian temple of the 1st century BC, dedicated to Augustus’s heirs. It is one of the best-preserved Roman temples in the world, surviving nearly intact through use as a church and later a public building. Its tall podium, deep porch, and engaged columns exemplify a classic Roman pseudoperipteral temple (having columns along the sides embedded in the walls).

Another is the Temple of Bacchus at Baalbek (Lebanon), part of a sanctuary complex. This 2nd-century temple, 66 m by 35 m in size, remains almost entirely intact, with its cella walls and 54 monumental columns still towering 20 m high. It is often considered the best-preserved Roman temple anywhere. The survival of the Temple of Bacchus, like the neighboring Temple of Jupiter (of which only six giant columns stand), owes much to later adaptation (in medieval times it was used as a citadel). Smaller provincial temples also dot the former empire: from the Temple of Augustus and Livia in Vienne (France) to the Temple of Zeus at Dougga (Tunisia), many retain columns or podiums. Temple ruins may be fragmentary (a few columns or foundations), but even these remains convey the sacred architecture of Rome. For example, the standing columns of Rome’s Temple of Saturn in the Forum, or the desert temple ruins at Palmyra. 

Amphitheatres

Amphitheatres (oval or circular arenas for public spectacles such as gladiator combats, animal hunts, and mock battles) are among the most common and impressive Roman ruins. The largest amphitheatre, the Colosseum in Rome (Flavian Amphitheatre, AD 80), still stands as an iconic ruin. Dozens of other Roman amphitheatres survive in varying states across the empire, from Britain to Tunisia. These structures, typically oval with ascending seating tiers (cavea) and subterranean chambers, were built of stone and concrete, enabling many to persist.

A notable example is the Amphitheatre of El Jem in Tunisia (ancient Thysdrus). Built around AD 238, El Jem’s arena measures 148 × 122 m and could hold roughly 35,000 spectators. Exceptionally well-preserved, it is often considered one of the best-preserved Roman stone ruins in the world. The structure’s outer walls (up to 36 m high) and most of its seating vaults are still intact, making it comparable to the Colosseum in scale and state of conservation. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Another example is the arena of Arles in France (Les Arènes d’Arles), a 20,000-seat amphitheatre from the 1st century BC, which remains largely extant. Its two levels of arcades (each with 60 arches) are preserved, and in the Middle Ages the arena was fortified with towers (later removed) as a small town.

Similarly, the amphitheatre in Pompeii (dating to 70 BC, capacity ~20,000) is the oldest known stone amphitheatre and is remarkably complete, lacking only its awning and wooden seating. In Spain, the amphitheatres of Mérida and Tarragona survive as hollowed but recognizable structures.

Theatres

Roman theatres (semicircular performance venues for drama, music, orations, etc.) are another prevalent ruin type. Modeled on Greek theaters but with Roman adaptations, they featured a half-circle orchestra, tiered seating built into natural slopes or supported by vaults, and an elaborate stage backdrop (scaenae frons). Roman theatres were built across the empire and many survive in impressive condition. Unlike amphitheatres, which are elliptical and used for gladiatorial games, theatres are semicircular and used for more refined entertainment.

One of the finest examples is the Theatre of Aspendos in Turkey. It was erected in the 2nd century AD under Marcus Aurelius.  Its cavea (seating) and two-tiered stage building remain almost entirely intact, and the theater can still accommodate thousands for modern concerts. The complete scaenae frons (stage wall) of Aspendos, with its decorative niches and columns, is a rare survival that gives an authentic impression of a Roman theatre. In fact, Aspendos’ theatre was so solidly built that Seljuk Turks in the 13th century converted the stage building into a palace, helping to preserve it.

Another well-known theatre ruin is the Roman theatre of Mérida (Spain). Part of Mérida’s UNESCO-listed Roman ensemble, the theatre (capacity ~6,000) has been partially reconstructed: several tiers of seating and the beautifully decorated two-story stage backdrop with Corinthian columns have been re-erected, making it again usable for performances.

The Roman Theatre in Amman (ancient Philadelphia, Jordan) is another example. Built in the 2nd century (likely under Antoninus Pius), it is a 6,000-seat theatre carved into a hillside. Today it has been restored and is a landmark in downtown Amman, regularly hosting cultural events.

Other notable theatre ruins include those at Orange (France), which has an intact 37 m-high stage wall, and Caesarea in Israel (a smaller seaside theatre). Many have benefited from restoration, but even unrestored ones often retain a clear form. For instance, the theatres at Pompeii and at Bosra (Syria) survive with extensive stone seating, though Bosra’s now has an enclosing Arab fort. Roman theatres, whether nearly complete (Aspendos, Orange) or in ruins, remain common archaeological features. 

Public Baths (Thermae)

Public baths (thermae) ruins are widespread, often among the largest structures in Roman cities. Bath complexes typically included cold, warm, and hot rooms (frigidarium, tepidarium, caldarium), exercise courtyards (palaestrae), pools, and sometimes libraries and gardens. They were built of stone, brick, and concrete on a large scale, with extensive vaulting, which means many have left substantial remains. Even when roofs have fallen, the walls of bath buildings often survive.

In Rome, the ruins of the Baths of Caracalla (early 3rd century AD) are especially impressive. Covering 25 hectares, this complex could accommodate up to 1,600 bathers at a time. Today its giant brick walls, some up to 30 m high, still stand amid the open air, and mosaic floors from exercise rooms can be seen in situ. The extant ruins, including portions of massive vaulted halls, are the most extensive of any surviving Roman bath, representing the apex of imperial thermae architecture. Likewise, the Baths of Diocletian in Rome (c. AD 305) survive in part, one frigidarium hall was converted by Michelangelo into the church of Santa Maria degli Angeli, preserving its cavernous vaulted space. These Rome examples underline how robust Roman bath construction was, and how reuse saved portions.

Beyond Rome, public baths are found in many Roman towns. The Roman Baths of Bath (Aquae Sulis, England) are an exceptional case where an entire geothermal bath complex is preserved. Built in the 1st century AD around natural hot springs, the Bath complex included a bathing hall and temple of Sulis-Minerva. Today the main bath’s stone pool, overflow drain, and parts of its heating system are intact and still filled by hot spring water, one of the best-preserved Roman thermae in the world. The site, now a museum, shows the bathing facilities (pools, changing rooms, hypocaust underfloor heating) partially as they were 2,000 years ago, making it among the most famous Roman remains north of the Alps. In continental Europe and North Africa, bath ruins are common: Trier (Germany) has the substantial ruins of the Kaiserthermen; Timgad (Algeria) contains at least 14 bathhouses identifiable in its ruins; and Herculaneum (Italy) preserved small urban baths with wooden shelves and doors in place due to the unique volcanic burial. The sheer number of surviving bath structures is explained by their solid masonry and often central locations that discouraged total spoliation.

Roman baths were social hubs and feats of engineering (with complex plumbing and heating), and their ruins reflect this. High walls, half-domed apse rooms, and suspensions of flooring (pillars of the hypocaust) are frequently visible. The challenge in preserving baths is managing their enormous, roofless shells against weathering. Many have undergone conservation (e.g., covering delicate mosaics or propping arches). Some, like Bath’s complex, benefit from being partially subterranean or integrated into later buildings.

Forums and Public Squares

Forums, the civic and economic hearts of Roman cities, often survive as open spaces ringed by ruins of important buildings. A typical forum included a central paved square surrounded by colonnades, temples, a basilica (public hall), shrines, and sometimes markets or offices. While forums themselves were open areas, many of their defining structures have left remains, and their general layout is often legible in archaeological sites.

One famous example is the Forum of Pompeii. Walking through Pompeii’s forum today, one sees the foundations and columns of the Capitolium (Temple of Jupiter) at the north end, the long base of the Basilica (law court) on one side, and remnants of the Macellum (market) and other municipal buildings. These ruins, set against the backdrop of Mount Vesuvius, clearly mark the center of daily life in the city. The standing columns and entryways into the basilica and marketplace let visitors reconstruct the scene of a Roman forum: An open piazza alive with vendors, politicians, and citizens. Pompeii’s forum is uniquely well-preserved due to its sudden burial in AD 79, which froze in time even the public notice boards and statues (many now removed to the museum).

In North Africa, the forum of Leptis Magna (Libya) offers another example. Leptis Magna was lavishly renovated under Emperor Septimius Severus (a native of the city) in the early 3rd century. He built a new forum (the Severan Forum) with a huge basilica and a monumental Arch of Septimius Severus at its entrance. Today, Leptis’s Severan Forum lies in impressive ruin: portions of the basilica’s columns still stand, and the richly decorated arch has been reconstructed from fallen pieces. The scale and ornament of these remains (marble columns, lion-head fountains) illustrate how a forum could be used to broadcast imperial ideology and beneficence. Leptis Magna’s whole city, buried by sand and thus protected, is among the best-preserved Roman cityscapes in the Mediterranean, with its forum and adjoining marketplace exceptionally intact.

Many other cities have forum ruins: Rome’s Forum Romanum itself is a tangle of foundations and a few standing columns (from temples and basilicas). Timgad in Algeria shows the standard colonial forum on a smaller scale, a rectangular plaza whose outline and surrounding public buildings are still evident, including a surviving Capitolium (temple) podium and a later Byzantine church inserted in the square. In Volubilis (Morocco), one finds the remains of a basilica with its facade columns re-erected, and a half-intact triumphal arch adjacent to the forum square. At Ephesus (Turkey), the State Agora (political forum) and adjacent commercial agora both have ruins of stoas and gateways.

Forum ruins are thus common and highly instructive. They highlight the standard planning Romans employed: one can often find the intersecting main streets (cardo and decumanus) leading into the forum space, fulfilling the ideal of a city’s logical organization. The persistence of forum sites in modern city centers (e.g., plazas in London, Paris, Barcelona often correspond to the Roman forum location) sometimes means their remains lie under later buildings, but where exposed, they provide a focal point for archaeological parks.

Aqueducts and Water Systems

The Romans were renowned for their aqueducts and water infrastructure, and accordingly, many remnants of these systems survive (aqueduct bridges, lead pipes and cisterns for example). Roman aqueducts carried water from distant sources to cities using gravity, often necessitating impressive bridge structures over valleys. 

A prime example is the Pont du Gard in southern France. Built in the mid-1st century AD to supply water to the city of Nemausus (Nîmes), the Pont du Gard is a three-tiered arch bridge spanning the Gardon River. Rising ~49 m high with its stack of arches, it remains one of the best-preserved Roman aqueduct bridges, remarkably intact in its masonry. UNESCO recognized it in 1985 for its exceptional preservation and engineering ingenuity. The structure carried water over 50 km to Nîmes with a precise gradient (only 34 cm drop per km). Today, all three levels of arches are still standing, making Pont du Gard both a functional footbridge and an icon of Roman engineering. Its survival owes partly to later use as a toll bridge in the medieval period, which ensured maintenance.

Equally famous is the Aqueduct of Segovia in Spain. Likely built in the late 1st or early 2nd century AD, Segovia’s aqueduct carried water ~17 km from the Frío River to the city. In town, it traverses a valley on a double-tier of granite arches for 813 m, reaching 28.5 m high at its tallest point. The Segovia aqueduct has an excellent state of conservation, virtually all its 167 arches still stand without mortar. For nearly 18 centuries it remained in use. Its longevity is attributed to solid construction and continuous repair during the Roman, medieval, and modern eras (it was delivering water as late as the 19th century). The aqueduct is so intact that one can appreciate the subtle design elements, like the differing pier thicknesses and the slight gradient. 

Besides these, many other aqueduct sections endure: the arches of the Aqua Claudia and Aqua Anio Novus in Rome are visible in spots; multiple arcade stretches dot Italy (e.g., near Tivoli and in the Campagna). In Tunisia, the Zaghouan aqueduct to Carthage still has long ruined stretches standing on arid plains. Even lesser-known examples, like parts of the aqueduct of Valens in Istanbul or Caesarea Maritima’s seashore aqueduct in Israel, remain as evocative ruins. Apart from bridges, castella aquae (distribution tanks) and reservoirs survive in some cities, and lead pipes (fistulae) have been excavated, providing insight into the water supply network. The Romans also mastered drainage and sewer construction. For instance, Rome’s Cloaca Maxima (grand sewer) still functions partially today.

Water system ruins illustrate the practicality of Roman engineering and are often among the oldest surviving infrastructure in a region. They highlight how Rome’s desire for urban amenities (baths, fountains, latrines) drove major construction projects. The presence of these aqueduct remains in many countries (France, Spain, Italy, Tunisia, Turkey, Israel, etc.), underscores the empire-wide priority Rome placed on reliable water supply and the enduring success of their solutions.

Roads and Milestones

The Romans famously built a vast network of roads, and while an ancient road is less immediately eye-catching than a temple or amphitheatre, many Roman roads or their traces still exist. Often these survive as roadbeds, paving stones, or earthworks, sometimes even still in use or paralleled by modern highways. Accompanying these roads were milestones, cylindrical stone markers typically inscribed with distances and emperors’ names, many of which have been found where they fell or even still upright.

An iconic example is the Via Appia (Appian Way) in Italy. Constructed from 312 BC onward, the Via Appia connected Rome to Capua and eventually Brundisium (Brindisi). Sections of its ancient paving (large polygonal basalt stones) remain visible, especially just outside Rome where the Appian Way is preserved in a regional park. Other Italian roads like the Via Flaminia also have surviving stretches and bridges. In England, the straight alignment of Roman roads like Watling Street is often followed by modern roads, and occasionally original cobbles or foundations are exposed in archaeological digs.

In provincial areas where later development was sparse, Roman road remnants are clearer. For instance, in the Middle East, portions of the Via Nova Traiana, a major 2nd-century road in Roman Arabia (Jordan), can still be traced. In southern Jordan’s deserts, one can find stretches of this road’s gravel bed and even a few remaining paving stones. Along the route, fallen Roman milestones have been discovered and left in situ. These milestones (typically cylindrical limestone pillars) might list the name of an emperor and the distance to the next town. In Jordan, milestones of the Via Nova Traiana and other roads have been invaluable in mapping the ancient network; some lie near their original positions by tumbleweed-laden tracks. In Europe, many milestones have been collected into museums, but occasionally you encounter one on a roadside or built into a church wall. They give very direct evidence of Roman presence and administration.

Parts of Roman bridges, culverts, or road embankments also persist. For example, the Alcántara Bridge in Spain (built AD 104 to carry a road over the Tagus) still stands in full working order – an arched stone bridge that has required only minimal repair over 19 centuries. In France’s Massif Central hills, the Roman Millau Bridge (Pont Ambroix) partially survives with one arch in the river. And many Roman cities show remnants of cardo and decumanus streets paved with stone slabs, often with wheel ruts still visible (as in Pompeii, where stepping stones for pedestrians remain in place on the streets).

Roman roads and related ruins emphasize the connectivity of the empire. They laid the groundwork for subsequent transportation routes in Europe and beyond. Preservation challenges for roads include modern development, many are buried under cities or highways, but where protected, they provide a tangible sense of the distances Romans conquered. 

City Walls and Fortifications

City walls and fortresses built by the Romans are frequently encountered ruins, sometimes well-preserved. Roman defensive architecture included town walls (often with towers and gates), frontier fortifications like Hadrian’s Wall in Britain or the Limes in Germany, and legionary fortresses. These structures were usually of stone or stone-and-earth construction, and in many cases later ages maintained or built upon them, aiding their survival.

One of the best examples is the Roman walls of Lugo in Galicia, Spain. Built in the late 3rd century AD to enclose the town of Lucus Augusti, Lugo’s walls form a 2.12 km circuit with all ten of their original gates and 85 towers (46 fully intact) still standing. Reaching 8–12 m in height and about 4 m thick, these walls are constructed of inner cores of earth and stone faced with slate and granite. Lugo’s walls are unique in that they survive completely intact around an entire city, the only fully intact Roman city wall circuit in the world. UNESCO describes them as “the finest surviving example of late Roman military fortifications” in Western Europe. Their preservation is partly due to continuous use: Medieval and early modern Lugo still used the walls for defense and later for promenade. 

In other cities, Roman walls are fragmentary but significant. London’s Roman Wall (built around AD 200) survives in short stretches in the modern city. A section by Tower Hill, for example, retains about 4 m height of Roman stonework at the base, identifiable by its courses of squared ragstone and tile, with later medieval additions above. Numerous British cities (York, Chester, Canterbury, etc.) have portions of Roman walls incorporated into later town defenses. In continental Europe, Autun in France and Bath in England preserve Roman gates (Autun’s Porte Saint-André and Porte d’Arroux still stand nearly to full height, and Bath’s city wall remnants include an exposed segment in the basement of the Pump Room). Rome’s own Aurelian Walls (late 3rd century) still encircle much of the city, significantly rebuilt over time, but fundamentally on Roman foundations with many original towers and brick courses visible.

Beyond city circuits, forts and frontier walls also survive. Hadrian’s Wall (AD 122) across northern England is a famous example: while much stone was robbed over the centuries, long lengths of its stone lower courses still snake over the hills, and several milecastles (small forts) and turrets are preserved to shoulder height or more. The “Saxan Dyke” in Germany and remains of the Danube limes forts exhibit similar survival of lower walls and ditches. Roman castra (forts) in places like Housesteads or Caerleon have walls that outline the compounds. And in the Middle East, desert forts (like Qasr Bshir in Jordan, a late Roman castellum) stand almost fully roofed, having been maintained or at least untouched in remote locales.

These defensive ruins underscore Rome’s military imprint and the need for security in antiquity. Their preservation is often aided by later adaptation (city walls frequently were kept up through the Middle Ages). However, many have also been lost to urban expansion, so the survivors are invaluable. Preservation efforts range from full restoration (repointing mortar, as at Lugo) to leaving them in ruin but stabilized. They face challenges like weathering of exposed stone and, in some regions, earthquake damage (e.g., portions of the Antioch walls in Turkey fell in quakes). 

Urban Residences (Domus)

In the residential architecture category, the typical elite Roman urban house (domus) has left plenty of ruins, especially in cities like Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Ostia where domestic structures were preserved. A domus was a single-family townhouse, often one-story (in early empire) or with an upper floor, centered around internal courtyards like the atrium (with impluvium pool) and peristyle garden. While many Roman houses in later cities were replaced by new construction, those that survived volcanic burial or were abandoned intact give us a detailed picture of private life. Even when walls have crumbled, the plan of houses (with floor mosaics, wall fresco fragments, and even plumbing) is frequently visible in excavations.

The premier examples come from Pompeii. Entire neighborhoods of Pompeii’s domus are exposed, with varying degrees of preservation. Some houses retain standing walls up to the roofline (Herculaneum even has multi-story houses with wooden elements preserved by carbonization). Among these, the House of the Faun in Pompeii is one of the best examples. Covering nearly an insula (city block) with about 3,000 m² of floor area, it was an opulent residence named after a bronze statue of a dancing faun found on its impluvium. The House of the Faun dates to the 2nd century BC and is one of the largest and most elaborate Roman houses discovered. Today, one can walk through its ground plan: two atria (entrance courts) and two peristyle gardens are still delineated by surviving columns; floors are adorned with famous mosaics (now replicas on-site, like the Alexander Mosaic depicting Alexander the Great’s battle, whose original is in Naples Museum). The layout includes numerous rooms (cubicula, triclinia, baths) that reflect an aristocratic lifestyle, and even without roofs, the remaining walls and columns help imagine its size. Pompeii boasts many other well-preserved domus, such as the House of the Vettii (with bright wall frescoes entirely conserved) and the House of the Tragic Poet (known for its “Cave Canem” mosaic at the threshold). These houses often have intact decoration and fixtures: frescoes in situ, marble-tiled impluvium basins, carbonized furniture or doors (in Herculaneum), giving an authentic view of domestic spaces.

Outside the Vesuvian cities, domus ruins survive in places like Ostia Antica (the House of Cupid and Psyche retains marble floors and some walls), Dougga in Tunisia (the House of Dionysus has mosaic floors in place), and scattered through any Roman city excavation as lower walls and floors. In Rome itself, the House of Livia on the Palatine preserves magnificent frescoed rooms. Volubilis in Morocco offers at least half a dozen large houses with mosaic floors still in their original locations (e.g., the House of Orpheus, House of the Labors of Hercules), though walls are usually preserved only to a low height. What tends to remain in domus ruins are the durable parts: mosaic or tiled floors, wall plaster (sometimes), columns or colonnades from courtyards, and architectural elements like thresholds, stair bases, or cisterns. Even if the mudbrick upper walls and wooden roofs are gone, one can navigate the “floor plan” like a blueprint.

These residential ruins are crucial for understanding daily life and social hierarchy in Rome. They show the difference between lavish aristocratic homes and simpler abodes (though common insula apartment blocks usually survived poorly, often only foundations remain). Preservation of domus often relies on protective shelters (many Pompeian houses are partially re-roofed to shield frescoes and mosaics) and careful conservation of art. They also raise the challenge of in-situ display of artifacts (Pompeii has struggled with theft and degradation of exposed mosaics and paintings, leading to many being moved to museums). Nonetheless, visiting a site like Pompeii, one can still wander through actual Roman rooms: Kitchens with brick hearths, gardens with statue bases, and bedrooms decorated with paintings.

Villas

In addition to urban houses, the Romans built villas, country estates that could range from working farms to palatial retreats,  and many villa ruins dot the landscape, especially in rural areas of the former empire. Roman villas often featured multiple wings, courtyards, bath suites, and decorated rooms, particularly for the estates of the wealthy. Some were coastal or hilltop pleasure villas; others were the centers of large agricultural estates (villa rustica). Their ruins are typically spread out horizontally, often identified by mosaic floors, collapsed wall rubble, and remains of private bath complexes.

Perhaps the most famous is the Villa Romana del Casale near Piazza Armerina in Sicily. This enormous 4th-century AD villa is thought to have been the estate of a high-ranking Roman (possibly a governor). It contains over 50 rooms with nearly all floors covered in mosaic, an unparalleled 3,500 m² of mosaic pavements, the largest such collection in situ. Thanks to a landslide that buried the complex in the 12th century, the mosaics survived in good condition. Today, protected by modern roofing and walkways, visitors can admire scenes such as the famous “bikini girls” mosaic in the gymnasium and the grand Great Hunt mosaic that spans a 60 m corridor. Walls up to a few meters high survive in parts, and one can discern the villa’s layout: a large peristyle courtyard, a basilica-like reception hall, private bathhouse, bedrooms, and service areas. 

Another well-preserved villa ruin is Hadrian’s Villa at Tivoli (Italy), a 2nd-century complex built by Emperor Hadrian as a retreat. Covering at least 120 ha originally, it included dozens of structures: palaces, libraries, baths, guest pavilions, and recreations of famous landscapes (like the Canopus reflecting pool with columns). Today, many elements survive as ruins: The large dome of the Maritime Theatre villa, the pillars and statuary bases of the Canopus, long cryptoporticus corridors, and mosaic floors scattered throughout. 

Across the provinces, one finds numerous villa sites: Fishbourne Palace in Britain (1st century, possibly a palace-villa, with a section of mosaic-floored rooms and a reconstructed colonnade on display); Villa Poppea at Oplontis near Pompeii (a seaside luxury villa with frescoes, preserved by Vesuvius’ ash as well); Pergamon’s Asklepion Villa in Turkey; or the Villa of Loupian in France (where a modern shelter protects mosaics of a large late Roman villa). Some villas were primarily economic centers, their ruins might include presses for olive oil or wine, barns, and slave quarters, though these often leave less dramatic remains.